NEI Nuclear Notes

The National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling has released its final report . For those of you with enough time and the inclination to delve into reports, there’s an interesting nuclear angle to this story .  Borrowing an idea from the nuclear power industry, the oil-spill commission backs the creation of an industry-run organization modeled on the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations that was created after the Three-Mile Island disaster. That organization helps establish best practices and technology for reactors. Well, I have to admit, my first reaction when I hear the words “self-regulating industry body” are not always warm and fuzzy. But with INPO , the nuclear industry has shown how it can work as a supplement to existing government regulation. As the report notes: Nor is there anything casual about an INPO inspection. It is thorough and careful, extending for five to six weeks: two weeks of preparation and analysis of pre-...