How not to be a nuclear family

Living near a nuclear plant could have horrific consequences,
but the risks in the US have been very low.

The recent disaster in Japan hasn’t changed the average American’s view of nuclear power much, although confidence in Washington’s readiness to respond to a nuclear emergency is down.

And more of us are living near a reactor. MSNBC reports that the number of people living within the 10-mile emergency planning zones around nuclear power plants rose by 17% in the last decade, compared with an increase of less than 10% in the overall U.S. population.

“If the circles are widened to a 50-mile radius (the same evacuation area that U.S. nuclear officials recommended for Americans living near Japan’s troubled reactors), they would cover one in three people in the U.S. That’s 116 million nuclear neighbors, up from 109 million a decade earlier.”

If you think – because of aging reactors, local seismic activity, the predicted increase in severe weather, or just karma – your family’s next home town should be far away from a nuclear plant, these maps will help you plan your move:

The location of all American reactors, active or decommissioned

Which ones are in earthquake areas

If you use Google Earth, you can view any installation as close as you like. No risk of radiation.

I’ve always considered a nearby nuclear plant to be less dangerous to my family than the nearby crosswalk or the red-eye from Seattle. But I’m eager to learn what others think.