New UN centre seeks to protect nuclear facilities from earthquakes

The United Nations International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) launched a centre in Vienna today to coordinate global efforts to protect nuclear facilities from earthquakes.

“With safety as our first priority, it is vital that we pool all expert knowledge available worldwide to assist nuclear operators and regulators to be well-prepared for coping with major seismic events,” said Antonio Godoy, who heads the new International Seismic Safety Centre (ISSC), which is part of IAEA's Department of Nuclear Safety and Security.

The creation of the new centre “represents the culmination of three decades of the IAEA's active and recognized involvement in this matter though the development an updated set of safety standards and the assistance to Member States for their application,” he added.

The ISSC will push for the sharing of knowledge and experiences worldwide, as well as provide training courses.

It will be advised by high-level experts in seven specialized areas: geology and tectonics; seismology; seismic hazard; geotechnical engineering; structural engineering; equipment; and seismic risk.

Japan and the United States have provided initial funding for the new facility, also manned by seven IAEA staff members.

The July 2007 earthquake that damaged Japan's Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant, the world's largest, revealed the need for international cooperation to protect such facilities from tremors.

Last year's quake significantly exceeded the level of seismic activity for which the seven-unit Japanese plant was designed, but as with most nuclear plants additional robustness in design, known as a design safety margin, had been incorporated into the structures, systems and components, probably explaining why damage was less than could have otherwise been expected.

The IAEA dispatched a fact-finding team of international nuclear safety experts to the plant, which found that it shut down safely, and the very small amount of radioactivity released was well below the authorized limits for public health and environmental safety.

A follow-up mission was conducted earlier this year, which found that the earthquake caused no major harm to safety equipment.