Nuclear Info Mistakenly Released to the Public

The New York Times reports that the federal government mistakenly released a 266-page confidential report providing information about hundreds of the nation’s civilian nuclear sites and programs, including maps displaying the locations of fuel for nuclear weapons. President Obama had originally sent the document to Congress for review, and the Government Printing Office (GPO) then posted the report to its website. On Tuesday evening the report was withdrawn from the GPO site.

Various nuclear experts are reported as disagreeing over whether this erroneous posting posed a danger to the United States. The document did not actual contain information about the U.S. stockpile of nuclear weapons, but one expert is reported as saying that thieves or terrorists could have taken advantage of the report's information.

Is information about U.S. civilian nuclear sites and programs readily available on the web? Actually . . . yes; it's made available from the U.S. government:

• International Nuclear Safety Center The INSC operates under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy. The website provides information on nuclear plants, including maps, research reactors, and fuel facilities from around the world.
• EIA Nuclear Report, Data, Surveys This web page from the U.S. Energy Information Administration provides statistics, reports, analyses, and forecasts about nuclear energy.

For additional government resources on nuclear power, see our guide to Energy.