Federal regulators have been working closely with the nuclear power industry to keep the nation's aging reactors operating within safety standards by repeatedly weakening those standards, or simply failing to enforce them, an investigation by The Associated Press has found.
Time after time, officials at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission have decided that original regulations were too strict, arguing that safety margins could be eased without peril, according to records and interviews.
The result? Rising fears that these accommodations by the NRC are significantly undermining safety - and inching the reactors closer to an accident that could harm the public and jeopardize the future of nuclear power in the United States.
Examples abound. When valves leaked, more leakage was allowed - up to 20 times the original limit. When rampant cracking caused radioactive leaks from steam generator tubing, an easier test of the tubes was devised, so plants could meet standards.
Two fossil-fuel billionaires with close ties to Donald Trump bought millions of shares in the company...
The Trump administration on Thursday announced new oil and gas drilling off California’s and Florida’s coasts,...
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi said on Friday that an IAEA team...
There are now three remaining deceased hostages in Gaza, following Thursday's return of the body of...
