Reports of minor calamities and slipshod practices at Canadian nuclear power plants have been so plentiful over the years that the public may well be inured to it all. Indeed, a report in yesterday's Globe and Mail revealing dangerously poor maintenance and work habits at one Ontario nuclear station might have raised few eyebrows, say, about 36 days ago. Now, of course, there is no such thing as unthinkable. Any structure can become a tempting target for terrorists, and the more likely it is to make a big bang, the better. Combine the regrettable history of the nuclear industry with the terrorism threat, and you end up with a vexing question. If we cannot trust nuclear plant operators to do the small things right, what confidence can we have in their ability to ward off or survive the worst? Within the nuclear industry, it has long been a chest-thumping article of faith that with many built-in safety features, the plants can withstand just about anything short of a direct missile attack. That cold comfort became all the chillier two weeks ago. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission confessed that nuclear U.S. power stations may be vulnerable to attacks using hijacked airliners. Canadian nuclear authorities won't talk about the issue. What we do know is that the three largest plants in Canada -- Pickering, Darlington and Bruce -- contain multiple reactors. They sit not far from Pearson International Airport on the edge of lakes, affording a depressingly smooth flight path. Their walls are reinforced with 1.2 metres of concrete and steel. We also know that a successful strike could destroy their containment structures, disable their emergency shutdown systems and potentially cause a full reactor meltdown. It takes little imagination to conjure up the results. Pending a rigorous review of their security, some short-term measures are available. Security should be greatly enhanced, with armed security guards posted at any point of vulnerability. On-site pools filled with radioactive, spent fuel should also be transferred on an emergency basis to safer locales. While the pressing need for a final resting place continues, it can be addressed later. In the medium term, serious consideration should be given to building giant berms or windmill-like turbines capable of thwarting threats from the air. As governments struggle to deal with security on many fronts, we can only hope they take a hard look over the shoulders of the well-meaning, but error-prone, nuclear industry. |
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