NRC Head Jaczko Satisfied With Response to Fukushima Crisis
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Gregory Jaczko said he’s satisfied with Tokyo Electric Power Co. (9501)’s efforts to end the crisis at the wrecked Fukushima atomic plant.
The melted fuel in the reactors at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear plant has cooled enough to prevent any further releases of radiation beyond the station, Jaczko told reporters today in Tokyo after a visit to the station.
He spoke four days after Japanese officials declared that the reactors, which were damaged by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, have been brought to a state known as cold shutdown. Some nuclear scientists disputed that the term accurately described conditions at the plant. Jaczko called the declaration a “tremendous milestone.”
“I feel very comfortable that they have completed really the requirements that are necessary to move on to the next stage,” he said. “There’s really no energy left in the reactor to have an off-site release of radiation.”
To contact the reporter on this story: Jacob Adelman in Tokyo at jadelman1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Peter Langan at plangan@bloomberg.net
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