
Modern Nuclear Power: Built-in Safety Systems
Modern nuclear power relies on a multilayered framework of technical, organizational, regulatory, and institutional protections built to avert accidents, curb their impact when they happen, guard against hostile interference, and ensure nuclear materials are not redirected for weaponization. These protective measures extend throughout the entire life span of a plant, covering site selection, system design, construction, daily operations, emergency preparedness, waste handling, and eventual decommissioning.Fundamental tenets: layered protection supported by successive physical obstaclesThe guiding principle follows a defense-in-depth approach, employing several independent protective layers to ensure that neither a single malfunction nor a human mistake results in a catastrophic release.…


