Bradley Unveils Plan to Cope With A-Disasters

Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley on Tuesday proposed a nuclear safety plan that he said would serve as a blueprint if he is elected governor.

Bradley, following up on his call last week to assemble a UCLA emergency medical team that would be ready to spring into action in the event of a nuclear disaster anywhere in the country, held a press conference Tuesday in front of UCLA Medical Center to elaborate on his proposal.

Noting that the San Onofre nuclear power plant is roughly the same distance away from Los Angeles as the Chernobyl plant is from the Soviet city of Kiev, the mayor called nuclear safety “a top priority of my Administration.”

In his plan, Bradley proposed testing any nuclear plant operator or security officer for whom there is “reasonable basis” of suspicion of drug abuse, and prohibit operators from consuming alcohol before or during work.

As governor, Bradley said, he would require the state Office of Emergency Services to install an early warning data link in each of California’s commercial nuclear reactors.

State, local and utility officials should review emergency plans, Bradley said, focusing on whether the areas designated as evacuation zones are as large as experts recommend; on whether the additional effect of earthquakes are considered in the plan, and on whether there is sufficient emergency radiation treatment facilities available.

If, after an 18-month review, he does not consider the plans adequate, “I will rescind state approval for these plans and call on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to revoke the operating licenses for the plants affected,” Bradley said.

He also said he would direct the Public Utilities Commission and the Energy Commission to hold public hearings to discuss the safety and reliability of the plants, adding that he would push to “shut down” any plant “whose reliability cannot be guaranteed.”