The government has discovered irregularities yet again that could threaten the safety of nuclear reactors.
This time, the perpetrators are parts suppliers that presented fake quality certificates in the course of replacing antiquated parts used in nuclear power plants. Six state testing facilities were also found to have failed to conduct adequate tests before issuing certificates.
A two-month audit of the six testing facilities by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy showed that 39 quality certificates presented by 24 companies were fabricated. Of the fake certificates, seven, provided by four suppliers, were certificates for parts integral in nuclear power plant maintenance supplied to KEPCO KPS, an affiliate of the Korea Electric Power Corp.
The audit results proved once again that the use of fabricated certificates is rampant in our industrial sector. The discovery followed a major scandal in May of last year when the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission found massive amounts of substandard control cables supplied to three nuclear reactors, which led to their immediate shutdown. The reactors resumed operation after months of special maintenance to replace almost all parts.
The ministry said those parts in question didn't pose significant safety threats, and therefore the parts can be replaced without halting the reactors. But the public cannot but feel uneasy.
True, we cannot overemphasize the importance of securing safety in the operation of nuclear power plants. That's because even a minor accident can lead to fatalities.
Most disheartening in the latest revelation of irregularities is that the state-run certifiers failed to detect fabrications by skipping the required double-testing.
At a time when people's concern about the safety of nuclear power plants remains firm in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011, the lingering wrongdoings in the nuclear industry can deal a hard blow to the government's plan to increase the proportion of nuclear power generation to 29 percent by 2035, up from 26 percent at present.
All of us dream of living without nuclear power plants, but it's inevitable to depend heavily on atomic power, given the ever increasing demand for electricity. Against this backdrop, a lack of trust in the safety of nuclear power plants will make it all but impossible to build new atomic power plants.
Given the magnitude of corruption in the nuclear industry arising from its intrinsic nature of being closed, the first step toward safety should be to break the deep-seated food chain created by the so-called nuclear mafia, which will help enhance transparency ultimately.
With the prosecution set to investigate the suppliers, the certifiers will face business suspension. But it's imperative to toughen penalties for them, considering that light punitive measures have stood behind the lingering corruption in the nuclear industry.
This time, the perpetrators are parts suppliers that presented fake quality certificates in the course of replacing antiquated parts used in nuclear power plants. Six state testing facilities were also found to have failed to conduct adequate tests before issuing certificates.
A two-month audit of the six testing facilities by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy showed that 39 quality certificates presented by 24 companies were fabricated. Of the fake certificates, seven, provided by four suppliers, were certificates for parts integral in nuclear power plant maintenance supplied to KEPCO KPS, an affiliate of the Korea Electric Power Corp.
The audit results proved once again that the use of fabricated certificates is rampant in our industrial sector. The discovery followed a major scandal in May of last year when the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission found massive amounts of substandard control cables supplied to three nuclear reactors, which led to their immediate shutdown. The reactors resumed operation after months of special maintenance to replace almost all parts.
The ministry said those parts in question didn't pose significant safety threats, and therefore the parts can be replaced without halting the reactors. But the public cannot but feel uneasy.
True, we cannot overemphasize the importance of securing safety in the operation of nuclear power plants. That's because even a minor accident can lead to fatalities.
Most disheartening in the latest revelation of irregularities is that the state-run certifiers failed to detect fabrications by skipping the required double-testing.
At a time when people's concern about the safety of nuclear power plants remains firm in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011, the lingering wrongdoings in the nuclear industry can deal a hard blow to the government's plan to increase the proportion of nuclear power generation to 29 percent by 2035, up from 26 percent at present.
All of us dream of living without nuclear power plants, but it's inevitable to depend heavily on atomic power, given the ever increasing demand for electricity. Against this backdrop, a lack of trust in the safety of nuclear power plants will make it all but impossible to build new atomic power plants.
Given the magnitude of corruption in the nuclear industry arising from its intrinsic nature of being closed, the first step toward safety should be to break the deep-seated food chain created by the so-called nuclear mafia, which will help enhance transparency ultimately.
With the prosecution set to investigate the suppliers, the certifiers will face business suspension. But it's imperative to toughen penalties for them, considering that light punitive measures have stood behind the lingering corruption in the nuclear industry.
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