The “Special Inquiry into Counterfeit, Fraudulent, and Suspect Items in Operating Nuclear Power Plants,” by NRC Inspector General Robert Feitel, concluded that “counterfeit, fraudulent, and suspect items” (CFSI) believed to be present in U.S. reactors “present nuclear safety and security concerns that could have serious consequences for nuclear power plant equipment required to perform a safety function.” An inquiry report accompanied the IG’s audit.
The investigation was unable to pinpoint specific safety hazards because of insufficient information reported by reactor operators and collected by the NRC.
Interesting read. Doesn’t inspire confidence in normal government operations. Might help you pick out a new place to live, though.
There are alternatives. Just ask your Congress-critter.
According to Dr. Edwin Lyman, senior global security scientist with the Union of Concerned Scientists, which advocates for stronger safety regulation of reactors, “This is a problem that was recognized years ago, and the attempt to fix it was stopped by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) as part of the effort to reduce costs to the industry”. Additionally, “IG reports that the process for rigorously identifying, reporting and correcting defects — fraudulent, counterfeit or not — doesn’t really exist.”
Re: Dr. Lyman see https://web.archive.org/web/20120316042742/http://www.ucsusa.org/news/experts/edwin-lyman.html
According to Lyman, despite the events of September 11, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has voted to delay implementation of safety and security upgrades in ways that will weaken protection of nuclear power plants. In 2015 Lyman stated these new moves illustrated an “ominous trend” https://allthingsnuclear.org/elyman/ominous-votes-by-the-nrc/
The E&E article also points out “The IG report does not consider whether counterfeit parts could contain hidden malware, posing serious cybersecurity threats to nuclear plants, but that risk has loomed larger and larger within the electric power industry generally. A 2019 report by the North American Electric Reliability Corp., the interstate grids’ security monitor, warned that “malicious actors may target one or more vendors in the supply chain to create or exploit vulnerabilities that could then be used to initiate cyber attacks.”
The Department of Energy is kick-starting the process to unleash $6 billion from the bipartisan infrastructure law to help financially struggling nuclear reactors avoid premature closure. https://www.usnews.com/news/top-news/articles/2022-02-11/u-s-energy-department-advances-6-billion-nuclear-plant-program
Price–Anderson Nuclear Industries Indemnity Act: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price%E2%80%93Anderson_Nuclear_Industries_Indemnity_Act
“France to cut carbon emissions, Russian energy influence with 14 nuclear reactors
Announcement comes amid heightened concerns over climate and energy sovereignty.” https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2022/02/france-to-cut-carbon-emissions-russian-energy-influence-with-14-nuclear-reactors/
“France’s new plans were announced less than two weeks after the EU announced that nuclear power would be considered “sustainable,” a decision that was subject to intense lobbying by the French government.” https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2022/02/eu-plans-to-label-natural-gas-and-nuclear-power-plants-sustainable/
“While nuclear power is a true low-carbon fuel, producing lifetime carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions on par with wind and solar, its inclusion as a sustainable energy source is controversial in Europe. Several countries, including Germany, Denmark, Austria, and Spain, oppose the construction of new nuclear power plants, mostly because of concerns about safety and waste storage.”
Southern Co. yesterday announced another delay for its long-troubled nuclear construction project in Georgia, edging its costs closer to the $30 billion mark.
Plant Vogtle’s latest move highlights the nuclear industry’s chief troubles with building large, baseload reactors: safety and cost. https://www.eenews.net/articles/plant-vogtle-hits-new-delays-costs-surge-near-30b/