Most people associate the word “nuclear” with two things — weapons and meltdowns, neither of which are good news. Despite the extensive progress atomic energy researchers have made in designing safer reactors, nuclear accidents still occur — most recently in 2011 at Fukushima after a magnitude 9.0 earthquake off the coast of Japan. The cleanup process and 40-year plan to decommission the plant has involved giant underground walls of ice and the non-stop construction of enormous steel storage tanks full of radioactive water that no one really knows what to do with. So why aren’t our power plants getting safer? That, in a nutshell, is why nuclear energy isn’t getting any safer — because extending the lifetime of an existing plant is a far easier sell to the public than building a new one. But it’s not the whole story. Because to appreciate whether it’s important that nuclear energy isn’t getting safer, we need to talk about how safe it is to begin with.
How we get to Next 4th Feb 2016 read more »
Today the Office for Nuclear Regulation has published details of all ‘nuclear reportable events’ in the UK between April 1 2001 and March 31, 2015. These are deviations to safety standards, however small, which are highlighted so that they can be prioritised and addressed. The vast majority of events reported relating to EDF Energy are very minor and have no impact on safety. EDF Energy believes that its level of reporting reflects a healthy culture of openness and a commitment to improvement. The number of events with safety implications has fallen since EDF Energy took over the running of the stations in 2009. This is the result of our increasing investment, and a focus on safety and operational performance.
EDF Energy 4th Feb 2016 read more »