Chernobyl Nuclear Accident Congressional Hearings Transcript

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Nevertheless, despite our opposition to an iramediate shutdown for
all reactors, we are very concerned about the possible implications of
the Chernobyl accident for small-volume containments. That is why we are
considering supporting a moratorium on the operation of these types of
reactors.
Fortunately, the United States today has an excess of electricity
generating capacity in most parts of the country. Oil and natural gas
prices are low. It will be a relatively inexpensive proposition to shut
down small-volume containment reactors for a
few months while the
Chernobyl accident is being evaluated.
Should evaluations of the Chernobyl accident now under way indicate
that the
safety features of small-volume containments are indeed helpless
in core-damage accidents, these reactors should be kept closed permanently.
In such a situation, it may be necessary for the federal government
to compensate the affected owners for the loss of their investment.
After all, it was the federal government that licensed the designs. And
without such compensation, it may be politically impossible to obtain the
legislation or administrative action necessary to keep them shut permanently.
Response # 2: Emergency plans should be revised to include dose-reducing
measures
beyond ten miles.
Certainly, priority in planning should be given to evacuating people
within ten miles of reactors, but that does not mean that everyone else
should be treated, as is now the case, on an ad hoc basis. A staged
evacuation is appropriate, with people within ten miles evacuating first.