The Real Costs of a Meltdown

There was a 1982 Study conducted by the U.S. Government regarding the actual costs in deaths and then 1982 dollars of a meltdown of a single reactor. These are quotes from CNN TV 10 am PDT broadcast of CNN Newsroom on April 1st, 2011. The Source quoted by CNN is: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commision.

First of all from a single reactor meltdown it was found that there would be 50,000 deaths and the cost then in 1982 dollars would be around $720 Billion dollars. The government capped the liability of Power plant operators as $12.6 Billion which is now and adjusted for inflation and American Taxpayers would pay everything else.

So in real terms it means that the American Taxpayers would get stuck with 50,000 dead, countless maimed and dying over the years and also stuck with 707.4 Billion dollar bill to pay themselves out of their own pockets. And this is just what one reactor melting down would cost.

There are newer studies which show that the 707.4 Billion dollars paid by taxpayers out of there own pocket is still valid today. And no homeowner insurance in the U.S. covers a meltdown by law. So, if your home is gone or too radiated to live in who pays for it?