After quelling internecine dissent within the Nuclear Regulatory Commission over what the U.S. should be doing to make its domestic nuclear power plants safer in the wake of the Fukushima Daiichi meltdowns, the commission agreed to proceed with a majority of steps recommended by its staff Aug. 19. A few days later, a 5.8 magnitude earthquake on the Eastern Seaboard caused 12 nuclear facilities to report seismic influences. The Aug. 23 quake did not trigger automatic shut downs although the North Anna reactors in Virginia lost outside power sources and shut down after the earthquake. Included in the new requirements pending before the NRC are “walkdowns” of plants like those in California to determine whether earthquakes are more of a threat than previously considered. What the commission rejected from its Japan Task Force recommendations is that its internal methods of regulation be scrutinized and revamped using “lessons learned” from Fukushima. The accepted new requirements--to be implemented in the next few months--are subject to an Aug. 31 commission review.
