One year after the devastating March 11 tsunami and earthquake caused a nuclear crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station in Japan, regulators in the U.S. are working to ensure the country's fleet of nuclear reactors are safe and strong enough to withstand a natural or man-made disaster of similar force.
许多报道得出的结论是，美国的核电站不会对美国人构成迫在眉睫的安全威胁。但是在3月13日的会议上，核监管委员会主席格雷戈里·雅克科（Gregory Jaczko）表示，尽管科学和健康社区得出的结论是，福岛危机对健康的影响很小，但“这类事故是不可接受的，我们必须接受，我们必须接受。减少它们发生的可能性。”他说。
To that end, on March 9, the NRC took further steps toward implementing recommendations made by an agency task force formed specifically to assess the safety of U.S. nuclear plants in light of lessons learned from Fukushima. The task force made its initial recommendations in a report released in July.
NRC表示，它已指示其工作人员向美国商业核反应堆运营商发出三个命令。这些指令适用于当前运行或正在建设的所有反应堆，以及最近在佐治亚州南部核运营公司Vogtle网站上计划和许可的指令。
这些订单之一要求工厂为2001年9月11日之后安装的安全设备提供更好的保护，即恐怖袭击，并获得足够的设备，以同时支持每个站点的所有反应堆。
The second order requires plants to install enhanced equipment capable of monitoring water levels in each facility's spent-fuel pool.
The third applies only to U.S. boiling-water reactors that have Mark I or Mark II containment structures. NRC is requiring those reactors to improve venting systems—or for the Mark II plants, install new systems—that help prevent or mitigate core damage in the event of a serious accident. Currently in the U.S. there are about 31 boiling-water reactors with either a Mark I or II design.
Jeff Merrifield, senior vice president of Shaw Group in Charlotte, N.C., said the required modifications will provide opportunities for his firm and others that work in the nuclear sector.
在第二阶的情况下，公用事业可能需要依靠工程师制造的构造公司来协助设计和实施用于花费的燃料池的修改。在第三阶的情况下，“公用事业将需要与具有适当专业知识的公司互动，以帮助他们从现有的标记I通风系统中验证设计，或者，或者，有助于设计和实施通风修改，” Merrifield说。工厂必须在2016年12月31日之前完成，以完成所有三个NRC订单下要求的修改和要求。
“这是一个非常积极的计划,”Merrifi指出eld, formerly an NRC commissioner. There are only a handful of firms with the expertise to perform the work that is required, he says. The timetable could "present challenges."
In October, the NRC set a goal of completing a rule addressing station blackouts—or loss of power—by April 2014. NRC staff currently are working on an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking to be published some time within the next year.
委员会还将向每个运营的美国商业核电站发布信息请求。某些规定将适用于正在建设的反应堆或最近获得许可的反应堆。例如，NRC将要求操作员使用最新信息进行地震和洪水风险的分析。
同时，由倡导集团核能研究所率领的行业努力正在成立。根据NEI的说法，在该行业的“ FLEX”响应策略下，在过去一年中，经营美国核电站的公司已收购或订购了300多件主要设备，以提高安全性。
NEI说，该设备将补充9/11恐怖袭击后已经购买的东西，以帮助设施安全应对大火和爆炸。
Bechtel Group在马里兰州弗雷德里克的核业务总裁卡尔·劳（Carl Rau）表示，该行业和政府监管机构一直在合作。
"The U.S. nuclear power industry has been very proactive in response to the Fukushima event. The chief nuclear officers of our nuclear utilities worked collaboratively to define and purchase equipment and components to have available for emergency use," he says.
In addition, he says NEI has worked with the NRC to help ensure that recommendations and regulatory requirements resulting from Fukushima are both robust and practical.
