"Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Wake UP" say Demonstrators in front of USGS

Top photo: Demonstrators stand in front of USGS entrance with their message to the NRC. Photo credit: Mei Bo Chan.

An employee of USGS, who asked not to be identified, said that the mainstream press has been getting their information from PG & E and re-reporting news from other news sources, rather than getting the facts straight. He stated that there is a big difference between the facts that USGS is giving the media in interviews, from peer reviewed studies, and what is appearing in the media. He gave the example of the Shoreline Fault, the fault near Diablo Canyon, a reactor only 170 miles from the site of today's protest. USGS scientist Jeanne Hardebeck, who discovered that fault, has spoken to media sources.

The man I interviewed on condition of anonymity works in the Geothermal division at USGS. He said that rather than quote scientists like Hardebeck, the media is repeating the 6.5 magnitude earthquake prediction for Shoreline Fault, which is PG & E's estimate, rather than the real estimate of 7.7.

Today, Platts.com, an industry news website, reports that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will check the seismic risk of 27 nuclear units first. Neither of the California reactors is on that list. See link for that report.