French justice has launched an investigation into a suspected cover-up of incidents at the Tricastin nuclear power plant. A senior employee had filed a lawsuit against the operator EDF. Among other things, it looks at endangering people and fraud.
According to his lawyers, the employee had unsuccessfully tried to draw the attention of his employer and the Ministry of the Environment to the abuses at the Tricastin nuclear power plant in southern France. He cited a flood in August 2018 and overproduction in June 2017 as examples that were not shown or “played down”. There must have been “serious failures” that would have adversely affected safety and environmental protection.
Bullying at work
After the employee pointed out the abuses, his lawyers said he had been demoted. He also did not participate in covering up incidents and was subsequently bullied. The nuclear regulator, on the other hand, said they had not noticed any evidence of silent incidents during their checks. The operator of the nuclear power plant has not yet commented on this. Tricastin has been on the grid since 1980 and is one of the oldest nuclear power stations in France.
The lawsuit was already filed in October 2021. According to circles in Marseille, the investigation is being conducted for, among other things, endangering people, fraud and failure to report incidents.
There are a total of 56 nuclear power plants in France, of which 12 are currently shut down due to known or suspected corrosion problems. Two other nuclear power plants had to be at least partially shut down in recent weeks because of the heat wave. The heated cooling water could not be drained because the water level in the rivers was low.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
