Nuclear power risks in the United States: Shortened version of a paper presented in Detroit by N.C. Rasmussen, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Nuclear Engineering, Cambridge, Massachusetts

During the summer of 1972 the Atomic Energy Commission authorized the Reactor Safety Study to determine the risks to the public from accidents in large water cooled nuclear power plants of the type being installed in the USA today. This study was to complement WASH-1250 which had examined the safety of other parts of the fuel cycle. The primary goal of the Reactor Safety Study was to determine both the probability and consequences of power plant accidents having possible public effects. The results of that study were released in draft form on 20 August 1974 in document WASH-1400. This paper is a brief summary of some of the most significant results of that study.

The project was under the direction of the author. Mr Saul Levine of the US, AEC was project staff director. It was carried out with a staff of about 60 people and with support from industry, national laboratories, and universities. The total budget was about 3 million dollars.

The project was directed towards the seven major tasks described below.