Internal NRC contradictions in initial response to Fukushima Nuclear Crisis

As the first anniversary of the beginning of the Fukushima Nuclear Catastrophe approaches on March 11, 2012, it is instructive to look back at the internal contradictions of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's initial reesponse to the crisis.

On March 13, 2011, NRC issued a media release entitled "NRC SEES NO RADIATION AT HARMFUL LEVELS REACHING U.S. FROM DAMAGED JAPANESE NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS." In it, the NRC stated:

"Given the thousands of miles between the two countries, Hawaii, Alaska, the U.S. Territories and the U.S. West Coast are not expected to experience any harmful levels of radioactivity."

However, the Washington Post reported on Feb. 6, 2012 that at the very same time, a worst-case NRC analysis actually indicated that radioactive Iodine-131 fallout from Fukushima could reach levels hazardous to human thyroids in Alaska:

'While assuring Americans publicly that there was no danger, the NRC did not disclose one worst-case scenario, which did not rule out the possibility of radiation exceeding safe levels for thyroid doses in Alaska, the e-mails show. “Because things were uncertain, we considered it but the data that was available . . . did not support that very pessimistic scenario so no, it was not discussed publicly at that point,” NRC spokesman Scott Burnell said.'