In the aftermath of the disaster in Japan, the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) announced today that it has increased the number of nuclear Emergency Alert System (EAS) deployed at its nuclear facilities to 50 (from 13) in order to detect and curb radioactivity in case of nuclear mishaps.
AEOI Deputy Director Nasser Rastkhah said in Tehran that the new environmental radiation surveillance stations "detect any change in the environment's gamma rays profusion, which is the best indicator of the occurrence of nuclear accidents or experiments."
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad insisted during his press conference in Tehran that the Bushehr nuclear reactor, the country’s first nuclear power generator, will be safe when it starts its operation later this year. Referring to the Japanese disaster, Ahmadinejad said that although Bushehr is situated on the Persian Gulf, but there is no history of tsunami there. He did not mention, however, that the area is prone to earthquakes, two of which shook the region within the past year alone.
That's fair enough. It was the tsunami that caused the problems in Japan, along with some bad design (electrics at low levels where they could be shorted by flood water).
ReplyDeleteThe real question is whether Bushehr is as well designed to withstand quakes as were the Japanese reactors.
How come Bushehr is not online yet?
ReplyDeleteAre we at the deadline yet?
Pepe