Oppositionists to the revival moves of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant just said that last Tuesday’s earthquake that occurred near the BNPP is proof that the area is unsafe to operate an Nuclear Power Plant in. That’s because of the natural geological hazards. They have long pointed out that the BNPP is located near a fault line and surrounded by some active volcanoes that make its location prone to earthquakes.
The sudden outpouring of support from environmentalist groups, local citizens of Bataan and the Catholic Church to stop moves to revive the plant stems from the Bill filed by Rep. Mark Conjuangco in Congress to alot a Billion in funds to rehabilitate the plant.
Dr. Giovanni Tapang, Ph. D. physicists from the UP Diliman’s Institute of Physics, and the national chairperson of the AGHAM, one of the organization-conveners of the No to BNPP! said:
“The earthquake which registered 5.3 in the Richter scale confirms the warnings of scientists that active faults lay within the range of the proposed site of the nuclear power plant. These may cause surface ruptures. Let us recall that the earthquakes in 1990 and 1994 effected substantial damages to structures and properties, including people’s lives,”
A short investigative study conducted by Solita Monsod however stated that the BNPP is within acceptable limits of Earth Quake operation as defined by existing government standards. Whether those standards are up to date and truly acceptable remains to be determined.
[source]
Category: Nuclear
