OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Regulators have told the utilities that own Nebraska's two nuclear power plants not to worry about some unlikely ways upstream dams might fail even though they are studying those flood risks.
The utilities are re-examining flood threats at their nuclear plants that sit on the Missouri River as part of an industrywide review of unlikely safety threats after the 2011 Japanese meltdowns.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission told the utilities this month they didn't need to consider two of the five dam failure scenarios experts developed.
NRC officials didn't immediately respond to questions about the decision.
Independent expert David Lochbaum with the nonprofit Union of Concerned Scientists says it appears regulators decided the flooding scenarios were similar enough that the utilities don't need to prepare for all of them.
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