Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/427583
ByKevinFrekingAnd Michael R. Blood The Associated Press WASHINGTON Withseveral faults nearby, federal regu- lators need to reassess seis- mic standards at Califor- nia's last operating nuclear power plant and determine if its operating rules are sufficient in light of earth- quake risks, says a former California state senator. In testimony to be sub- mitted Wednesday to a Sen- ate panel, Sam Blakeslee ar- gues that the public safety demands closer scrutiny of Diablo Canyon's twin reac- tors, which are located on a seaside bluff midway be- tween Los Angeles and San Francisco. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission and owner Pacific Gas and Electric Co. have long defended its safety. "The potential earth- quakes affecting the plant have increased with each major study. But what's equally striking is that the shaking predicted by PG&E for these increas- ing threats has systemati- cally decreased," Blakeslee, a geophysicist who left the Legislature in 2012, says in prepared remarks. He is scheduled to tes- tify before the Environment and Public Works Commit- tee, which has scheduled a hearing to question NRC commissioners about seis- mic safety at U.S. plants in the wake of the 2011 Fu- kushima Dai-ichi disaster. The coastal complex in Ja- pan suffered multiple melt- downs after an earthquake and tsunami destroyed its power and cooling systems. The magnitude-9 earth- quake was far larger than had been believed possible. The NRC has since di- rected U.S. nuclear plants to re-evaluate seismic risks, and those studies are due by March. "The NRC must make safety its highest priority, because earthquakes don't wait for endless studies and I am concerned the NRC is again dithering when ac- tion is called for," Boxer said in a statement, referring to Diablo Canyon. The Associated Press re- ported in August that a se- nior federal nuclear expert had urged the NRC to shut down the plant until it can determine whether the re- actors can withstand shak- ing from any of several nearby faults not recog- nized when the plant was constructed decades ago. The agency rejected the recommendation from Mi- chael Peck, who for five years was the NRC's lead inspector at the plant. The NRC found there was no immediate or significant safety concern. The agency's ruling was issued on the same day that PG&E released hundreds of pages of scientific research that found a fault 650 yards from the reactors, known as the Shoreline, is twice as long as initially believed, making it capable of pro- ducing potentially stron- ger earthquakes, and in- tersections between some faults in the region could create larger earthquakes than previously consid- ered. PG&E said in a state- ment that the plant remains seismically safe and able to withstand the largest po- tential earthquakes in the area. In his testimony, Blakeslee argues that the company has downplayed risks and criticizes the NRC for largely going along. "Now that the data about the faults near Dia- blo is indisputable, PG&E has changed tactics and declared the plant is safe on the basis of a new set of equations it has developed," he writes. According to Peck's re- port, PG&E research in 2011 determined that any of three nearby faults — the Shoreline, Los Osos and San Luis Bay — is capable of producing significantly more ground motion during an earthquake than was ac- counted for in the design of important plant equipment. Peck's confidential anal- ysis, later released by the NRC, argued that the agency should shut down the plant until it is proven that pip- ing and other systems can meet higher stress levels, or approve exemptions that would allow the reactors to continue to operate. An internal NRC review panel disagreed with Peck on key points, concluding that the three faults "do not exceed the level of ground motion already considered in the design and licensing" of the plant. Earthquake faults and nuclear power plants have been uneasy neighbors in the state for decades. QUAKE RISKS Di ab lo C an yo n at i ss ue a s pa ne l ga ug es n uk e sa fe ty MICHAELA.MARIANT—THEASSOCIATEDPRESSFILE One of Pacific Gas and Electric's Diablo Canyon Power Plant's nuclear reactors in Avila Beach on is seen on California's central coast. By Abdullah Rebhy The Associated Press DOHA,QATAR An American couple left the Gulf nation of Qatar on Wednesday af- ter being cleared of charges in their adopted 8-year-old daughter's death, ending a nearly two-year legal saga they contend was rooted in confusion over cross-cul- tural adoption. The Los Angeles couple, Matthew and Grace Huang, caught international atten- tion after they were ar- rested in January 2013 on murder charges following the death of their African- born daughter Gloria. The Huangs, who are of Asian descent, had ad- opted Gloria in Ghana when she was 4 years old, and are also the parents of two other African-born ad- opted boys. Throughout the case, the family's representative con- tinuously expressed con- cern that there were cul- tural misunderstandings underpinning the charges against the Huangs in a nation where Western- style adoptions and cross- cultural families are rela- tively rare. An initial police report raised questions about why the Huangs would adopt children who did not share their "hereditary traits." And prosecutors also raised suspicions that the children were part of a human traf- ficking operation or were "bought" for organ har- vesting, the family's web- site said. The case drew Washing- ton's involvement, with U.S. Ambassador to Qatar Dana Shell Smith accompanying the Huangs on Wednesday at Doha's Hamad Interna- tional Airport to ensure they cleared passport con- trol and reached their de- parture gate. The Huang's lawyer was also present. "We feel relieved. We feel gratitude to the legal system in the state of Qa- tar, which after some time worked as a good legal sys- tem should," Smith told The Associated Press after en- suring the couple made it to their departure gate. She later wrote on Twit- ter: "Matt and Grace Huang are wheels up from Qatar." She described the moment as "emotional." An Associated Press re- porter at the airport wit- nessed the couple's last moments in Qatar before they were cleared to leave Wednesday— a tense expe- rience that brought Grace Huang to tears at one point when her husband was held up for around five minutes on the other side of pass- port control. The suspense encapsu- lates the twists and turns of a case that became an irri- tant in otherwise close rela- tions between the U.S. and Qatar, a key ally that hosts an important U.S. military air base that is involved in airstrikes against the Is- lamic State group. After a Qatari appeals court overturned charges of wrongdoing against the couple on Sunday and the judge told them they were free to go, the Huangs were stopped at the airport and had their passports confis- cated as they tried to pass through airport immigra- tion control later that day. The State Department said the delay was caused by unforeseen procedural steps that needed to be completed, though a Huang family spokesman, Eric Volz, said in a statement on his website that all paper- work had been filed. On multiple occasions, the State Department raised the case with Qa- tari authorities and even expressed concern that not all of the evidence had been weighed by the court. On Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry spoke with Qatari Foreign Minis- ter Khalid bin Mohammed al-Attiyah and urged the government to immediately implement the court's deci- sion and allow the Huangs to return home to Los An- geles. The Huangs spent nearly a year behind bars be- fore their case was finally heard for the first time last November, and they were released on their own re- cognizance. After murder charges were dropped, they were convicted in March of child endangerment and sentenced to three years in prison. They were al- lowed to remain free pend- ing their appeal, but were banned from leaving the country. A doctor in Qatar who conducted Gloria's autopsy determined that dehydra- tion and a wasting disease were the cause of death. Prosecutors had said the couple denied food to their daughter and locked her in her room at night. The Huangs said Gloria suffered from medical problems complicated by an eating disorder that was the result of her impoverished early years in Africa. They said she was not allowed from her room at night because of bizarre behavior during eating sprees, including rummaging through gar- bage for food. A report prepared in the U.S. by Janice Ophoven, a pediatric forensic patholo- gist who reviewed the case for the family, found that when Gloria died, she was in an anorexic episode and had not eaten in as many as four days. TWO-YEAR LEGAL SAGA US c ou pl e cl ea re d in daughter's death leaves Qatar By Scott Smith The Associated Press California officials on Wednesday banned coy- ote hunting contests that have sparked a culture clash between wildlife ad- vocates and ranchers who offer cash and other prizes to marksmen who killed the most animals. It was the first ban of its kind in the nation, ac- cording to Camilla Fox, ex- ecutive director of Project Coyote, which petitioned the state to end the popu- lar contests that occur al- most every month in Cali- fornia or nearby states. The vote by the state Fish and Game Commis- sion allows hunters to shoot as many of the predators as they wish year-round but stopstheawardingofprizes. Commission vice pres- ident Jack Baylis said the statealsoneedstolimit how many predators a hunter is permitted to kill while re- specting responsible hunt- ers and allowing ranchers to manage their livestock. "Awarding prizes for wildlife killing contests is both unethical and in- consistent with our mod- ern understand of natural systems," Michael Sutton, president of the commis- sion, added during the meeting in the Van Nuys area of Los Angeles. CALIFORNIA State bans coyote hunts that offer prizes OSAMA FAISAL — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS American couple Grace, right, and Matthew Huang arrive at the Hamad International Airport in Doha, Qatar, Sunday. NOTICE TO TAXPAYERS Wednesday, December 10, 2014 at 5:00 p.m. is the last day for paying the first installment of real estate taxes without a 10% penalty. Payment can be made at 444 Oak Street, Room D or by mailing to the Tehama County Tax Collector, P. O. Box 769, Red Bluff, CA 96080. Copies of bills and credit card payment information is available online a www.co.tehama.ca.us. Our office hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. MAIL YOUR PAYMENTS EARLY! PAYMENTS MUST BE POSTMARKED ON OR BEFORE DECEMBER 10, 2014. All payments postmarked after 5:00 p.m. on December 10, 2014 will be charged a penalty. DANA HOLLMER Tax Collector | NEWS | REDBLUFFDAILYNEWS.COM THURSDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2014 4 B