Carper Statement on NRC Post-Fukushima Rule

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), top Democrat on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW), released the following statement on the post-Fukushima rule finalized today by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). The NRC has decided to change course from the proposal and instead of requiring nuclear reactors to withstand seismic and flooding risks beyond their current design, the NRC has made these actions voluntary.

“I am still reviewing this rule, but I am concerned this NRC rule misses the mark in addressing the lessons learned from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident.  Our nuclear reactors must be able to withstand seismic or flooding events, regardless of when the reactor was built.  Requiring our nuclear reactors, most built decades ago, to withstand current earthquake and flooding risks beyond the original design makes sense to me. Why the NRC has decided to reverse course from the proposal and make these protections voluntary is unclear to me. I look forward to learning more from the NRC about why they decided to take this approach.”

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