ML16169A256

LTR-16-0328 Senator Kathleen O'Connor Ives Et Al., Massachusetts Senate, Letter Request for NRC to Shut Down Seabrook Station to Avoid a Catastrophe That Could Exceed Fukushima

ML16169A256
Person / Time
Site:	Seabrook
Issue date:	05/10/2016
From:	Ferrante A, Kelcourse J, O'Connor K, Wolf D State of MA, House of Representatives, State of MA, Senate
To:	Stephen Burns NRC/Chairman
Shared Package
ML16169A257	List: ML16169A256
References
LTR-16-0328
Download: ML16169A256 (2)

Text

@4:e Qlnmmnnfu:ealf4 nf 2IDtassar4ustffa MASSACHUSETTS SENATE Chair JOINT COMMITTEE ON COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND SMALL BUSINESSES SENATOR KATHLEEN O'CONNOR IVES Vice Chair First Essex District SENATE COMMITTEE ON PERSONNEL AND ADMINISTRATION STATE HOUSE, ROOM 215 HIGHER EDUCATION BOSTON, MA 02133-1054 FINANCIAL SERVICES TEL. (617) 722-1604 CONSUMER PROTECTION AND PROFESSIONAL LICENSURE FAX (617) 722-1999 STEERING AND POLICY KATHLEEN .OCoNNoRlvEs@MAsENATE.Gov OPIOID ADDICTION, PREVENTION, TREATMENT www.MASENATE.GOV AND RECOVERY OPTIONS Stephen G. Burns, Chairman U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Mail Stop 0-16G4 Washington, D.C. 20555-0001 May 10, 2016

Dear Chairman Burns:

As state legi.sla.tors,

'. ~ . '..

Q~r most basic responsibility i_s to ensure _the safety and

"'iell~being of the people of

-~  : .** ~

the Com.monwealth of Massachusetts. In Massachusetts, there a*re 60,000 citizens who live and work within the 10-mile-~~~cuation zone surrou~ding_ Seabrook Statior:i. H~wever, a~~diation release due to an incident ~t Seabrook Station will not stop at a 10-mile radius from the plant. . . .

In fact, when the Fukushima nuclear '; *, *, . , '

plant in Japan . ' .

experienced_

~  : .. .

a meltdown

.~ . .

on March 11, .2011, the U.S.

Nuclear Regulatory Commissio~ {NRC) recommen.ded that ell.I American in Japan* immediately mmre.50 miles fr:orn the d!sast~r .. This is indicativ.e of what t°h~ NRC really believes to be an appropriate .

evacuation zone. We see no reason why the. NRC would not .

apply the san1e .

protections that it recommended to Americans in Japan to those in !\,fassachusetts and New England. Over four million

• *New Englanders live within SO.miles of_SeabrookStaticm.

Given the s~eernumber o(peopleJhat could be _affe~t~_d, we fir!lify b,etieve that foe.~~abrook nuclear reactor poses an .u,nacc~pta.bi~*threat to the; lives and liveiihood of*t~e peop_le ~ho liv~ 'In the ~v-acuation zone and beyond.

First, the cc;mtinued operation of Seabrook Station is too risky because concrete degradation-due to a chemical re~ction that is novel to the U.S. nuc!ear power industry and the NRC-has occurred. , .... *-*

throughout t~e ~lant's entire fou~datiqn-~nd verti~al.structures ...Th,is includes N.RC-designat~~i safety structures such as the containment building that houses the plant's nuclear reactor.

Second, a timely, safe, and realistic evacuation from the evacuation zone and beyond in the case of a nuclear public safety risk is impossible. Summer beach traffic congestion or winter snowfall like we experienced in the winter of 2015 will not allow for safe evacuation. In fact, there are absolutely no evacuation plans for anyone living outside the 10-mile zone surrounding Seabrook Station.

Thirdly, the NRC has failed to provide adequate oversight, particularly over the degradation that plagues the Seabrook Station. The NRC's lack of knowledge about the progression of the degradation combined with a non-existent regulatory track record on concrete degradation has already put the people of New England at unknown risk.

On behalf of public health and safety, we call on the NRC to close Seabrook Station by withdrawing its operating license.

We stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the growing number of Massachusetts elected officials and the pub\ic who have caHed for a shutdown of Seabrook Station.

We urge the NRC to shut down Seabrook Station in order to avoid a catastrophe that could exceed that which occurred in Fukushima. In Fukushima, 100,000 Japanese people fled their homes and their businesses-possibly forever; damage estimates are estimated to be in the hundreds of billions of dollars.

Thank you for your attention. We would greatly appreciate a response which specifically addresses our serious concerns.

Sincerely, Senator Kathleen O'Connor Ives First Essex

&~A.Wolf Cape & Islands Representative Ann-Margaret Ferrante Fifth Essex First Essex

SENATOR KATHLEEN O"CoNNOR lvEs MASSAC'HUSETTS SENATE STATE HousE, RooM 215 BOSTON, MA 02133-1053

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