atomic power review An interesting week, to say the least.

atomic power review

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An interesting week, to say the least.

Posted: 25 May 2012 05:18 PM PDT

This has indeed been an interesting week for those who follow the news in nuclear energy. Here is a brief recap from my perspective.

NRC CHAIRMAN Gregory Jaczko announced this week that he would be resigning his post -- but only after a replacement was found. This announcement led to widespread glee in Republican-oriented quarters, widespread congratulation for "a job well done" in Democrat quarters, and in many minds an air of suspicion. The suspicion was that there might be something in the upcoming Inspector General's report that would force Jaczko to resign; indeed, there are further (unanswered) letters from the House Oversight Committee (in front of which the whole Commission testified not too long ago) about apparent untruths in Chairman Jaczko's testimony. Jaczko himself denies any such connection, instead indicating that it's time to move on, although that time will only come when a replacement is approved.

After only a very short time was allowed for speculation, the White House announced that its nominee would be one Dr. Allison MacFarlane. I don't think we need to speculate too much on what MacFarlane brings to the table; Rod Adams interviewed her for the Atomic Podcast radio show (I've been on this show twice, folks!) and has kindly provided me with a link. Click here to hear Rod Adams' interview of Dr. MacFarlane from a few years back.

We'll have to wait and see what happens in the confirmation process - but with Commissioner Svinicki up for reappointment, there's bound to be some tradeoff. (I happen to agree with one of the posters at Rod's podcast page - the White House should have picked Dr. Gail Marcus. But what do I know?) Click here for the earlier APR post on Jaczko's resignation; includes some interesting press releases.

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