Edwin Lyman
Edwin Lyman
@nucsafetyucs.bsky.social
Director of Nuclear Power Safety, Union of Concerned Scientists, Washington, DC.
I'd say this was a joke but it's no laughing matter. They only way the NRC could approve this construction permit on such a ridiculously short schedule is by sweeping every significant safety issue under the rug or putting it off until the operating license application. www.nrc.gov/sites/defaul...
www.nrc.gov
December 1, 2025 at 11:15 PM
I was wondering about this. The draft peace plan proposes restarting the Zaporizhzhia #nuclear plant under IAEA supervision and sharing the power between Russia and Ukraine. But who will be the regulator?

www.reuters.com/business/ene...
www.reuters.com
November 25, 2025 at 3:03 PM
On Friday the South #Texas Project-2 #nuclear reactor automatically scrammed at full power after the main transformer locked out. Around the same time the reactor also lost two offsite power sources, causing two emergency diesel generators to start up. The reactor is still down.
November 24, 2025 at 2:12 PM
My goodness. On Friday an Unusual Event was declared for more than 3 hours at the Clinton-1 #nuclear reactor in #Illinois after the emergency reserve aux transformer shorted out, causing a loss of offsite power. A worker was electrocuted and killed. A warning sign of the impact of reduced oversight?
November 17, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Reposted by Edwin Lyman
🚨 JUST IN: A newly declassified cable reinforces proliferation concerns about high-assay low-enriched uranium fuel, and reveals an urgent need for an international review of #HALEU use, writes Ed Lyman (@nucsafetyucs.bsky.social).

#uranium #enrichment #proliferation #IAEA #safeguards #nukesky
Declassified cable reinforces proliferation concerns about high-assay low-enriched uranium fuel
The declassified document reveals an urgent need for an international review of the proliferation risks of HALEU.
thebulletin.org
November 7, 2025 at 11:28 AM
Here's a "rubber stamp" amendment to the NRC-DOE MOU on #nuclear innovation that commits NRC to establishing "an expedited pathway to approve advanced reactor designs that have been authorized and tested by DOE." Note: this can only be legally done through rulemaking.
www.nrc.gov/docs/ML2530/...
November 3, 2025 at 11:21 PM
What's the matter with #Kansas? Some misguided folks want to build a Natrium fast #nuclear reactor there.

kansasreflector.com/2025/11/02/h...
Hoping Kansas will get ‘advanced’ nuclear energy? Careful what you wish for in the Age of Damocles. • Kansas Reflector
Those vying to bring TerraPower jobs to their communities might want to consider the safety and security risks.
kansasreflector.com
November 3, 2025 at 2:04 PM
Yesterday an Unusual Event was declared at the South #Texas Project #nuclear plant at 7:11 pm CT after notification of a "credible security threat" (!) Unit 1 was operating at full power an Unit 2 was down. The event lasted over 2 hours. N.B.: this is a rare occurrence.
October 14, 2025 at 1:37 PM
There is a full-blown radiological contamination incident in Indonesia apparently caused by scrap metal smelting that volatilized cesium-137 from a radiation source that should not have been there, contaminating shipments of frozen shrimp and cloves.

www.kompas.id/artikel/en-p...
Cikande's Recovery from Cs-137 Radiation Could Take Months
The government has not yet been able to determine how long the Task Force will take to restore the Cikande Industrial Area from cesium-137 radiation. However, the situation is claimed to still be unde...
www.kompas.id
October 2, 2025 at 3:45 PM
Get this: Oklo now has a "Pluto" fast #nuclear reactor design. Very imaginative. I wonder what type of fuel it will use? Lol

www.energy.gov/articles/ene...
Energy Department Selects Four Companies for Advanced Nuclear Fuel Line Pilot Projects
The U.S. Department of Energy today announced another step forward in the Trump administration’s efforts to strengthen domestic supply chains for nuclear fuel.
www.energy.gov
October 1, 2025 at 12:38 PM
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is "closed" but "critical" activities, including those outlined in Executive Order 14300, will continue. I can't find the lapse plan online, but this seems to mean that public meetings on advanced #nuclear reactors today have not been canceled. nrc.gov/pmns/mtg
Homepage | Nuclear Regulatory Commission
nrc.gov
October 1, 2025 at 12:30 PM
This month an employee brought beer to the Davis-Besse #nuclear reactor in #Ohio, and personnel failed drug tests at Watts Bar in #Tennessee and South #Texas. If you worked at one of the "Terrible Thirteen," you might want to forget your troubles too. blog.ucs.org/edwin-lyman/...
The Terrible 13: The Worst Safety and Security Violators in the US Nuclear Power Fleet
The US public deserves to have a clear understanding of the safety and security of the nation’s 54 nuclear plant sites (with a total of 94 operating nuclear reactors): and in particular, the plants th...
blog.ucs.org
September 24, 2025 at 12:55 PM
Energoatom reports that the Zaporizhzhia #nuclear plant has lost all off-site power today for the 10th time since the Russian invasion. A precarious situation.
September 23, 2025 at 3:03 PM
The July scram of the Watts Bar-2 #nuclear plant in #Tennessee was caused when water dripping through a hole in the roof short-circuited a breaker, shutting down multiple coolant pumps and the main turbine. TVA, fix the darned roof before buying SMRs. www.nrc.gov/docs/ML2525/...
www.nrc.gov
September 19, 2025 at 5:28 PM
Seven allegations have already been filed at the Palisades #nuclear plant in #Michigan this calendar year and the reactor hasn't even been restarted yet. What is going on there?
Homepage | Nuclear Regulatory Commission
nrc.gov
September 18, 2025 at 6:48 PM
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission wants to slash the number of hours it spends inspecting #nuclear reactor safety. security, and emergency preparedness by 34 percent beginning January 1, 2026. There is no justification for such a major cut to its inspections.
adamswebsearch2.nrc.gov/webSearch2/m...
adamswebsearch2.nrc.gov
September 18, 2025 at 3:00 PM
On Saturday the Hatch-2 #nuclear reactor in #Georgia was manually scrammed at 70 percent power when both reactor recirculation pumps stopped working during a test of the main turbine control valve. The reactor was still down this morning.
September 15, 2025 at 12:45 PM