"a proven track record of safety and reliability for more than 40 years"
Don't you just love lucky people. The other kind always bring such bad news.
Oh - by the way, the tsunami merely disabled the backup power supply the system depends on to avoid meltdown. It could equally well have been any other careless accident causing a site-wide blackout, leading to a similar crisis. You don't need an earthquake.
Discussion on:
Just
In
In
The Back-up Power System
Posted by mjpaige
14th Mar 2012
Show:
-1
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RE: Just how safe are America's nuclear reactors?
Posted by PassingWind
16th Mar 2011
0
Votes
The Back-up Power System
As Noted by "Passingwind" it was the Standby Diesel Power Plants that were disabled by the Tsunami, which ultimately caused the release. The plant was designed for the conditions specified, but, unfortunately the earthquake and Tsunami didn't read the spec's are exceeded them. It's poor consolation but everything is designed to some upper limit: bridges, high-rise buildings and chemical plants. If we choose to have these things and live or work in them we have to accept there are always risks. People used to understand this but unfortunately Lawyers have changed the perception that after an accident "Somebody" is always to blame. That's how they make their living.
We have the right and responsibility to set laws governing the design limits and when we do we set the "risks" we as a people as willing to accept. "Only" when it is proven that a person or company willingly violated these should we be righteously inflamed.
As an example:
We know, both by our scientists and from many movies that there is a real risk of annihilation by meteoroid strike. We have some ability to both monitor for these and with enough foreknowledge, do something about it. We actually started to do a study of the sky and plan for cureative measures but funding has been reduced and a press release made not long ago that "All is safe" "Don't worry" but no logical explanation for it. Why, because people don???t want to know and worse, don't want to pay for a program to protect themselves. just wait for the lawyers to get involved if there is a strike (and earth survives)
The "real and present danger": are chemical plants and worse, the rail cars shipping this stuff around and through your neighborhood (Remember Bhopal?)
People have become accustimed to these and don't seem to worry. Statistically though that is where the real likelyhood of mass casulties is in the USA but most are blissfully unaware of it.
Cities that have these plants or where rail cars pass through have plans for which way the wind is blowing during an"accident" and the number of deaths that WILL occur. Just ask your city planners.
We have the right and responsibility to set laws governing the design limits and when we do we set the "risks" we as a people as willing to accept. "Only" when it is proven that a person or company willingly violated these should we be righteously inflamed.
As an example:
We know, both by our scientists and from many movies that there is a real risk of annihilation by meteoroid strike. We have some ability to both monitor for these and with enough foreknowledge, do something about it. We actually started to do a study of the sky and plan for cureative measures but funding has been reduced and a press release made not long ago that "All is safe" "Don't worry" but no logical explanation for it. Why, because people don???t want to know and worse, don't want to pay for a program to protect themselves. just wait for the lawyers to get involved if there is a strike (and earth survives)
The "real and present danger": are chemical plants and worse, the rail cars shipping this stuff around and through your neighborhood (Remember Bhopal?)
People have become accustimed to these and don't seem to worry. Statistically though that is where the real likelyhood of mass casulties is in the USA but most are blissfully unaware of it.
Cities that have these plants or where rail cars pass through have plans for which way the wind is blowing during an"accident" and the number of deaths that WILL occur. Just ask your city planners.
Posted by mjpaige
14th Mar 2012