Cumbria Going Nuclear? Proposed Site Will Be Like, 'Chernobyl On Steroids', According To Nuclear Expert.

Nuclear expert Arnie Gundersen warns that Westinghouse’s proposed reactor for Cumbria will turn the region into “Chernobyl on steroids.”

13:17 16 March 2015

American nuclear expert Arnie Gundersen is concerned by the designs for the three reactors proposed for a new civil nuclear plant in Cumbria. Mr Gundersen, who was CNN’s resident expert during the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan in 2011, said that the reactor in Cumbria will turn the region into “Chernobyl on steroids.”  

He said: “Evacuation of Moorside would have to be up to 50 miles. You could put a filter on the top of the AP1000 to trap the gases – that would cost about $100m, which is small potatoes.

 

“If this leaks it would be a leak worse than the one at Fukushima. Historically, there have been 66 containment leaks around the world.”

 

Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for the ONR said that the regulator is currently ensuring that the reactor will be safe. She said: “We have received revised plans from Westinghouse for 51 outstanding issues. These will have to be resolved before the ONR can make any decisions [to approve the reactor].”

 

A Westinghouse spokeswoman said: “The AP1000 nuclear power plant design offers unequalled safety through innovative passive safety systems and proven technologies that are based on Westinghouse’s 50-year leadership in nuclear energy technology.”