The nation's top nuclear regulator says flood protection plans for U.S. nuclear plants may need to be upgraded in the wake of the Japanese nuclear crisis.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission chairman Gregory Jaczko said Monday that severe flooding from the March 11 tsunami was a "dominant cause" of the disaster in Japan.
The NRC cited a nuclear plant in Nebraska last year for having an inadequate flood safety plan. The flooding problem at the Fort Calhoun plant, on the banks of the Missouri River, has since been addressed, although the plant is one of three U.S. nuclear plants deemed in need of increased oversight from federal regulators because of safety problems or unplanned shutdowns.
Jaczko spoke at a forum sponsored by Public Citizen, a Washington-based consumer advocacy group.
