The focus of accident mitigation is which of the following?

• A. Protecting the public from fission product release
• B. Protecting the reactor core
• C. Maximizing plant availability
• D. Reducing routine maintenance costs

Answer: (B)

Accident mitigation centers on preserving the reactor core’s integrity by keeping it adequately cooled and avoiding fuel damage. If the core stays intact and properly cooled during an abnormal event, the chance of a large release of radioactive material drops, which is why protecting the core is the central focus. The aim of safeguarding the public from fission product release is the downstream result of keeping the core safe, not the immediate action itself. Uptime or routine maintenance costs aren’t the priority during an accident, so they aren’t the primary focus of mitigation. In practice, mitigation actions are about maintaining cooling, managing injections and pressures, and preserving containment to prevent core damage.