Nuclear power plants in China’s coastal zone: risk and safety

Abstract

Nuclear power plants are used as an option to meet the demands for electricity due to the low emission of CO2 and other contaminants. The accident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant in 2011 has forced the Chinese government to adjust its original plans for nuclear power. The construction of inland nuclear power plants was stopped, and construction is currently only permitted in coastal zones. However, one obstacle of those plants is that the elevation of those plants is notably low, ranging from 2 to 9 meters and a number of the nuclear power plants are located in or near geological fault zones. In addition, the population density is very high in the coastal zones of China. To reduce those risks of nuclear power plants, central government should close the nuclear power plants within the fault zones, evaluate the combined effects of storm surges, inland floods and tidal waves on nuclear power plants and build closed dams around nuclear power plants to prevent damage from storm surges and tidal waves. The areas without fault zones and with low elevation should be considered to be possible sites for future nuclear power plants if the elevation can be increased using soil or civil materials.