Plant Vogtle’s nuke reactors hit a roadblock
March 11, 2009 at 1:48 pm by Thomas Wheatley in News
Do you or one of your neighbors have an extra closet — maybe some storage space or a shed out back — where a mom-and-pop nuclear facility can dispose of their low-level radioactive waste? Plant Vogtle might need to borrow it.
The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy and other environmental groups recently raised a red flag about two new reactors proposed for the nuclear plant near Augusta that’s owned and operated by several Peach State utilities, including Georgia Power.
At issue is whether the nuclear facility, already home to two power-generating white elephants, has sufficient plans to safely dispose of low-level radioactive waste produced by the new reactors.
And late last week, the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board, a three-judge federal panel that’s part of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and one of the many steps in the complicated process of approving nuke plants, said the environmental groups’ concerns merit a closer look. Should Southern Nuclear, the Southern Co. subsidiary that operates Plant Vogtle, not produce a better long-term plan, the federal agency might not issue the company a permit to build the new reactors.
In a press release, SACE called the board’s ruling another “small victory to prevent environmental damage” from the proposed new reactors.
A Southern Nuclear spokeswoman told CL it’s prepared to show the board the facility has sufficient storage plans.
“The application that we submitted for new units at Plant Vogtle is very expensive, well-researched and thorough. We’re confident our application has appropriately addressed all environmental issues.”
The spokeswoman says Plant Vogtle currently houses 95 percent of its low-level radioactive waste at a storage facility in Utah and that new waste will be stored in a similar manner. A closer facility in nearby Barnwell, S.C., once stored waste from 37 other states, but decided last June it would limit that waste to plants from South Carolina, Connecticut and New Jersey.
When asked if Southern Nuclear had a back-up plan in case the board nixes its plan, the spokeswoman said she didn’t think it would be appropriate to speculate and that the company would continue to work with the board.
If you’re in the mood for a road trip, Rob Pavey of the Augusta Chronicle says the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board will conduct hearings about Plant Vogtle’s proposed new reactors on Monday, March 16 in Augusta. Presentations will begin at 8:30 a.m. The hearings will continue until March 19, if necessary. All sessions, Pavey writes, will be held at the Doubletree Hotel and Convention Center in Augusta.
When asked for comment, a fictitious lobbyist seen burning money in a bonfire said Georgia lawmakers should simply pass a bill that would force utility customers to pay for a brand-new storage facility, which would be built in 2042. A nearby lawmaker overheard the comment and immediately introduced the measure, which passed. The lawmaker will enjoy a steak dinner tonight at Chops for his valiant effort. The storage facility will “create jobs.”
(Courtesy of Southern Co.)
March 19th, 2009 at 1:11 pm
If you fear the damage the non-greenhouse, non-acidic, non-particulate emitting, new nuclear plants will do, how do you think the fossil plants, that will be built in their place (since Solar, Wind, Tidal, Geothermal, Pie in the Sky, are currently not technology or economic wise, feasible) will impact the environment?
April 26th, 2009 at 8:55 am
If you think nukes are so bad.. walk less than a mile from vogtle to plant wilson..the coal burner next door. lets build more of those so we can have black, smoggy skies like around major cities up north (ie Pittsburgh) where they had coal for energy and steel mills. Vogtle during its construction still holds the record for most employment. your job must be pretty secure. I look around and see lots of folks who are unemployed and losing everything they own thanks to 20 plus years of Reagan/republican rule. vogtle is just what this area needs to reverse the double digit unemployment & default on mortgage rates.