Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
the risk of unsafe operations in countries new to nuclear
energy. The probability of such a modi
cation of the
mission of the IAEA is low, but it would be a good thing
if it happened.
The new generation of LWRs now being built all over
the world has been designed to be simpler to operate and
maintain than the old generation. They have more passive
safety systems, such as emergency cooling systems that
rely on gravity feed rather than pumps that might fail to
start in an emergency. Some designs claim to be safe for
weeks in any kind of emergency without any operator
action (
safe).
With a strong regulation and inspection system, the
safety of nuclear systems can be assured. Without one,
the risks grow. No industry can be trusted to regulate
itself when the consequences of a failure extend beyond
the bounds of damage to that industry alone. Many coun-
tries that do not have nuclear power systems are begin-
ning to think about implementing them. They will have
to develop the technical talent to operate them properly,
but it is at least as important that they develop the regula-
tory systems to keep them operating safely.
“
hands off
”
.
Spent Fuel: Love It or Hate It,
We Have It
A political battle has been going on for over
years in the
United States about what to do with the highly radioactive
spent fuel that comes out of a reactor. After working on
waste disposal for decades, there is still no licensed facility
to store the
tons of spent nuclear fuel that have
already come out of the power reactors now operating in
