Re: [cdn-nucl-l] " Government poised to fire nuclear watchdog "

[Rod Adams <atomicrod@aol.com>]

I agree with the idea of a strong, independent regulator of nuclear  
power. What I think is missing from the law in both the US and,  
apparently in Canada, is any kind of directive in legislation that  
requires a balancing of risk versus benefit.

In the US, the NRC, believes that it has no mandate to enable nuclear  
power, just to ensure that whatever nuclear power we have meets every  
existing safety guideline. That is true even in the case of the absurd  
standard set by the EPA of 15 mrem per year from exposure to used  
nuclear fuel in some distant time - I think it is either 10,000 or  
1,000,000 years.

According to our laws, the NRC has no mandate to challenge that rule,  
even if their technical judgement is that it does not make sense. The  
NRC also has no mandate to balance the damage caused by continued  
burning of coal fired power plants against the potential for damage  
caused by slightly less restrictive rules on nuclear power that could  
reduce the cost of nuclear plant operations by enough to make them  
overwhelmingly competitive against new or even existing coal plants.  
Based on all that I have read about the CNSC, its mandate is very  
similar.

Stewart has it about right - there needs to be some kind of change in  
the law to make the NRC and CNSC more like the FAA which recognizes  
that there are some safety regulations that would be so onerous as to  
halt the very industry that they are supposed to enable.

I want safe plants, but I do not want absolute safety at the expense  
of being forced to continue depending on the alternatives of coal, oil  
and gas.

If properly explained, I do not think that the public demands that  
absolute safety without regard to the cost or the alternatives either.  
I do not think I have ever met a person who would not take on a little  
risk in order to keep using electricity - one of the most useful and  
lifesaving products ever invented.

Rod

On Jan 8, 2008, at 12:34 PM, WILLIAMS Brent(B) - BRUCE POWER wrote:

>>> The Harper government is poised to fire Linda Keen, Canada's top
>>> nuclear watchdog, amid renewed accusations that public health and
>>> confidence in nuclear safety have been jeopardized by her handling  
>>> of
>
>>> the Chalk River medical isotope scare.
>> Good news in my opinion.  Replace her with someone who understands  
>> how
> beneficial nuclear power is.
>>
>> --
>> Randal Leavitt - another Ubuntu user
>
> Randal - tell that to someone who woke up in Pripyat on April 26 1986.
>
> Nuclear power is poised on a renaissance. The challenges ahead of us
> range from political to social to economic, in addition to science and
> engineering. We are completely at the mercy of the public; however,  
> our
> worst enemy is ourselves. If we can not deliver units on time / on
> budget, and operate them not only to our normal extraordinary safety
> level, but to the public appearance of that safety level, then we will
> not see the potential that our technology offers.
>
> I heard three different speakers in the opening session at the  
> American
> Nuclear Society Winter Meeting state that nuclear can not function
> without a strong and independent regulator. I agree.
>
> In order to be strong, the regulator needs to issue directives that  
> are
> realistic and effective. I don't have enough information in this  
> case to
> judge whether or not the upgrades in question should have been part of
> the license basis of the unit. I don't have enough information to  
> judge
> AECL's actions in this case.
>
> But I do know that instead of telling the public that the CNSC may  
> have
> erred on the side of caution in its mandate, our government is telling
> the public that nuclear safety standards are negotiable on  
> Parliament's
> convenience.
>
> Overriding the regulator is a fundamentally dangerous precedent. I  
> pray
> that the government is aware of that.
>
>
>
>
>
> Brent Williams
>
> Configuration Controller - Bruce B Training Simulator - Bruce Power
> (www.brucepower.com)
>
> Vice President - North American Young Generation in Nuclear
> (www.na-ygn.org)
>
> PO Box 1540, B31 Tiverton, ON N0G 2T0
>
> Phone: 519 361 2673 x4404
> Toll Free: 1 866 748 4787 x4404
>
>
> **************************************************************************************************
> *** The contents of this email and any attachments
> *** are confidential and may be privileged.
> *** They are intended for the named recipient(s) only.
> *** If this message has been delivered to you in error, please reply  
> to the
> *** sender to that effect, don’t forward the message to anyone
> *** and delete the message from your computer.
> *** Thanks for your help, and sorry for the inconvenience. (BP)
> **************************************************************************************************
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> cdn-nucl-l mailing list
> cdn-nucl-l@mailman.McMaster.CA
> http://mailman.McMaster.CA/mailman/listinfo/cdn-nucl-l