This interactive storyboard summarizes findings from recent Climate Vulnerability Assessments (CVAs) conducted at nuclear power plants under EPRI and INPO guidance. CVAs are systematic, forward-looking evaluations of how projected climate hazards — including extreme heat, drought, intense storms, and biological fouling — may affect plant structures, systems, and components (SSCs) and their ability to operate reliably. The storyboard walks through the CVA process in four phases: recognizing climate risks and assembling cross-functional teams; screening and characterizing site-specific climate hazards; evaluating plant-level exposure and vulnerability through engineering analysis and walkdowns; and prioritizing response actions using an eliminate–mitigate–accept framework. Key findings indicate that rising air and cooling water temperatures represent the dominant hazard across all sites assessed, that the majority of SSCs retain adequate design margin under current conditions while a small number of cooling and heat-rejection systems show narrowing margins under mid-century projections, and that indirect and cascading exposure pathways — rather than direct thermal stress on individual components — often drive the most consequential vulnerabilities. Lessons learned emphasize the value of cross-functional engagement, system-level exposure assessment, structured walkdowns, coordinated multi-site campaigns that share insights in real time, and early initiation of design-basis data requests.
Access the Story Map here: Climate Vulnerability Assessment
Authors Laura Fischer, et al.