Nuclear experts from Japan and the United States recently announced that the safety standards in America had become even higher after the March 2011 Fukushima Daiichi accident.
According to Nuclear Energy Institute Chief Operating Officer Maria Korsnick, the safety enhancements have been significant. Korsnick was speaking at an Nuclear Energy Institute-sponsored briefing, “Fukushima Daiichi Five Years Later: A Progress Report.”
“They are based on well-defined lessons learned from Fukushima,” Korsnick said. “Their development and implementation has been coordinated by chief nuclear officers and technical advisers throughout the industry, and they are being implemented at all US nuclear power plants.”
Korsnick chaired the committee, consisting of chief nuclear officers who developed the U.S. response to lessons learned from the Fukushima accident. The actions taken were in close coordination with the Electric Power Research Institute, the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations and Nuclear Energy Institute.
The FLEX strategy is chief among the safety enhancements. It addresses the major problem encountered at Fukushima, the loss of water and power to maintain effective reactor cooling, by stationing additional layers of backup safety equipment in well-protected locations at all plant sites.
The equipment includes diesel-driven pumps, electric generators, ventilation fans, battery packs, hoses, cables and satellite communication gear.
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