U.S. Weakens Nuclear Safety Rules

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110620/ap_on_re_us/us_aging_nukes_part1

AP IMPACT: US nuke regulators weaken safety rules

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AP – This photo made available by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission shows a 10-gallon-per-minute leak which …

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By JEFF DONN, AP National Writer – Mon Jun 20, 3:38 am ET

LACEY TOWNSHIP, N.J. – 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. end quote.

At a time after Fukushima when the world needs to be 100 times more vigilant regarding all aspects of nuclear power both for peaceful and military purposes our government is going in the wrong direction. In the end all countries who do this including the U.S. will lose thousands to millions of their citizens eventually from these cascading bad decisions caused primarily by economic bad times.

I think Germany has the right idea. Close all Nuclear power plants because the long term costs in human lives is potentially too severe. Nuclear power plants should close just to try to maintain the quality of life, which on earth is diminishing by the moment with ongoing bad decisions or in-actions like these.