Regulators Reject Call for Nuke Plant Shutdown

A top Nuclear Regulatory Commission official has rejected a federal expert's recommendation to shut down California's last operating nuclear power plant until it can determine whether its reactors can withstand powerful shaking from nearby earthquake faults.

In a decision released Wednesday, operations executive Mark Satorius said there is no immediate or significant safety concern at the Diablo Canyon plant.

Michael Peck, who for five years was Diablo Canyon's lead inspector, said in a confidential report disclosed last month by The Associated Press that no one knows whether the plant's equipment can withstand strong shaking from those faults.

Blair Jones — a spokesman for plant owner Pacific Gas and Electric Co. — says in a statement the NRC decision reaffirms that the plant "has been and continues to be seismically safe."