After the Fukushima Daiichi meltdowns, WEM proposed that CPUC launch a planning process for replacing nuclear power with the cleanest, most affordable resources available, should California’s reactors be offline for any reason. I say it’s high time for CPUC to explore clean, affordable replacement for nuclear power, especially since San Onofre’s two reactors have been out of service for two months, and majority owner Southern California Edison (SCE) is silent about when they’ll be restarted.
Even the usually blasé Nuclear Regulatory Commission has expressed concern about premature wear in San Onofre’s nearly-new steam generators, and on April 6, Commission Chairman Gregory Jaczko visited San Onofre to see for himself. According to CNN, he “refused to give a timetable as to when the San Onofre nuclear plant could resume operation. He said only that his agency had ‘set some firm conditions’ as to when that could happen.
“’We won’t make a decision (to approve the facility’s restart) unless we’re satisfied that public health and safety will be protected,’ Jaczko told reporters. ‘They have to demonstrate to us that they understand the causes, and … that they have a plan to address them.’”
