nuclear-news

Petition to NRC – Pilgrim Nuclear plant can’t afford safety costs

  “In recent months, an escalating number of equipment failures, especially related to Fitzpatrick’s condenser have made the plant unreliable and have unduly put the public at risk,” Jessica Azulay, of the Alliance for a Green Economy, said. “We believe the dire financial situation at Fitzpatrick is an underlying cause.

PILGRIM STATION: Can Entergy afford Pilgrim Petition says ‘no’By Frank Mand Wicked Local Plymouth
Aug 14, 2013  PLYMOUTH —

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has accepted for review a petition alleging that Pilgrim-owner Entergy no longer meets the NRC’s minimum financial standards for safely operating nuclear power plants.

The petition groups Pilgrim with two other Entergy-owned plants, Vermont Yankee and the James A. Fitzpatrick facility in upstate New York.

The four petitioners – Citizens Awareness Network, Alliance for a Green Economy, Vermont Citizens Awareness Network and Duxbury-based Pilgrim Watch – were denied their request for an immediate shutdown of the reactors, but the NRC is allowing their petition to move to the next step in the review process.

The NRC’s Petition Review Board could have found that there was no basis to continue with further evaluation of the petition or could have requested more information before determining whether it merited further consideration.

In a joint release, the petitioners called the decision to accept their petition for review, “a victory for residents seeking to shut down the reactors out of concern over a rising number of age-related equipment failures,” and urged the NRC to move quickly to prevent the plants from continuing to operate under financial strain, which they claim would be a violation of NRC regulations.

“Entergy is no longer qualified to operate these nuclear plants, and now is the time for NRC to step in and take away the keys,” Tim Judson, president of Citizens Awareness Network and co-founder of Alliance for a Green Economy, said.

“The pressure on Entergy to cut costs, delay maintenance and drive these plants to the edge is just too great,” he added. “NRC has financial qualification requirements for exactly this reason, and the agency must act so the smoking gun is not an evacuation siren.”

“In recent months, an escalating number of equipment failures, especially related to Fitzpatrick’s condenser have made the plant unreliable and have unduly put the public at risk,” Jessica Azulay, of the Alliance for a Green Economy, said. “We believe the dire financial situation at Fitzpatrick is an underlying cause.

In 2013, according to the petitioners, the financial services company UBS predicted Entergy was likely to sustain substantial losses operating Fitzpatrick and Vermont Yankee over the next several years even if they were able to operate those plants at full capacity with no downtime.  UBS also reported that Pilgrim may also be unable to compete in the market and may have to close.

Mary Lampert, director of Pilgrim Watch, said Pilgrim’s high number of reportable events to the NRC this year is tied to Entergy’s financial problems.

“If you have an antique reactor you have to spend money on maintenance and replacement of parts,” she said. “Entergy has neglected to do so. Another sign of financial trouble was Entergy’s announcement of more worker layoffs. You can’t run a nuclear reactor on the cheap and protect public health and safety.”

According to NRC Public Affairs Officer Neil Sheehan, the NRC is committed to a thorough and timely response to the petition.    http://www.wickedlocal.com/plymouth/news/x369947703/PILGRIM-STATION-Can-Entergy-afford-Pilgrim#ixzz2c5VFts00

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August 15, 2013 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | Legal, USA