An environmental group has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Energy Department over its decision to award more than $1 billion to support the continued operation of California's last nuclear power plant, Diablo Canyon, beyond its planned closure in 2025. The move has sparked a new legal battle over the fate of the plant's twin reactors.
The complaint, filed by Friends of the Earth in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, alleges that the funding awarded to plant operator Pacific Gas & Electric was based on an outdated and flawed analysis that failed to adequately consider the risks of earthquakes and other potential serious events. The group criticized the safety assessment as 'grossly deficient' and accused the Energy Department of relying on a 50-year-old environmental analysis.
