Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Dominion and NRC meet to discuss report of effects from August earthquake

October 5, 2011 by ArticleXI

Dominion VA Power met with officials of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on Monday to discuss the NRC's report on the impact of a 5.8 magnitude earthquake at Dominion's North Anna Power Station.

A public meeting with Dominion and NRC officials was also held on Monday afternoon at North Anna's nuclear information center in Mineral.

After the August 23 earthquake, the NRC's inspection team spent 3 weeks at the plant.

According to Dominion, North Anna's two nuclear reactors were shut down by seismic vibrations.

Dominion says that it has found no "significant" damage to structures, safety systems, pipes, valves, or the Lake Anna Dam over the course of numerous inspections.

Nonetheless, the earthquake brought to light the serious possibility of natural disasters causing unforeseen damage to VA's nuclear facilities.

In the wake of Japan's own nuclear disaster, the question of risk, of cost versus benefit, is more prescient now than it has been in decades.

For those that would claim that nuclear power is safe, they probably would not have predicted that an earthquake would have been able to shut down operations at North Anna for as long as it has.