Nuke Plant Inspections Find Flaws in Disaster Readiness

Nuke Plant Inspections Find Flaws in Disaster Readiness

Problems with emergency equipment and disaster procedures are far more pervasive than publicly describe

By John Sullivan, Ariel Wittenberg and ProPublica | June 30, 2011

A special inspection of U.S. nuclear plants after the Fukushima disaster in Japan revealed problems with emergency equipment and disaster procedures that are far more pervasive than publicly described by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, a review of inspection reports by ProPublica shows.

While the deficiencies don't pose an immediate risk and are relatively easy to fix, critics say they could complicate the response to a major disaster and point to a weakness in NRC oversight.

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Agency officials unveiled the http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/follow-up-rpts.html">results in May, stating in http://pbadupws.nrc.gov/docs/ML1114/ML111400475.pdf">a news release that "out of 65 operating reactor sites, 12 had issues with one or more of the requirements during the inspections."

But ProPublica's examination of the reports found that http://www.propublica.org/article/nuclear-plants-and-disasters-nrc-inspection-results">60 plant sites had deficiencies that ranged from broken machinery, missing equipment and poor training to things like blocked drains or a lack of preventive maintenance. Some of the more serious findings include:

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