Key Issues

Federal Emergency Preparedness Regulations

Emergency Planning Zones

The U.S. government has established a 10-mile emergency planning zone around each nuclear energy facility to protect the public in the event of a serious reactor accident.

In the event of a release of radiation, state and local governments will sample water, milk, soil and crops within a 50-mile radius of a nuclear energy facility to determine if radiation was deposited.

If evacuation were necessary, emergency responders would initially focus on citizens likely to be exposed to a potential radioactive release.

Several communities have used off-site nuclear facility emergency plans in response to other types of emergencies. For example, during the October 2007 wildfires in California, county emergency officials drew on relationships and communications links they had established during their years of planning for nuclear-related events.

• Fact sheet on emergency preparedness
• Emergency planning zones fact sheet
• U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission: Backgrounder on Emergency Preparedness at Nuclear Power Plants

Emergency Planning and Coordination at Nuclear Energy Plants

Watch NEI's easy-to-understand video tutorial below on emergency planning near nuclear plants and how the U.S. nuclear industry coordinates with state and local officials to ensure the safety of the public. (Note: Select "Full screen" at the bottom right of the video to see an enlarged version of the video.)