Most nuke reactors' quake-proof capacities not confirmed

Pohang quake rekindles safety concerns surrounding nuclear power plants

By You Soo-sun

Only two of the 24 nuclear reactors in Korea were found to have passed government safety assessment on their earthquake-proof capacity, according to Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) data obtained by Rep. Kim Jung-hoon of the Liberty Korea Party (LKP), Tuesday.

Last week, a magnitude 5.4 earthquake and a series of aftershocks struck the city of Pohang in North Gyeongsang Province, where most of the country’s nuclear power plants are located.

Since then, environmental activists have urged the government to rethink its plan to resume the construction of new reactors in the southeastern city of Ulsan and instead speed up its nuclear exit policy.

The KHNP quickly rebutted these concerns, saying it had enhanced the earthquake-proof capacities of 21 reactors to withstand a magnitude 7.0 earthquake and that the reinforcement of the remaining three will be completed by next June.

It also said the safety of these reactors has, in fact, been proven as they remained intact during the quake.

However, the revelation that only two ― Kori No. 1 and Weolsong No. 1 ― passed government safety examinations directly contradicts the KHNP’s statement.

While Korea’s nuclear reactors were designed to withstand a magnitude 6.5 earthquake, the government ordered they be strengthened to withstand a magnitude 7.0 earthquake after the Japanese Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant disaster in 2011.

But the KHNP had delayed reporting the process until this April, causing a major delay in government safety checks, according to Rep. Kim.

For example, the KHNP said it completed the reinforcement job for Hanbit Nos. 5 and 6 in September, 2015, but this has not yet been confirmed by the government.

Furthermore, the KHNP has halted the process for some of the nuclear power plants.

The completion rate for Kori No.2 has stood at 36 percent since September, allegedly due to the time needed to purchase materials needed for the job.

Some environmental organizations have demanded the quake proof capacities of nuclear power plants be further strengthened to withstand 7.5-magnitude quakes, but the KHNP said such measures were unnecessary.

President Moon Jae-in ordered the government Tuesday to come up with measures to strengthen earthquake-proof capacities of various facilities, including the power plants, schools and residential buildings.

As of 6 a.m. Tuesday, the casualties from the quake stood at 80 injured with 9,560 facilities damaged.