[rishabhsagar]

The title seems to imply an active disaster is underway. I was relieved to find out out that the reactor is currently switched off and to be decommissioned in 2023. A case is being made to switch it back on as some people (with a stake in the matter) believe that the risk is too low to justify a switch off. WTF are these people even thinking. Smallest risk with such disastrous outcome is scary as shit.

[curiousgal]

If the safety margin is 10mm-19mm and the crack is 2.9mm wide, I'd say the risk is non-existent.

[OnlyOneCannolo]

That's not risk. That's likelihood. The article admits that the likelihood is low, but the severity could be high. Risk is a combination of severity and likelihood. The nuclear industry has an entire discipline (PRA) dedicated specifically to risk assessment [1].

[1] https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/regulatory/risk-informed/pra.h...

[inflatableDodo]

They have already exceeded the safety margin specified in the design, that is why it is shut down. They want to change the safety margin of the design to start it up again.

[oliveshell]

This may well be the case during normal operation. It seems the worry, however, is that seismic activity etc. could lead to a steam explosion and release of radioactive gases if the plant failed to shut down.

(I’m not a nuclear engineer and the article doesn’t make the assessed risks 100% clear, though.)

[rishabhsagar]

I don’t have domain knowledge, so to me intuitively it feels like the risk of this crack quickly widening is real. Experts also seem to have called out risks due to factors such as quakes, steam escape etc.

[anilakar]

I've never understood why trade unions, who are supposed to represent the masses, often support environmentally disastrous enterprises.

[inflatableDodo]

Trade unions were not created to represent the masses, however some of them took this up, with varying levels of success depending on the inherent conflicts of their trade versus the needs of the masses, as a side job. They are supposed to represent the workers in a particular trade for pay and working conditions. Often what the masses would prefer is just less work to do and that is not in a trade unions interest to really help with. I have had discussions about increasing productivity in UK factories by integrating CNC processes so that you can have more machines per operator. I was told flat that it was a non-starter as it was one machine per operator and if I did anything different I would be opposed at every turn.

[kelp]

I suspect trade unions are most concerned with the short to medium term interests of their current members. And less so with the interest of the greater public.

In this case they likely want a pay check for their members.

This is just my opinion and I’m completely speculating.