SONGS-related Emergency Planning, Training, and Exercises
The County of Orange remains committed to planning for and responding to any potential emergency at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS). While the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) exempted SCE from some activities related to off-site agency coordination, the NRC acknowledged the emergency management activities supported under the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) purview. To that end, all IPC members, including the County, continue to pursue risk-informed emergency planning related to SONGS. Each jurisdiction of the Interjurisdictional Planning Committee (IPC) will maintain nuclear specific emergency plans to ensure our response capabilities are effective and applicable to a decommissioning nuclear plant. Decision Makers Conference Call drills continue to be conducted to ensure offsite jurisdictions practice decision-making capabilities based on an emergency at SONGS. In addition to quarterly communication drills, the Offsite Dose Assessment Center will continue to maintain radiological monitoring response capabilities and will conduct field exercises.
How Will I be Notified if There is an Emergency at SONGS?
There are several different tools the County may use to notify the public of an emergency. Those tools include the Orange County mass notification system known as AlertOC, Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA), route alerting public address systems, phone, text alerts, email messages, or the Emergency Alert System (EAS). The following radio stations will broadcast emergency information:
KWVE FM 107.9 - Santa Ana
KOGO AM 600 - San Diego
Register with AlertOC to receive emergency information from the County or City in which you live or work.
Emergency Planning Interjurisdictional Planning Committee (IPC)
Created in 1991, the IPC is made up of local and state agencies which include representatives from:
- City of Dana Point
- City of San Clemente
- City of San Juan Capistrano
- Orange County
- San Diego County
- California State Parks
- Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton
- Southern California Edison
Members continue to meet to coordinate SONGS-related emergency planning, preparedness, and response activities.
For the latest update on the decommissioning status of SONGS, please visit the SONGS Community website.
The Community Engagement Panel holds quarterly meetings in communities near SONGS. Please visit their website for additional information on future or past meetings and topics.
History of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station
The San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS), operated by Southern California Edison (SCE) is approximately 100 km (60 mi) south of Los Angeles, 6.5 km (4 mi) south of San Clemente, CA. It is located between I-5 and the Pacific Ocean, within the boundary of the Camp Pendleton military reserve. The site originally comprised three nuclear power plants. Unit 1 commenced operation in 1968, and shut down in 1992. On June 7, 2013, Southern California Edison (SCE) announced plans to permanently retire Units 2 and 3 and it is currently in the decommissioning process.
