China's nuclear radiation level normal: official

Following the announcement that construction approval had been given to two new reactors, a nuclear safety official said Friday radiation from existing nuclear facilities is at a "normal level".

"All China's nuclear reactors under construction are well managed," Tang Bo, an official with the National Nuclear Safety Administration, said in an interview earlier this week.

He added that a sound radiation monitoring and emergency system is in place.

China has 23 nuclear power generating units in operation and 27 under construction, about one third of the world's unfinished nuclear units.

The 23 commissioned units are achieving very good safety performance, and no incidents ranked at INES II (International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale II) or above have been reported, Tang said.

The central government on Wednesday approved the construction of two nuclear power units in southeast China's coastal province of Fujian, using the Hualong One technology, a domestically-developed third generation reactor design.

This marks a restart of the nuclear program following a four-year suspension in the wake of the 2011 Japanese nuclear disaster.

New nuclear projects must undergo strict assessment and examination in design and site selection in accordance with nuclear safety laws and international rules, said Tang. Endi