Entergy prefers slower closure

Entergy prefers slower closure
August 12, 2007
The Associated Press
VERNON — The owners of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant would rather take the slower of two approaches to decommissioning the reactor when it's time for the plant to shut down, a company official told a state advisory panel.But the "SAFSTOR" method of decommissioning could mean the plant sitting idle for up to 60 years before it is dismantled, and members of the Vermont State Nuclear Advisory Panel indicated at a meeting Friday that method may be a tough sell.Idling the plant for that long would allow components to become less radioactive over time, said officials with plant owner Entergy Nuclear.Discussion about decommissioning also allowed Entergy to make another pitch for extending Vermont Yankee's operating license for 20 years beyond its currently scheduled shutdown in 2012.Decommissioning using the SAFSTOR method is projected to cost $804 million to $991 million if the process is begun in 2012; the decommissioning fund currently has just $431 million in it. Running the plant until 2032 would allow time for the fund to grow if invested wisely, said John Dreyfuss, Entergy's director of nuclear safety.SAFSTOR is one of two decommissioning methods approved by the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The other, DECON, is expected to take just 10 years as opposed to 60. But it would be costlier and could increase the risk of workers being exposed to radiation, said David McElwee, Entergy senior liaison engineer.David O'Brien, commissioner of the Department of Public Service and chairman of the Vermont State Nuclear Advisory Panel, said the state may have an interest in getting Vermont Yankee dismantled more quickly so that the site can be used for a new power plant. He asked Entergy to come to the next VSNAP meeting with more information on the two decommissioning methods.Rep. Sarah Edwards, P-Brattleboro and a member of the advisory panel, said she hoped Entergy's preference for SAFSTOR over DECON wasn't being driven by cost."I think one of the most revealing parts of the discussion for me was how the NRC has approved both, but (Entergy is) only looking at one seriously. I think, for due process, both of them should be considered, and we need to weigh the relative benefits," she said after the meeting.