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“This was probably the most important security occasions in US nuclear historical past and but it was not considerably harmful to the general public,” mentioned Stein. “That speaks to the robustness of those vegetation.”
NRC licensing requires reactor buildings to be constructed to resist “twister missiles,” or massive objects colliding at excessive speeds, Stein added. “They’re actually designed to resist these sorts of occasions safely,” he mentioned.
Nonetheless, NextEra plans to extend weather-related security measures on the reopened Duane Arnold plant.
“We do take a look at these occasions and attempt to garner classes realized and ask, what may make the plant even safer than it’s?” mentioned NextEra marketing consultant Michael Davis at a public info assembly held in Cedar Rapids by the Iowa Utilities Fee on Nov. 13.
The corporate is contemplating putting in a 3rd diesel generator to supply extra backup energy, and also will design Duane Arnold’s substitute water-cooling towers with a better wind resistance threshold, mentioned Davis.
Google representatives didn’t reply to questions on whether or not the harm incurred at Duane Arnold throughout the 2020 derecho raised any considerations for nuclear security throughout extreme climate occasions.
The NRC security necessities mandate that candidates “take into account probably the most extreme meteorologic and seismic situations identified within the proposed space,” when deciding on reactor websites, an NRC consultant wrote in a press release to Inside Local weather Information.
“It’s essential to grasp that nuclear vegetation are constructed to resist excessive environmental hazards and that the NRC requires vegetation to take care of redundant programs, elements and applications to have the ability to mitigate lack of off-site energy occasions,” the NRC added.
Lokenvitz, the previous Duane Arnold engineer, views the plant’s reopening as a form of resurrection. If the ability hadn’t already been slated for decommissioning when the derecho struck, Duane Arnold would have been rebuilt and continued to supply energy, she mentioned.
“That plant operated precisely as designed. It was simply the right storm.”
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