The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will host an open forum to present its annual assessment of operations at the Cook Nuclear Power Plant next week in St. Joseph.
The NRC’s Viktoria Mitlyng tells us the commission meets with the public each year to talk about Cook Plant operations and its safety record for the past year.
“We want to be out there in the community talking to people about how did the plant do and who’s going to be telling that story,” Mitlyng said. “It’s going to be the inspectors.”
Mitlyng says the NRC maintains two inspectors at the plant — the senior inspector and the resident inspector. It’s their job to oversee all plant operations with a keen eye on safety.
“There is so much that goes on at a nuclear plant all the time. So that’s what they are there to keep track of, especially where nuclear safety is concerned.”
Mitlyng says the resident inspector must be available to respond to plant issues, 24/7.
“For example, if there’s something going on at the plant at like 2 a.m. on Sunday and it’s the inspector’s birthday, guess what? They’re going to have to respond to the plant. If something that’s going on that warrants the attention of the NRC or anything that may be of concern to the plant, they will call one of the resident inspectors or both of them and they will respond to the plant.”
Both inspectors will be at next week’s check-in with the public to answer any questions. The gathering will be at the Silver Beach Center in St. Joseph on Wednesday, June 17 starting at 3:30 p.m. Mitlyng says they’ll go about as long as they have to.
“This is not a meeting with slides, presentations, formalities. It’s a conversation between us and members of the community. So if people stop by, they’ll be able to talk to our inspectors who are, the safety boots on the ground, the NRC’s eyes and ears at the plant.”
Mitlyng notes at a time when nuclear energy is making a resurgence in the United States, Cook has been quietly running since 1975 and just came through another year with a clean federal safety assessment. Wednesday’s engagement will give everyone a chance to learn more.
