ML19208D623
| ML19208D623 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Big Rock Point File:Consumers Energy icon.png |
| Issue date: | 08/20/1979 |
| From: | Leithauser J AFFILIATION NOT ASSIGNED |
| To: | NRC OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY (SECY) |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 7909290085 | |
| Download: ML19208D623 (5) | |
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a General Celivery SERVED.
SEP4 gg73 Levering, 11 I 49755 August 20, 1979 D
g Secretary of the Commiccion
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q U.S. fiuclear Regulatory Commiccion
'clachington, D.C.
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Docketing & Service Section e %> ;-10
Dear Sir:
- 3 Acting ac attorney for a coalition of three area organications as well ac for a less organised but his:hly concerned portion of the community (cee encloced news clippings), I am at this time requecting that the l'.'.C.
deny Consumer Power Company's requect to increace their spent-fuel storage at the Big Rock nuclear plant near Charlevoix, :.:ichigan.
If the commiccion la unwilling to iccue this denial, then we request that public hearings be held re this licensing amendment in the cities of Charlevoix, Traverce City and Ann Arbor, Michigan.
After these public hearinga have been held, we request that a Commiacion hearing be held in Charlevoix open to public comment and input, at which time the ccmmunity be allowed to ctate i t.: caue againct the fuel-compaction at the Big Rock plant.
It ic cur conviction that upon revelation of all pertinent facts, the ti.R.C. will at the conclucion of thece pro-ceedings grant our original motion and deny the l'cencee'c request.
All costs for these proceedings chould be paid by Consumer Power Company.
In this matter, I am acting as an acent for three separate area croups, hereinafter referred to as The
- orthwest Coalition. The Coalition, a member of the Great Lakes Energy Alliance, consists of the Fnercy recources Group of Petockey, I!orthern
- dichigan Alternative Cevelop-ment of Traverse City and the Charlevoix Citicena for Energy Awarenecc.
Thece three groups number recpectively approximately 12, 35, and 15 members and include both prestigious and ordinary citicene of the community.
Additionally, there are other citicens, including half of the Charlevoix City Council and scme the the county ccmmissioners who support this intervention.
At thic time, I chould point out that I will alco be representing myself in these proceedings.
I have lived in thic area for over 20 yearc and have a c:rong Acknoubdged by card..
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_3 cense of being bonded to the area.
It hac been home in the deepest cense of the word for many, many years.
As you perhaps know, the incredible vitality of the area's eco-system, which includes the Great Lake s, numerous inland lakes, streams and forests, as well as abundant and endangered wildlife, is the essential quality, the paramount factor in the selection of this area as hcme by thousands of Michigan citizens.
We feel it would be a callous disregard of ccmmunity sentiment for the N.R.C.
to grant, a t this time, the licensee's requect.
Speaking again on my own behalf, I am intimately involved with the community in Pctoskey, being a member of the Spectrum Community Center and the local fooc co-op.
I rely on the Petockey marketing network and have many friends and business associates who reside in town.
Furthermore, in my business, I have frequent dealings with the cities of Charlevoix, Petoskey and Harbor Springc.
Additionally, I an involved in an enterprise with Helen N. Prescott to up-grade and improve 40 acres of land near Sturgeon Bay and would consequently be deprived of mental tranquility and a certain percentage of my buciness.
I also rick losing out on future optionc for land developmentc.
In addition, the health and safety ramifications of this amend-ment are considerable.
In addition to the above declaration of interest, I will be mailing to the N.R.C. within 10 days, the sworn affadavit of a Petoskey and a Charlevoix citizen, declaring their particular interest in this matter.
If the N.R.C. uesires to see authorizaticn for representation from these groups, we will be more than happy to provide the Commission with such documentaticn.
Our contention and the. acts to support them will be forthcoming.
At this time, we reserve the right to amend this document at any time, particularly regarding our statement of interest or supporting contentions.
Please advise me as to the schedule to be emplcyed for receipt of documentation.
Sincerely,
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- John A. Leithauser ENE?.GY RESCURCES 3RCUP t
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UNITED STATES OF A 2RICA ovI 1 Lg-u L-NUCLEAR REGUIATCRY CC:.2I.32 ICD n
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IN THE I/ATTER OF CONSU:J.ERS PC'.CR
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io, CO:.:PANY, Big Rock Point Plant
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Docket 50-155 p t
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Amendments to Facility Cperating
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9 License Nos. DPR-06 (Increase
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PETITICN FOR LEAVE TO INTFRV:NE
~'he Energy Resources Croup of Petoskey. The Charlevoi:'. Citizens for c.nergy Awareness, and the Northern I.lichigan Alter!.ative Development
- c. coup of Ira-verse City, members of the Great Lakes Energy Alliance, by John A.
Leithauser, our authorized agent, hereby move the United States Nuclcar Regulatory Commission for leave to intervene in Consumers Fower Co. request
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to increase their spent fuel storage at the Big Rock nuclear plant near f
Charlevoix, !.Iichigan.
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These organizations, hereinaf ter refered to as the Northwest Coal:.ticn, g'
...t do now express some of their interests in the subject of cententien-h'?"'
t-Having organized around their common perception of the safe ty anc health risks posed by the plants continued operation and ever mif. -
I ful of the deteriorating hardware at the plant site, the ::orthwest Coalition is extremely alarmed by any proposal to more than double the amount of high-level nuclear material to be held indefinitly c t
site at the Big Rock plant near Charlevoix.
1 As citizens of their respective communities who derive their v1 -
I hood, their spiritual, social, physical, and psychological '.
_1 from this area and its many natural resources, they will ' e diroc -
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t PETITICN FOR LEAVE TO INTERVENE OF THE NORTH'.!23T COALITION----Docket 50-155 affected by any and all problems associated with the propoced fuel compaction at the Big Rock plant. These communitiec are well within the zone which wou.d be contaminated by any nuclear excur-cion reculting from a cpent-fuel accident.
These citizenc utilize, to a far greater degree than the average individual, the many lakes, streams, forectc, farmlands, and wild-life existing in the area. Ac any spe,nt-fuel accidant resulting in the release of radionuclides would directly affect thece recourcee, these individuals rick losing a significant cource of happinece and mental well-being, a risk brought about by the licencee's propoced amendment.
Be it additionally noted, that this petition for leave to intervene represents a significant pcrtion of the north-west :/.ichigan community,
who are not members of the Northwest Coalition, but who nevertheless object to the proposal to more than double the amount of high-level nuclear waste to be stored indefinitly at Big Rock. As all of thece persons derive their economic lbdihood ac well as their spiritual, social, phycical, and psychological vitality from this area, the) will be directly-affected by any and all problems acccciated with increased spent-fuel storage at Big Rock.
At this time, the Northwest Coalition reservec the ri;ht to amend this petition for leave to intervene and all cupporting dccuments.
Prepared by John A.
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. 30_ Ju Lkala 1055 106
- gMany of 75 Question Safety At Big Rock Addition Meet e
By MARCEllA S.KREITER planned to be done by the nuclear indu3try. now the mdustry has s
CHARLEVOIX t UPI)
Area residents fear allowing to find an a!ternative. Unless this is done, Big Rock will have to a
, Consumer Power Co. to more than double the amount of nuclear shut down by 1981."
a waste kept in a storage site on the shores of Lake Michigan near The expansion, which is expected to cost $1.8 mdton, will the Big Rock nuclear power plant could lead to health problems enable the plant to operate through IWO and by then. Smderman for them and their chddren.
said, a solution to the problem of what to do with nuclear waste is a
1 Those fears were voiced Wednesday night at an informal expected.
1 hearmg at which some 75 persons questioned utthty spokesmen on Marci Brown, a member of Charlevats's Citizens for Energy
$ the safety and reasons behind their proposal.
Awareness, suggested that instead of spendmg the money to i
"My concerns for nuclear power are the potential threats over eIPand storage facthties, Consumers might better give the same time," said Dr. Gerald Drake, a Petoskey physician currently amount of money to its talented engi..eers at Charlevoix to
. trying to determine whether there has been a significant increase develop wind and solar facihttes for the comn.euty, m the number of cancer cases in the area since Big Rock w ent into Jim Olson, a Traverse City attorney who represents the Big operauon in 1962.
Rock 14, suggested that the company give the City of Charlevotx "Our present standards for radiation dosage have been $150,000 to act as an intervenor m the present request oefore the presumed safe but there is cause for concern. There have been Nuclear Regulatory Commission. He pomted out that although it instances of cancer even at those levels.
costs only pocket money to be designated an mtervenor, the cost "I am just not satisfied we know enough about radiation of gathering data to substantiate clauns can be tremendous.
induced cancer to be confident of our present safe dose rates."
The Big Rxk 14 are members of NOM AD < Northern M:chigan Drake suggested that humans may have different levels of Alternative Development) which demonstrated agamst nue: ear radiation susceptibdity, just as they have different levels of energy at the Big Rock Pomt plant last December. Feurteen susceptibilty to other diseases.
members were chstged with trespassmg.
Drake received a round of applause when he suggested the Big Olson urged residents to recognize the "symboh3m" of the Rock plant be shut down for good.
Dree Mile Island nuclear accident, the fall of Skylab and the "Ihe facihty, the fourth ever budt in the U.S. and labeled one of runaway od wellin the Gulf of Meuco. He sees them as signs that the most dangerous by the Union of Concerned Scientists, went technology must soon take a back seat to health and the down for refueling Feb. 2. As workers attempted to bring it back environment.
on line in mid-Aprd radioactive water began leakmg from a Christa Marta, a native of Germany now hving in Char evctx.
control rod mechanism. He problem was expected to be repaired complained tha t nuclear generation plants have cropped up the by the end of September.
world over in areas desirable to live.
Several people asked for assurance that permission to increase Area residents have until next Wednesday to petition the the amount of waste stored at the plant would not mean waste Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a hearing on the proposal.
from other plants would be brought in.
The meeting was chaired by Mrs. Shirley Roloff, a memt.er of Roger Stnderman, a health physicist for the utihty, said it the Charlevoix City Couned, w ho called the inf ormaticnal aession would not be possible to store spent fuel rods from other facihties after the council decided last week not to mtervene m Consumers' at Big Ro k because the newer nuclear plant.s use much larger petition before the NRC.
fuel rods which would not fit into the storage racks Consumers in addition to Sinderman, the company was represented by has asked permission to build.
David Bixel, the ut.11ty's nuclear beensmg admtmstrator: Cy One questioner asked whether Consumers carried enough Hartman, supermtendent of the Big Rock Pomt plant; and liabihty insurance to cover the damage an accident at Big Rock Charles Axtell, health physictst at Big Rock.
might produce. Sinderman said the utihty carrtes more than $160 Don VanFarowe, chief of the radiation momtermg hvision of mdlion in liabdity insurance and noted there has never been a the Michigan Department of Health, attended the meetmg but did major accident at Big Rock in all the years it has been in notspeak.
operation.
r Sinderman said the amount of spent fuel kept at the site will not g
y entail makmg the storage facility any bigger but merely require
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the installation of new racks to hold the materialin a 23 f oot-deep pool. Currently, there are.193 racks in the pool and Consumers Cht?rch.
.5 Obituartes.
.2 wants to increase the capacity to 441.
Classifieds..
.11 14,18 Sports.
.9 10 He said ! President Carter had not banned the reprocessing of Comics.
.18 Tea Tables
.17 spent fuel tais expansion would not be necessary.
Entertainment
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.18 "To keep the reactor operable we have to fmd a place to keep Editorial
.4 TV Leg
.15-16 the fuel," Sinderman said. " Reprocessing spent fuel always was Family
.67 Weather.
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1055 107
4 O dC bh p n (, C-s Wednesday, April!!,19794 C% levoir Curiar Our Opin on Nuc ear waste cisposal problem must be solvec nowe It is no secret that finding a solution to the nuclear waste prchlem !s a top priority of the Departnent of Energy.
Since the advent of nuclear energy, no safe method for disposing of the waste has been discovered. Most nuclear plants are forced to cool the waste in pools adjoining the plant's reactor.
The problem with the wast'e is that it remains radioact!ve for hundreds of
, years. And the human body can only absorb so much radiation without being greatly affects i M
ntil 1970, the Urdted States dumped low level waste in drums in the Atlantic anc. Pacific Oceans. But it has been discovered that the drums are leaking
, radioactive materials. Scientists are now studying the possibility of burying the waste in salt beds, granites, basalts and shales. 'Itey are attempting to learn f
. hich are most stable and would best prevent radioactivity from leaking into,
w the environment It might be years, tho::gh, before anything conclusive is !
"' ' determined.
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~ j, Two states, California and Maine,have already banned construction of new,
,, nuclear plants until an acceptable solution to the waste problem has been fcund. - l p
Although we are short on energy - and nuclear energy supplies us with one-*'f eighth of our electncal power - it might be wise for Michigan to ban < [
construction of nuclear plants, too. Sen. CarlIcin is proposing legslation that would place a moratorium on buildingnew nuclear plants. We support his idea bWause we ieel fiidi5g a solution to the disM problem is paramount ~
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