Reps want NRC to return Indian Point penalty money to local governments
White Plains – Congressional representatives Nita Lowey (D-Westchester/Rockland), and John Hall (D-Hudson Valley), were joined by Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano, and County Department of Emergency Services Commissioner Tony Sutton Friday in highlighting what they say are continued safety and structural failings at the Indian Point Nuclear Facility.
“I believe that Indian Point represents an unacceptable threat to our region and should be shut down,” Lowey said. If Entergy cannot get a simple siren system to work, it raises obvious questions about the overall safety at the facility. As their inaction on installing the siren system continues to put our community at risk, it makes sense that the fines for these penalties be used to help protect our communities.”
Lowey and Hall also announced legislation that would require the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to distribute funds collected as fines for safety violations to counties surrounding nuclear facilities, which are charged with maintaining radiological emergency plans. Currently, all fines paid to the NRC, as with any federal agency, are deposited directly into the U.S. Treasury. Senator Clinton is introducing companion legislation in the Senate.
Hall called it common sense. “Counties are spending many, many hundreds of thousands of dollars on personnel, and time, and machinery and communications equipment, trying to be ready for a possible emergency at the plant. So, if there’s a fine, it would only seem fair that that should go to reduce the local taxes to the people who are paying for it.”
“It is only fair that any future fines levied against Entergy be directed to the counties who expend far more in emergency planning than they receive” said County Executive Spano. “Westchester, for example, has received $412,500 each year for the past ten years, while spending roughly ten times that amount since September 11th. To put this in perspective, the $130,000 fine previously levied, and given to the government is miniscule in terms of importance to the federal treasury, while to Westchester, it would have been used to relieve some of the burden Indian Point places on our taxpayers.”
Riverkeeper applauded introduction of the legislation. “Given the continuing problems with Indian Point’s beleaguered new siren system, radioactive leaks, and unplanned shutdowns, it is only fair that safety violation fines be directed to the communities that bear the burden of Indian Point’s failings”, said Riverkeeper’s Policy Director, Lisa Rainwater.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Lowey bill would give counties future Indian Point siren fine money
Lowey bill would give counties future Indian Point siren fine money
By GREG CLARYTHE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: July 21, 2007)
WHITE PLAINS - Federal and county elected officials from Westchester yesterday said Indian Point's new siren system was broken and announced congressional legislation to channel future fines for missed deadlines to help surrounding counties offset emergency budgets.
"I believe that Indian Point represents an unacceptable threat to our region and should be shut down," Rep. Nita Lowey, D-Harrison, said in announcing the legislation from her district office on Mamaroneck Avenue in White Plains.
"However, as it remains operational, the surrounding counties should not be forced to bear such great financial burdens in preparing for an emergency situation involving the plants," she said, "especially given Entergy's repeated safety and security failures."
Entergy Nuclear Northeast, the owner and operator of the Indian Point facility, agreed nearly two years ago to replace the decades-old siren system that serves Westchester, Rockland, Putnam and Orange counties after repeated problems with the system and congressional legislation requiring a major overhaul to add backup power.
Entergy officials said they are working hard to overcome hurdles that have appeared since they agreed to install the 150 new sirens.
The company already has missed two deadlines to deliver the system, and after the second, in April, the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission fined Entergy $130,000, which went into the U.S. Treasury in compliance with federal regulations.
Officials for the counties asked the NRC for that money to defray their costs but were turned down.
"We said that if the counties were interested in getting fine money they needed to pursue legislation calling for that," NRC spokesman Neil Sheehan said. "It sounds like that's what they're doing, pursuing that option."
Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano said the company should have paid for the system and left its installation to public emergency officials.
"We should be building the siren system. We should be in charge of it," Spano said. "I have to be much more accountable to the public (than Entergy does)."
Michael Slobedien, Entergy's top regional emergency official, said the obstacles to installing the new system are tremendous and the company is working as hard as it can to meet the Aug. 24 deadline.
"For the issues that we're facing, and that the counties are well aware of, the counties are in no better position to handle them than the people we have brought in," Slobedien said. "We have had difficulties with radio frequencies, and there is a great need to have this system be incredibly reliable. I don't see that the counties could bring anything more to the table than we already have."
Lowey acknowledged that the legislation, which Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., said she would take to the Senate, won't pass before the August deadline.
Rep. John Hall, D-Dover Plains, who joined Lowey at the announcement, reiterated his support for alternative forms of energy such as wind power.
He said legislation he introduced in February to tie any license renewal at Indian Point to an independent safety assessment of the nuclear plants was being reviewed at the committee level and would not come up for a vote at least until September.
Lowey said other area congressional representatives had voiced their support for the legislation announced yesterday.
Reach Greg Clary at 914-696-8566 or gclary@lohud.com.
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Great, now local communities benefit financially when the sirens of Indian Point do not work. What will happen if a real emergency happens and the sirens are needed? Remember that you were paid off because the sirens do not work?Posted by: The Haverstraw Man on Sat Jul 21, 2007 2:19 am
By GREG CLARYTHE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: July 21, 2007)
WHITE PLAINS - Federal and county elected officials from Westchester yesterday said Indian Point's new siren system was broken and announced congressional legislation to channel future fines for missed deadlines to help surrounding counties offset emergency budgets.
"I believe that Indian Point represents an unacceptable threat to our region and should be shut down," Rep. Nita Lowey, D-Harrison, said in announcing the legislation from her district office on Mamaroneck Avenue in White Plains.
"However, as it remains operational, the surrounding counties should not be forced to bear such great financial burdens in preparing for an emergency situation involving the plants," she said, "especially given Entergy's repeated safety and security failures."
Entergy Nuclear Northeast, the owner and operator of the Indian Point facility, agreed nearly two years ago to replace the decades-old siren system that serves Westchester, Rockland, Putnam and Orange counties after repeated problems with the system and congressional legislation requiring a major overhaul to add backup power.
Entergy officials said they are working hard to overcome hurdles that have appeared since they agreed to install the 150 new sirens.
The company already has missed two deadlines to deliver the system, and after the second, in April, the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission fined Entergy $130,000, which went into the U.S. Treasury in compliance with federal regulations.
Officials for the counties asked the NRC for that money to defray their costs but were turned down.
"We said that if the counties were interested in getting fine money they needed to pursue legislation calling for that," NRC spokesman Neil Sheehan said. "It sounds like that's what they're doing, pursuing that option."
Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano said the company should have paid for the system and left its installation to public emergency officials.
"We should be building the siren system. We should be in charge of it," Spano said. "I have to be much more accountable to the public (than Entergy does)."
Michael Slobedien, Entergy's top regional emergency official, said the obstacles to installing the new system are tremendous and the company is working as hard as it can to meet the Aug. 24 deadline.
"For the issues that we're facing, and that the counties are well aware of, the counties are in no better position to handle them than the people we have brought in," Slobedien said. "We have had difficulties with radio frequencies, and there is a great need to have this system be incredibly reliable. I don't see that the counties could bring anything more to the table than we already have."
Lowey acknowledged that the legislation, which Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., said she would take to the Senate, won't pass before the August deadline.
Rep. John Hall, D-Dover Plains, who joined Lowey at the announcement, reiterated his support for alternative forms of energy such as wind power.
He said legislation he introduced in February to tie any license renewal at Indian Point to an independent safety assessment of the nuclear plants was being reviewed at the committee level and would not come up for a vote at least until September.
Lowey said other area congressional representatives had voiced their support for the legislation announced yesterday.
Reach Greg Clary at 914-696-8566 or gclary@lohud.com.
Post a Comment View All Comments
Great, now local communities benefit financially when the sirens of Indian Point do not work. What will happen if a real emergency happens and the sirens are needed? Remember that you were paid off because the sirens do not work?Posted by: The Haverstraw Man on Sat Jul 21, 2007 2:19 am
Friday, July 20, 2007
Cuomo, Spano team up against IP license renewal
Cuomo, Spano team up against IP license renewal
By Abby Luby
County Executive Andrew Spano has received support from state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo in Westchester’s appeal of its federal lawsuit challenging the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) denial of the county’s petition to revise the re-licensing criteria for Indian Point.Spano’s petition, filed last year, asked that the NRC include population density and evacuation procedures, especially in the aftermath of 9/11. The county executive cited the changing population from a rural area in the 1970s when Indian Point first operated, to what is now a heavily populated metropolitan area of about 21 million people. The petition was denied by the NRC and Spano countered by suing the federal agency. Last week Westchester found legal support from Cuomo and Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who also filed briefs to Spano’s case now pending in the United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit. By having additional briefs, it adds legal weight to the suit filed by Spano.The New Jersey Environmental Federation and the New Jersey Chapter of the Sierra Club also have pledged to back the appeal.“I am very grateful to Attorney General Cuomo who has put the tremendous efforts of his office to help us to protect the public,” Spano said last week in a press statement. “Both of us feel that the process must be changed so that there is a level playing field between the public and the nuclear industry. So far, the NRC has never denied a renewal. They must reset their priorities when public safety is at stake.”Spano added that the NRC should also look at emergency evacuation plans in a fast-breaking scenario such as a terrorist attack. Entergy Nuclear, owner of the 40-year-old Indian Point nuclear plants in Buchanan, has applied to renew the existing operating licenses for Reactor Unit 2 and Reactor Unit 3. The licenses run out in 2013 and 2015, respectively. If the license application is approved, the plants will continue to operate until 2033 and 2035.Neil Sheehan of the NRC said the re-licensing process only looks at structural problems of aging nuclear power plants. “We look at the way Entergy will manage key safety systems and structural components,” Sheehan said, adding that other NRC departments already examine issues like evacuation and safety outside the plant. The re-licensing process can take up to as much as two years and doesn’t consider the location of the plant and local population density, security and susceptibility to a terrorist attack, acceptable emergency warning and evacuation plans, geographic and seismic issues.
Opponents applaud CuomoLisa Rainwater, policy director of the environmental group Riverkeeper, said Cuomo’s office has continued to show concern over the NRC’s oversight process. “There are issues at hand that the federal government is failing to address about Indian Point,” said Lisa Rainwater. “We have repeatedly called on the NRC to include emergency planning, population increases and risk in terrorist attacks in their relicensing criteria.” Marilyn Elie, member of the Indian Point Safe Energy Coalition, a grassroots group trying to shutter the plant, said she was glad the county has the support of the state. “It’s really great that the state attorney general is getting involved in this issue because, in this instance, the county has no power.”
By Abby Luby
County Executive Andrew Spano has received support from state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo in Westchester’s appeal of its federal lawsuit challenging the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) denial of the county’s petition to revise the re-licensing criteria for Indian Point.Spano’s petition, filed last year, asked that the NRC include population density and evacuation procedures, especially in the aftermath of 9/11. The county executive cited the changing population from a rural area in the 1970s when Indian Point first operated, to what is now a heavily populated metropolitan area of about 21 million people. The petition was denied by the NRC and Spano countered by suing the federal agency. Last week Westchester found legal support from Cuomo and Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who also filed briefs to Spano’s case now pending in the United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit. By having additional briefs, it adds legal weight to the suit filed by Spano.The New Jersey Environmental Federation and the New Jersey Chapter of the Sierra Club also have pledged to back the appeal.“I am very grateful to Attorney General Cuomo who has put the tremendous efforts of his office to help us to protect the public,” Spano said last week in a press statement. “Both of us feel that the process must be changed so that there is a level playing field between the public and the nuclear industry. So far, the NRC has never denied a renewal. They must reset their priorities when public safety is at stake.”Spano added that the NRC should also look at emergency evacuation plans in a fast-breaking scenario such as a terrorist attack. Entergy Nuclear, owner of the 40-year-old Indian Point nuclear plants in Buchanan, has applied to renew the existing operating licenses for Reactor Unit 2 and Reactor Unit 3. The licenses run out in 2013 and 2015, respectively. If the license application is approved, the plants will continue to operate until 2033 and 2035.Neil Sheehan of the NRC said the re-licensing process only looks at structural problems of aging nuclear power plants. “We look at the way Entergy will manage key safety systems and structural components,” Sheehan said, adding that other NRC departments already examine issues like evacuation and safety outside the plant. The re-licensing process can take up to as much as two years and doesn’t consider the location of the plant and local population density, security and susceptibility to a terrorist attack, acceptable emergency warning and evacuation plans, geographic and seismic issues.
Opponents applaud CuomoLisa Rainwater, policy director of the environmental group Riverkeeper, said Cuomo’s office has continued to show concern over the NRC’s oversight process. “There are issues at hand that the federal government is failing to address about Indian Point,” said Lisa Rainwater. “We have repeatedly called on the NRC to include emergency planning, population increases and risk in terrorist attacks in their relicensing criteria.” Marilyn Elie, member of the Indian Point Safe Energy Coalition, a grassroots group trying to shutter the plant, said she was glad the county has the support of the state. “It’s really great that the state attorney general is getting involved in this issue because, in this instance, the county has no power.”
Lessons learned from the earthquake in Japan
Lessons learned from the earthquake in Japan
EARTH WATCH
By GREG CLARYTHE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: July 20, 2007)
For me, the signature image from the Japan earthquake as it relates to our area was the president of Tokyo Electric Power bowing in apology to the mayor of Kashiwazaki for errors in reporting damage to the company's nuclear plant.
The Associated Press reported yesterday that radioactive material leaked undetected for days at the nuclear plant even as utility officials assured the public that damage was contained to the site, the company acknowledged.
Though government inspectors agreed that the amount of contamination was not a threat to public health, it was a team of inspectors who turned up some of the radioactive material that had gone undetected or unreported.
So far the news out of Japan has turned out to be better than it could have been, as New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Wednesday night about the Consolidated Edison disaster a little closer to home.
But the Tokyo Electric apology underscores that no matter what the situation is, the public deserves to know what's really going on as soon as possible, especially where radioactive leaks are concerned.
And it begs the question of "lessons learned," as emergency officials call them, the insights we gain by looking at what happens to others.
When I blogged this week about the nuclear emergency on the other side of the world, Indian Point supporters wondered why "the usually levelheaded Mr. Clary" would even broach the subject of something similar happening here.
Thanks for the compliment, I guess, but it seems to me that talking about similarities and dissimilarities is a measure of the even-handedness necessary to help ensure that it doesn't happen here.
Lest anyone think it's wacky to wonder about something distant also happening in our backyards, consider Wednesday's explosion in New York City. Besides being a sobering flashback to Sept. 11, it was a vivid reminder that infrastructure disasters can happen anywhere and without warning.
First, let's look at the dissimilarities between Japan and here:
Japan is earthquake prone, less like New York than like California - where everybody is an earthquake expert of some sort, if only from personal experience.
The last significant rumble we've felt in this area was 1985, centered in Ardsley on the Dobbs Ferry fault, and that was an order of magnitude that would barely raise West Coast eyebrows.
Secondly, the radioactive water that spilled in Japan was in waste containers that were reportedly knocked over by the force of the earthquake.
Indian Point doesn't store its radioactive waste in such barrels, and when it goes to dry cask storage starting next year, the 100-ton canisters have been tested by dropping them from helicopters.
The Japanese utility's public information effort, despite the chaos, was what forced the aforementioned apology.
Since Indian Point got such a ration of public flak, along with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, for delaying public announcement of a tritium leak at the site in September 2005, the plant has issued news releases on everything from unplanned reactor shutdowns to the discovery of the radioactive isotope strontium-90.
On the other side of the balance sheet are the similarities:
First and most simply, we're talking about radioactive waste. That's a big responsibility - in Japan or the Hudson Valley - and nobody will want to be the one bowing in apology if disaster strikes as quickly here as it did there.
Secondly, the idea that we won't have an earthquake that could cause extensive damage because we haven't in such a long time (1884 and 1737) doesn't hold water, at least at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Rockland, arguably the last word on earthquakes.
"The probability of that is low, but it's not zero," Leonardo Seeber, a seismologist at Lamont, said of a Japan-sized earthquake. "The earthquake issue should not be discarded as insignificant. It is usually given less attention than it deserves because of low probability, but it has high impact."
Indian Point has been built to withstand a higher-force earthquake than has been recorded in this area, but Seeber said that 300 years of history in the billion-year world of tectonic plate movement is too short a time span to project the future with much assurance.
"Even where geology doesn't alert you to earthquakes," Seeber said, "you can still have them."
Earth Watch runs every Friday. Send your ideas or comments to Greg Clary at gclary@lohud.com or 914-696-8566. For other environmental news, log on to the Journal News' blog - "The Nature of Things." It's available at http://nature.lohudblogs.com/
EARTH WATCH
By GREG CLARYTHE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: July 20, 2007)
For me, the signature image from the Japan earthquake as it relates to our area was the president of Tokyo Electric Power bowing in apology to the mayor of Kashiwazaki for errors in reporting damage to the company's nuclear plant.
The Associated Press reported yesterday that radioactive material leaked undetected for days at the nuclear plant even as utility officials assured the public that damage was contained to the site, the company acknowledged.
Though government inspectors agreed that the amount of contamination was not a threat to public health, it was a team of inspectors who turned up some of the radioactive material that had gone undetected or unreported.
So far the news out of Japan has turned out to be better than it could have been, as New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Wednesday night about the Consolidated Edison disaster a little closer to home.
But the Tokyo Electric apology underscores that no matter what the situation is, the public deserves to know what's really going on as soon as possible, especially where radioactive leaks are concerned.
And it begs the question of "lessons learned," as emergency officials call them, the insights we gain by looking at what happens to others.
When I blogged this week about the nuclear emergency on the other side of the world, Indian Point supporters wondered why "the usually levelheaded Mr. Clary" would even broach the subject of something similar happening here.
Thanks for the compliment, I guess, but it seems to me that talking about similarities and dissimilarities is a measure of the even-handedness necessary to help ensure that it doesn't happen here.
Lest anyone think it's wacky to wonder about something distant also happening in our backyards, consider Wednesday's explosion in New York City. Besides being a sobering flashback to Sept. 11, it was a vivid reminder that infrastructure disasters can happen anywhere and without warning.
First, let's look at the dissimilarities between Japan and here:
Japan is earthquake prone, less like New York than like California - where everybody is an earthquake expert of some sort, if only from personal experience.
The last significant rumble we've felt in this area was 1985, centered in Ardsley on the Dobbs Ferry fault, and that was an order of magnitude that would barely raise West Coast eyebrows.
Secondly, the radioactive water that spilled in Japan was in waste containers that were reportedly knocked over by the force of the earthquake.
Indian Point doesn't store its radioactive waste in such barrels, and when it goes to dry cask storage starting next year, the 100-ton canisters have been tested by dropping them from helicopters.
The Japanese utility's public information effort, despite the chaos, was what forced the aforementioned apology.
Since Indian Point got such a ration of public flak, along with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, for delaying public announcement of a tritium leak at the site in September 2005, the plant has issued news releases on everything from unplanned reactor shutdowns to the discovery of the radioactive isotope strontium-90.
On the other side of the balance sheet are the similarities:
First and most simply, we're talking about radioactive waste. That's a big responsibility - in Japan or the Hudson Valley - and nobody will want to be the one bowing in apology if disaster strikes as quickly here as it did there.
Secondly, the idea that we won't have an earthquake that could cause extensive damage because we haven't in such a long time (1884 and 1737) doesn't hold water, at least at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Rockland, arguably the last word on earthquakes.
"The probability of that is low, but it's not zero," Leonardo Seeber, a seismologist at Lamont, said of a Japan-sized earthquake. "The earthquake issue should not be discarded as insignificant. It is usually given less attention than it deserves because of low probability, but it has high impact."
Indian Point has been built to withstand a higher-force earthquake than has been recorded in this area, but Seeber said that 300 years of history in the billion-year world of tectonic plate movement is too short a time span to project the future with much assurance.
"Even where geology doesn't alert you to earthquakes," Seeber said, "you can still have them."
Earth Watch runs every Friday. Send your ideas or comments to Greg Clary at gclary@lohud.com or 914-696-8566. For other environmental news, log on to the Journal News' blog - "The Nature of Things." It's available at http://nature.lohudblogs.com/
Clinton asks Indian Point officials to back independent safety review
Clinton asks Indian Point officials to back independent safety review
By GREG CLARYTHE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: July 20, 2007)
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton asked top Entergy officials yesterday to support a call for federal regulators to conduct an independent safety assessment of Indian Point and to deliver the nuclear plants' new siren system on time.
In a private meeting in her Washington offices, Clinton, D-N.Y., spoke to Entergy Chief Executive Officer J. Wayne Leonard and Michael Kansler, the company's executive in charge of the Northeast region, asking for support in getting the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to conduct the review, even as she pushes legislation that would require the same action.
"The litany of recent problems at Indian Point has eroded public confidence in the plant at a time when Entergy is beginning its relicensing process," Clinton said in a statement released after the meeting. "I urged Entergy to commit to an independent safety assessment at the plant so that concerns about safety and emergency preparedness can be addressed to the satisfaction of the community."
Company officials were polite but noncommittal after the meeting.
"We had a positive conversation with Sen. Clinton about Indian Point, which produces the electricity that is the lifeblood of the New York economy," Leonard said in his statement. "We understand the senator's issues and appreciate her thoughts and ideas. We look forward to continuing a productive dialogue in the future and are committed to addressing the senator's concerns."
Entergy officials in the past have said that they will do what the NRC requires, but added that the independent evaluation Clinton and other elected officials are seeking has since been incorporated in the NRC reactor oversight process and would be redundant.
The NRC has said basically the same thing.
Clinton also raised a concern about the lack of new sirens for the plant. The company has missed two previous deadlines for installing the siren system.
" It is critical that Entergy meet (the new Aug. 24) deadline" for installing the system, Clinton said in a letter that she handed to Leonard and later released to the media.
Company officials have said they expect to have the new siren system operational by the deadline.
Reach Greg Clary at 914-696-8566 or gclary@lohud.com.
Post a Comment View All Comments
What any politician is unaware of, is the true thoughts and wishes of those who are not particularly her supporters. Ms. Clinton has a staff, and an open mailbox, no doubt well connected with those who hope to influence her, and she can only derive her "knowledge" such as it is, from those sources. Most people in the area don't think an ISA is the panacea Ms. Clinton thinks it will be. 67% of the local populace is not concerned about Indian Point. I took the time to read her bill on the congressional website, and amazingly, I found the bill as written demanding inspections of a few systems that Indian Point does not actually possess. Apparently her staffers took a generic nuclear plant writeup, and submitted it , sans any research. This is the same staff she relies upon to craft her entire position vis-a-vis Indian Point. So the great lady is a bit out of touch. Big deal. Right? Well, maybe we can blunder our way into a successful energy plan for the region, using bogus information, and maybe she is just pumping hot air, to look good, and actually casting all our fates to the wind. We shall see, in about 2016. (our nominal first year free of the "danger" of Indian Point). Are you ready, Mr. Clary?
Posted by: pepe on Fri Jul 20, 2007 8:17 am
What we really need is an independent safety review of Hillary!
Posted by: lawabiding on Fri Jul 20, 2007 6:23 am
What happened to Zoom Zoom Zoom..........Rockland County is about to get Zooomed about every three minutes and Ms Clinton (Senator Clintion) remains mute on the issue. In about three weeks the noise starts.......Zoom Zoom Zoom
Posted by: The Haverstraw Man on Fri Jul 20, 2007 2:28 am
By GREG CLARYTHE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: July 20, 2007)
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton asked top Entergy officials yesterday to support a call for federal regulators to conduct an independent safety assessment of Indian Point and to deliver the nuclear plants' new siren system on time.
In a private meeting in her Washington offices, Clinton, D-N.Y., spoke to Entergy Chief Executive Officer J. Wayne Leonard and Michael Kansler, the company's executive in charge of the Northeast region, asking for support in getting the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to conduct the review, even as she pushes legislation that would require the same action.
"The litany of recent problems at Indian Point has eroded public confidence in the plant at a time when Entergy is beginning its relicensing process," Clinton said in a statement released after the meeting. "I urged Entergy to commit to an independent safety assessment at the plant so that concerns about safety and emergency preparedness can be addressed to the satisfaction of the community."
Company officials were polite but noncommittal after the meeting.
"We had a positive conversation with Sen. Clinton about Indian Point, which produces the electricity that is the lifeblood of the New York economy," Leonard said in his statement. "We understand the senator's issues and appreciate her thoughts and ideas. We look forward to continuing a productive dialogue in the future and are committed to addressing the senator's concerns."
Entergy officials in the past have said that they will do what the NRC requires, but added that the independent evaluation Clinton and other elected officials are seeking has since been incorporated in the NRC reactor oversight process and would be redundant.
The NRC has said basically the same thing.
Clinton also raised a concern about the lack of new sirens for the plant. The company has missed two previous deadlines for installing the siren system.
" It is critical that Entergy meet (the new Aug. 24) deadline" for installing the system, Clinton said in a letter that she handed to Leonard and later released to the media.
Company officials have said they expect to have the new siren system operational by the deadline.
Reach Greg Clary at 914-696-8566 or gclary@lohud.com.
Post a Comment View All Comments
What any politician is unaware of, is the true thoughts and wishes of those who are not particularly her supporters. Ms. Clinton has a staff, and an open mailbox, no doubt well connected with those who hope to influence her, and she can only derive her "knowledge" such as it is, from those sources. Most people in the area don't think an ISA is the panacea Ms. Clinton thinks it will be. 67% of the local populace is not concerned about Indian Point. I took the time to read her bill on the congressional website, and amazingly, I found the bill as written demanding inspections of a few systems that Indian Point does not actually possess. Apparently her staffers took a generic nuclear plant writeup, and submitted it , sans any research. This is the same staff she relies upon to craft her entire position vis-a-vis Indian Point. So the great lady is a bit out of touch. Big deal. Right? Well, maybe we can blunder our way into a successful energy plan for the region, using bogus information, and maybe she is just pumping hot air, to look good, and actually casting all our fates to the wind. We shall see, in about 2016. (our nominal first year free of the "danger" of Indian Point). Are you ready, Mr. Clary?
Posted by: pepe on Fri Jul 20, 2007 8:17 am
What we really need is an independent safety review of Hillary!
Posted by: lawabiding on Fri Jul 20, 2007 6:23 am
What happened to Zoom Zoom Zoom..........Rockland County is about to get Zooomed about every three minutes and Ms Clinton (Senator Clintion) remains mute on the issue. In about three weeks the noise starts.......Zoom Zoom Zoom
Posted by: The Haverstraw Man on Fri Jul 20, 2007 2:28 am
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