A week after Dominion’s shareholders rejected 12
energy-related proposals[1],
including a “report on the special review of nuclear safety policies and
practices” by an independent committee, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
announced Monday[2]
that Dominion VA Power had been hit with a “white” safety violation at their
North Anna Nuclear Power Station[3]
for maintenance problems pertaining to its emergency diesel generators.
As a result, Dominion confronts extra inspections by the
federal government at its North Anna plant.
Officials with the NRC said that one of the diesel
generators failed to perform its proper function in the aftermath of the earthquake
in August[4].
The gasket was reportedly replaced the same day but North Anna did not have
proper procedures for installing the gasket.
While officials with Dominion said that the violation didn’t
pose a safety risk, the utility would have gone a long way in silencing its
critics if it had encouraged and successfully lobbied for an independent
commission to review its nuclear safety policies. Now many Virginians such as
myself are asking, what is Dominion hiding, what other problems are present at
the North Anna Nuclear Power Station?
Given the seriousness of safety problems at nuclear power
plants, it should be required that nuclear power plants receive independent
reviews on a biannual basis to ensure the safety of the nuclear plants.
The NRC must also be split into two bodies, advocacy and
regulation, to ensure that the agency’s mission doesn’t conflict with itself
and that Americans are protected from nuclear disasters.
As America’s nuclear plants continue to age beyond their originally
intended lifespans[5]
and CEOs continue to push for maximal profits for their shareholders,
independent safety inspections are paramount to maintaining America’s
confidence in the safety of nuclear power plants.
Dominion is, as usual, playing the “we’ll do it alone” card.
But particularly in a post-Fukushima world, this stance will no longer suffice.
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