By John Q. Hosedrinker 
In a move shrouded in secrecy, the Trump administration has revised nuclear safety directives, sharing the updated rules with companies without public disclosure. These changes, aimed at accelerating the development of new nuclear reactor designs, have significantly reduced the number of pages in the directives, slashing requirements for security, environmental protection, and safety protocols. Experts criticize this lack of transparency, expressing concerns that the relaxed standards may undermine public trust and potentially compromise safety. The Department of Energy defended its commitment to safety, however, the revised orders have removed key safety requirements, raising worries about potential accidents and environmental risks.
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The Trump administration has secretly rewritten nuclear safety rules, and honestly, the whole thing feels like a disaster waiting to happen. The details are unsettling: hundreds of pages of security requirements at reactors have been slashed, protections for groundwater and the environment are being loosened, and a key safety role has been eliminated. The amount of radiation a worker can be exposed to before an official investigation kicks in has been raised. It’s a recipe for potential catastrophe, plain and simple.
The sheer volume of cuts is staggering. We’re talking about taking regulations that were hundreds of pages long and shrinking them down to a fraction of the original size. For example, over 500 pages of regulations on nuclear power plant security have been whittled down to a mere 23. This feels like reducing nuclear power plant physical security to something akin to a used car lot or impound yard. Think about it: truck drivers are subject to more stringent regulations. This could lead to a situation where we’re seeing a bunch of mini-reactors popping up everywhere, operating under a veil of loose regulation.
Of course, the concern is that this is opening the door to serious issues, maybe even a situation that echoes the disasters of the past. There’s a palpable fear of another Chernobyl or a similar incident, and it’s understandable. The bottom line is that any decision to reduce safety measures like these is an incredibly dangerous one. There is a lot of red tape in the nuclear industry, and that may have been overregulated, but slashing the safety regulations is not the way to solve it.
What’s truly concerning is the underlying motivation. It’s pretty clear that there are economic interests at play. When the government starts pushing for more nuclear power, you’d expect them to do it with caution and care. Instead, there’s a strong sense that those in power are making nuclear less safe to make it more attractive, likely in a bid to close the economic gap with renewables. Nuclear power is an expensive technology and the increasing cost is mainly due to the many safety requirements implemented over time.
This seems to be driven by the needs of the tech industry, specifically, those that are pushing for massive AI growth, which is an enormous drain on energy resources. There are plans to reopen facilities, and contracts in place to supply power to data centers. This all points to a rush to get more nuclear power online, regardless of the potential risks.
As someone who has worked near a nuclear power plant and witnessed the intense security measures in place, it’s easy to see how important it is. The militarized force, the training, the entire focus on the safety of the plant itself… it’s a sobering reminder of the gravity of the situation. This administration’s actions are just making matters more dangerous, and the entire point seems to be destroying our country and the protections we have in place. It’s a deeply unsettling prospect.
The history of nuclear regulation is complex. While it is true that the industry has been unduly stymied by excessive regulations, the core of the problem here is not the regulation itself. The overregulation that came from the fear of nuclear accidents is not solved by simply cutting safety requirements. This could lead to an avoidable event and put everyone at risk. Cutting those protections is not the answer.
It’s a fact that there is a risk of a nuclear accident. No one wants to see an accident, but the bottom line is that the US has never had an accident even remotely on par with the ones you hear about and fear. The design differences in US reactors do make it harder for an accident to turn catastrophic. Still, even the slightest increased chance of a disaster is concerning, and the reduction of safety measures makes that chance greater.
There’s also a lack of trust in the administration to handle this appropriately. Did they even hire competent people to oversee the deregulation? The lack of confidence is understandable. Some regulations may need to be modernized to adjust to new reactor designs. However, these rules were created out of experience, and it is a bad idea to erase them.
The underlying motivation appears to be a rush to embrace nuclear power at any cost, pushed by tech industry interests. This is made even worse by the fact that the same people who previously resisted nuclear power now see a need for it. There’s a palpable fear that the whole thing is being done to benefit powerful corporate interests at the expense of safety. This makes this move so much worse.
The idea that the sheer number of pages of regulations determines security isn’t necessarily true. However, with this administration, it is easy to assume it. The cut in pages also means a reduction in the red tape, and maybe some of the regulations may be simplified. If the new changes make it easier for people to understand how to plan and prepare security, this is a plus. But if the end goal is to lower safety standards for the tech industry’s gain, this is a terrible move. The changes are all done by people who would not hesitate to put anyone at risk.