ML042050345
| ML042050345 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Oyster Creek (DPR-016) |
| Issue date: | 07/14/2004 |
| From: | Harriott M United Methodist Church |
| To: | Diaz N NRC/Chairman |
| Shared Package | |
| ML042240383 | List: |
| References | |
| G20040489, LTR-04-0465 | |
| Download: ML042050345 (5) | |
Text
EDO Principal Correspondence Control FROM:
DUE:
/
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EDO CONTROL: G20040489 DOC DT: 07/14/04 FINAL REPLY:
Rev. Dr. Michael Harriott The United Methodist Church TO:
Chairman Diaz FOR SIGNATURE OF :
- GRN CRC NO: 04-0465 DESC:
ROUTING:
Oyster Creek -
Deny License Extension DATE: 07/22/04 Reyes Norry Virgilio Kane Collins Dean Burns/Cyr Miller, RI ASSIGNED TO:
NRR CONTACT:
Dyer SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS OR REMARKS:
For Appropriate Action.
r-fi~oliis--CY-V-Vi c&-'ibs IS§cy+O I
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY CORRESPONDENCE CONTROL TICKET Date Printed: Jul 21, 2004 15.24 PAPER NUMBER:
ACTION OFFICE:
LTR-04-0465 EDO LOGGING DATE: 07/20/2004 AUTHOR:
AFFILIATION:
ADDRESSEE:
SUBJECT:
ACTION:
DISTRIBUTION:
LETTER DATE:
ACKNOWLEDGED SPECIAL HANDLING:
NOTES:
FILE LOCATION:
Dr. Dr. Michael Harriott NJ Nils Diaz Resolution requesting the Commission to deny any license extension for the Oyster Creek nuclear power plant beyond the current expiration date of April 2009 Appropriate Chairman, Comrs 07/14/2004 No ADAMS DATE DUE:
DATE SIGNED:
EDO -- G20040489
THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH GREATER NEW JERSEY CONFERENCE DR. MICHAEL HARRIOTTh Secretary OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY I11 Madison Avenue Montclair, NJ 07042 Phone (973) 746-2343 July 14, 2004 Eml:
Fax (973) 746-8689 Eml:Dr.Harriofttgnjumc~org Chairman Nils J. Diaz, Ph. D.
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, DC 20555
Dear Chairman Diaz:
Some 1600 lay and clergy members of the Greater New Jersey Annual Conference (GNJAC) of the United Methodist Church and visitors gathered in Atlantic City, New Jersey, June 17-19, 2004, for our annual conference. During the meeting, members of the GNJAC passed a resolution calling upon the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to deny any license extension for the Oyster Creek Nuclear Power Plant beyond the current expiration date of April 2009. A copy of the resolution is enclosed for your information.
Our conference represents 612 congregations with a membership of 107,837 people within the State of New Jersey, and many within Orange, Rockland and Sullivan Counties, New York, and Pike County, Pennsylvania.
Can we count on your support in this effort?
ConereceSecretary Greater New Jersey Annual Conference
OYSTER CREEK RESOLUTION WHEREAS, The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church ¶ 163 reads "...We believe private and public economic enterprises are responsible for the social costs of doing business, such as employment and environmental pollution, and that they should be held accountable for these costs."; and WHEREAS, Oyster Creek Nuclear Plant, built in 1969, is the oldest operating nuclear plant in the country and is now located in the second fastest growing county in the State of New Jersey; and WHEREAS, the operating permit for the Oyster Creek Nuclear Plant is set to expire in April of 2009 and the current owner, Exelon Corporation, will likely apply to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a twenty-year license extension; and WHEREAS, Exelon Corporation must submit the license extension application on or before April 2004 and will announce their decision whether to apply by mid-February 2004, just a few weeks away; and WHEREAS, the attacks of September 11, 2001 made it clear that all U.S. nuclear power plants are seriously vulnerable to attacks from the air and the ground; and WHEREAS, the elevated fuel pool at the Oyster Creek Nuclear Power Plant contains 500 tons of highly radioactive waste and is not adequately fortified in the event of strong weather situations or.terrorist attack; and WHEREAS, the on-site modules filled with nuclear waste and the fuel pool pose an attractive target for terrorists; and WHEREAS, the design and age deficiencies of the Oyster Creek Nuclear Power Plant are well documented and over 30 percent of nuclear power plant equipment failures in recent years can be attributed to age-related degradation; and WHEREAS, design standards have changed dramatically since the Oyster Creek Nuclear Plant was constructed 34 years ago and the current configuration of the plant and buildings raise important security and safety concerns; and WHEREAS, in 1985, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) said the Mark I Nuclear Reactor Containment System of the Oyster Creek Nuclear Power Plant is of faulty design and there would be a 90 percent failure rate in case of an accident, therefore making it necessary to vent the pressure buildup to avoid a core meltdown. This, however, defeats the containment altogether and would expose the public to doses of high-pressure, highly radioactive steam; and WHEREAS, the nuclear emergency evacuation plan lacks credibility; e.g., one escape route calls for school buses full of students to be driven towards the plant as part of the schema, and the consensus of residents at the July 22, 2003 Evacuation Hearing is that an independent agency should be commissioned to conduct a study and/or that the Oyster Creek Nuclear Plant should be shut down immediately; and WHEREAS, in case of a major nuclear incident, it would take one to four hours for radioactive plumes to spread within a 10-mile radius of Oyster Creek, depending upon the weather. According to New Jersey State Police Officials, evacuation would take 7 hours8.101852e-5 days <br />0.00194 hours <br />1.157407e-5 weeks <br />2.6635e-6 months <br /> in winter and 9 hours1.041667e-4 days <br />0.0025 hours <br />1.488095e-5 weeks <br />3.4245e-6 months <br /> and 28 minutes during the summer tourist season to evacuate 244,000 people. In all likelihood, people will be overcome either stuck in traffic jams or in their homes, businesses or schools; and WHEREAS, radioactive releases could cause cancer in people as far as 500 miles away and make homes uninhabitable according to a 1990 Sandia National Laboratories Report, and in the case of a catastrophic nuclear event at the Oyster Creek Plant, the entire shore region - home to many and a major economic engine in the State of New Jersey, would be uninhabitable; and WHEREAS, the NRC has not taken enforcement action against an Il-year old non-compliance identified in a January 24, 2003 Triennial Fire Protection Inspection Report (#50-219/02-01) involving the ability of the reactor to safely shut down in the event of a fire, exposing the public to undue risk; and WHEREAS, costly nuclear power poses safety and environmental risks, is heavily dependent on taxpayer and ratepayer subsidies, generates Strontium 90, which is linked to cancer, and kills marine life through thermal discharges; and WHEREAS, with continuing operation for an additional twenty years beyond 2009, the Oyster Creek Nuclear Plant's age-related degradation and risk of an accident will only increase in likelihood; and WHEREAS, with continued operation for an additional twenty years beyond 2009, the operation of the Oyster Creek Nuclear Plant would result in the generation of an additional 338 cubic meters of high-level radioactive waste, weighing over 1.4 million pounds with no clear disposal option outside of the State of New Jersey; and WHEREAS, the Government Accounting Office has found that the decommissioning fund for the Oyster Creek Nuclear Power Plant is sufficient; and
WHEREAS, the Oyster Creek Nuclear Power Plant produces less than 1% of the energy on the Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland (PJM) electric grid; and WHEREAS, the 650 megawatts of energy produced by the Oyster Creek Nuclear Power Plant can be easily replaced by the current and future projected grid reserve margin, renewable energy production and energy efficiency measures and that over the next two years, the PJM grid generating capacity will exceed the reserve margin by nearly 13,000 megawatts - to the point where PJM projects are selling energy to other grids; THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, by the Greater New Jersey Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church as follows:
- 1. The Conference Secretary on behalf of the Annual Conference hereby formally request the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to deny any license extension for the Oyster Creek Nuclear Power Plant beyond the current expiration date of April 2009;
- 2. The Greater New Jersey Annual Conference hereby formally oppose any application to build other nuclear facilities on the Oyster Creek site;
- 3. The Greater New Jersey Annual Conference hereby call for the decommissioning of the Oyster Creek Nuclear Power Plant as soon as practically possible and that plans for re-training and rehiring of existing employees begin immediately;
- 4. The Greater New Jersey Annual Conference hereby calls upon Exelon Corporation, the owner of the Oyster Creek Nuclear Power Plant, to fund the decommissioning process in its entirety, including the funding of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection staff to oversee the decommissioning process and ensure it is carried out with the highest regard for public health and safety.
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that a copy of this Resolution shall be forwarded by the Conference Secretary to:
A. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission B. Governor James McGreevey C. Senator Frank Lautenberg D. Senator Jon Corzine E. New Jersey DEP Commissioner Bradley Campbell F. The Ocean County Board of Chosen Freeholders G. Representative Jim Saxton H. Representative Frank Pallone
- 1. NJ Assemblymen and Senators representing Districts 9, 10, 11, 12 and 30 J. The New Jersey Council of Churches Christopher L. Miller