ML12258A098
| ML12258A098 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Indian Point  |
| Issue date: | 09/07/2012 |
| From: | Davis W - No Known Affiliation |
| To: | NRC/SECY/RAS |
| SECY RAS | |
| References | |
| 50-247-LR, 50-286-LR, ASLBP 07-858-03-LR-BD01, RAS E-759 | |
| Download: ML12258A098 (2) | |
Text
Docket, Hearing 2k 7
From:
Rees Davis [rees@hvc.rr.com]
Sent:
Friday, September 07, 2012 10:02 AM To:
Docket, Hearing; anne.siarnachi@nrc.gov
Subject:
Close Indian Point Immediately!
9/7/2012 To Whom It Concerns at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC):
I am writing to urge the long-overdue closing and decommissioning of the Indian Point nuclear reactors near Peekskill, N.Y. These reactors have already operated for much longer than the 40 years they were designed and built to operate. Undoubtedly, the chances for a catastrophic accident increase as these reactors age and are still kept online.
More importantly, these nuclear reactors sit on top of the Ramapo fault line. Unfortunately, the storage pools containing spent fuel rods are elevated, as at Fukashima. If these storage pools fail, as they are still in danger of doing at Fukashima, then Westchester primarily, but all of lower New York State will become an unlivable radioactive zone. There is no reason to risk the lives and property of millions of people for the sake of corporate profits.
Here are the five main reasons the Indian Point nuclear reactors should be decommissioned immediately, before it is too late.
- 1. More than 1,500 TONS of radioactive waste is stored in unfortified containers on the banks of the Hudson River at Indian Point. If the two nuclear reactors operate for another 20 years, Entergy would add another 1,000 tons of nuclear waste to containers New York State has described as "vulnerable to attack." What's more, carcinogenic radioisotopes from the plants have been leaking into the Hudson River since at least the early 1990s. Still more, when the Ramapo fault ruptures, the cooling systems will surely fail.
- 2. More than one billion dead fish and other organisms are killed by Indian Point's cooling water intakes every year. Indian Point uses more than 2.5 billion gallons of water per day, sucking river life in with the water. Clean water laws require the use of the best available technology to reduce the environmental damage, but Indian Point's owners have refused - for decades - to upgrade to modern technology. The slaughter helps explain why 10 of 13 signature Hudson River species are in decline.
Corrupt and fascist corporations like Entergy should be shut down and their executives jailed. JAIL!
Fines do nothing to stop these psychopaths.
- 3. A hopelessly ridiculous evacuation plan is unacceptable. After extensive study, James Lee Witt, the former head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, flatly declared Indian Point's evacuation plans "unworkable." What's more, the evacuation plans cover just a 10-mile radius around the plant, when fallout could easily spread 50 miles or more.
- 4. More than 20 million people are at immediate risk; many more may die later of cancers and the many disorders that occur with radioactive contamination. A disaster here on the scale of the meltdown at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi plant would endanger millions in and around New York City and the Hudson Valley. The economy of the country, and indeed the world, could be shaken by such
a catastrophe. Surely, the profits of one corrupt and fascist corporation, Entergy, are not worth the risk.
- 5. That it is all about profit is obvious, since we do not need Indian Point's power. A 2011 study commissioned by Riverkeeper and NRDC found that without Indian Point, the region would have a surplus of power through 2020, and could replace Indian Point many times over with investments in renewable energy, efficiency and transmission. The cost would be as little as $1-$5 per month for the typical homeowner.
For these five reasons Indian Point should be decommissioned immediately. Keeping it open and operating is simply insane.
Thank you for considering these remarks, W. Rees Davis 129 Wittenberg Road Bearsville, NY 12409 DOCKETED USNRC September 7, 2012 (10:02 a.m.)
OFFICE OF SECRETARY RULEMAKINGS AND ADJUDICATIONS STAFF 2