ML20116N943

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Intervenor Exhibit I-OCRE-11,consisting of R Ridenhour 850330 Article, Rush to License:Money Vs Safety, Appearing in Gambit Weekly Newspaper
ML20116N943
Person / Time
Site: Perry  FirstEnergy icon.png
Issue date: 04/09/1985
From: Ridenhour R
AFFILIATION NOT ASSIGNED
To:
References
OL-I-OCRE-011, OL-I-OCRE-11, NUDOCS 8505070413
Download: ML20116N943 (21)


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MARCH.30. E.._ - 5 ym_r

.,_---n Gy RON RIDENHOUR hen the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory m the event of an earthquake, one of the respond during an earthquake. The new Woperating license to Louisiana Commission issued a full power NRC's fundamental safety requirements.

analysis would have to be completed, Both men insisted that the discovery of the Crutchfield said, before Waterford would Power and Light for its foundation < racked cracks changed all the previnusly used be allowed to restart following its Gru re.

Waterford ill nuclear power plant on design assumptions about how the founda.

fueling outage, a penod esumated to be March IS, there were no public outburses tion would react under such circumstances.

about 13 mombs away While he and oth-of surpnse and only a few weary but deter.

Ma and Chen both msisted that the plant is en on the NRC siatI agreed =ah LPit mined cnes of protest. Everyone who eas not safe to operate as it n that the plant could begm *uu power ecu payms any attention seemed to know that But Ma and Chen were overruled by tions as it is, Crutchliefd trud the eri ni.

it was commg. There was a sea change at their NRC supenors. % hile the cause of stoners, he conceded under permtent the NRC on the licensms of nuclear power the cracks was still not known and no questionmg from Commemoner James plants in the early part of 1984 Dunng the acceptable engmeenne ana'ysis of how the Asselstme that the central question the last gar, accordmg to mtervenors around cracked foundauon would respond m the question around which all the dmen*

the country. congremonal sources m Wash-event of an carthquake had been done within the NRC staff resolved, was the ington and several anu-nuclear lobbyists.

Dennis CrutchGeld told the commemon question of safety John %f a and John there hase been few if any techmcal or ers, he and other high iciel NRC decision Chen, the NRC's staff expens on the ques safet makers beheved the plant could safely tx tion of Waterford's foundauon. Dei,c.c ghquestions the NRC has found suffi-g g,gg gp g,

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plant for lorig. No one involved in the ques-

' CrutchGeld is the director of a special NRC unsafe to op rate before the answers about t oning of Waterford had any reason to the cracks are known The dJference 9 opmion between \\f a and Chen on Inc one assurne that it, too, would not be $*ept up mm in that same ude.

l hand and their own posioon, supeners or the two engineen eser*tually coricecel Gary Groesch, a spokesman for the jomt

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revolved around "schecuhng" LP&L arc 7

mtervenors, Save Our Wetlands and the the NRC wanted to get waterford m:0 ful eaThere was a deb *b-O - - ~ = n. wu m - vis -

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to the hcensms of Waterford than meets mg for the completion of the new engineer erate aPPr030h t0

  • e>e. -rhe uRC ioid Congre-womo ing aws or u mcis ihu== bems (Lindy) Boggs that they would not act required anyway would delay that indeG-ex te the h.CenS-wr- ~ -* - ad -

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" Scheduling 7 setting the plants invesugauons (at %hterford) wm comple-g ted. They lied to her. (NRC Chairman) licensed, say mtervenors at Waterford and mg a

e Nunzio Palladino said they wouldn't act l3

'l my bei,m is = NRC s primary, nam other nuclear power plants all over the before the Appeal Board ruled. He tied.

country, has taken precedence over what pTObleHIS, W 'Ch by w mduaryis bet s fouwau. f w and Waterford is the cherry on top'* To l

date: protecting the pubhc health and t a Une e

croesch and others iike h>=. ihere is iitise

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iareir. wwai happened ai ihe commissioa t

meeting on the !!censms of %%terford, they question about what has been happerung.

a iar. has beca happeruns dunna 'he deiiber-eW Were Very aues*a is: war?

.k ations for the licensms of every plant.

N!adino and the NRC staff made the il

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serious' Could be

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i other interwnors agree. "The beensms of before Waterford was issued its low power i

operating license on December ti, Groesch g! lll Waterford7 according to Lynn Berriaori, ggg gg said Boggs told him and others at a tarer an attorney who represents Waterford's f

joint interwnon m Washin,.gton,, "is one a.s U ) On a SC e t0

. meeting beteten the congresswoman and

~ mo..greg, s.aamp s o the N RC imer.no in N.e er s.

spo,es.

person for Boggs, however, said that NRC speed up in heensing. Their pohcy is to p ease the off;c>ais had assured her that aii of the j

iicense piants ne matter whai. based on an technical tests and the criminal investiga-I aruficial schedule that is designed to please C0HUnlSS100...s, iias====ricie enor io ihe issuaace of

<he aucie=r iadus'rr. even 'housh 'here are the low poner license and that they have clearly unresolved safety problems atmus hQ{QQV been re-veviewed and reevaluated since then the base mat, quality assurance and ihe el and, according to the technical staff at character and integnty of the company

' 6" 'ddd *"d "'*d I-L H

m el prior to the issuance of the full power the spring of last year m order to hceme bcense" At least a dozen criminal investi-Waterford as quickly as possible. There c

was a dehberate approach to expedde the ganons have been opened over the last year deshng with allegauons of wrongdoms by task force that was established on March licensing so that the problems which by various levels of managers at Waterford 12,1984. The whierford task force, which that time the NRC knew were very senous dunns the plant's construction.

numbered more than 60 people at its peak, could be essentially co6ered up on a sched.

Durms the NRC meetmg prior to the was assigned to investigate the cracks in the ufe to please the commission and that's issuance of Waterford's full power license, plant's foundation and hundreds of other what they did...to please the commimon however, two NRC eng neers, Drs. John allegations of fundarnental breakdowns in and the utdity. That's what they set out to Ma and John Chen, dasputed the conten-Waterford's safety program. The entrunal do and that's what they've done."

tion that the safety quesuons ansing from investigations, which are bems handled by Bernabei, who works for the Govern-the cracks in Waterford's foundation had a separate NRC office, arose from infor-ment Accountability Project, a pubhc indeM been resolved. Ma and Chen had mauon developed by the task force.

interest law firm, bebeves that what hap-been the NRC's lead internal esperts A condition has been written into Water-pened at w%terford is simply a matter of assigned to study the question of how the ford's full power license. Crutchfield told NRC pohcy, which has steadily been shift-cracks that run through the center of the commissson, requirms LP&L to com-ing in favor of the industry smce Ronald Waterford*s giant "flosung* foundation plete a new engmeerms analysis designed Reagan became president. Since coming would affect its abdity to shut down safely to determine how the cracked mat would into office Reagan has appointed au five

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critics in Congresa and the anti-nuclear fj; lobby, a five month Gambra investigation

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Reagan administration set in motion a series of steps early in 1984 that would C

eventually lead them into a concened pro-gram to oversee the expediting of the heens-Celehmte thisjopus spring holiday aterlooking

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DECORATED R'RKLYINMPIC advisor on energy matters. Danny liog;.

The doe Task Force monaored a s..te range o( activuss. it(thp NSC. anah'rsd the.,' "',

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information and then provitted it to-BofgD;' '

MIM and then Secretary of Energy Ocma'a Hodel, who m turn prosided it to ocnn,

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E G /RE N I.I.E orgamzation caned ihe whire House C.:t s net Council on Econom:c Affa.rs worL g SE4E000 ER>lEEEE group on nuclear po*er was esiaolatro flolWM A lA CREQl/E specifically to study ways to bail out a Rr'MW UHolE.7RI.VG IMIB number of utihty companies whose trou.

bled nuclear constuction programs were RfABT #1ND lEC OF BEEE 47TH mRKTHIRE Pf'DDING threatening to force them into bankruptcy NER PAN.MWY The DOE task force otilved directly out of the dehberations of the Cabinet Counsd All 04TMl6/ CAL EVIERTAINMEYT group. The task force. Comber's mveuiga-iion has icarned, soon began provid.rg

$22.50 Adults /$50.50 Children information directly to the'Cabmet Coun-frt't* l'arking Resertutions recommended at 10.00 a.m..

cil working group. whwh was in turn erga-

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and department of the federal gosern-ment" In each esse the goal *as to imd (TW) T66 7afM ways to eapedite the hcensms ut the vnw bled plants.

o e, While the adminntration publish e

i claimed that it would not mvofse it=cif m

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the licensms decisions of specific plants sw in the decisions of local gosernment regarding nuclear power, that cla:m m as nor true. Administranon officials were in rad simultaneously mobilizmg a wide range of 100 Rue therville at C.inal Pl.Kr. W Orlt'ans. IJiussiana elements of the federal gowrnmens on behalf of specifie utility compamo aggressively working behmd the wenes to mHuence the decisions of the NRC. ime

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NATIONAL reactors.,Once licensed. the admmnt,ramm

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e SUMMER'85 Q' ; W 6 5 Wa'erford and crand cuir. comiw has A Fun Place toShop!

discovered, played a criocal role m the

]UNE 10-JULY I3 5015 Magarne 5 riet administration's plan. Although most at Paindng,5culpape, Mudco land. Theater, Creadve Wrtung. Dance, Photography, New Orieans. LA Mil 5 the st,ory of that plan remains unknown.

what is known. based on camberi msoti.

Puppetrw Outdoor 5 ports, Guest Ardsts, FIms, Fleid Trips, W'ater & h* ton Man In 9.80 5.10 and our Arts FesevalCe4ebradon gation, raises sharp questions about the Gmmender 5"

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heensing or waterrora crand cuir and METAIRIE PARK COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL g,,,

ma"r o'a'r "uclear po*'r p'aa 'ru" 300 PARK ROAD, METAIRIE. LA 70005 CALL 837 5204 se,vingy,w oricari, sine, New Wak to California.

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i Karen %!kwood emt sual T hat g.cs.,1 1o 0 g

esposmg nuclear facili'ies to pumanc fyri-w ages m state court cml suits. knockej me lh8 p.ns from under on of N' ear m a 6

nost Jens5cd egal mornm L.

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gya dhe Garde and Danell Enenhutt, two 11 (L JV Y Y U1 CO*"ft'aj nuefear pcweri.n'ano.

Bof nuclear power's most tenacsout o

ties were reluctant to endertase.a ws? y the NRC ov.v s enticism of 9

industr camaion.== haang whai Ga,de

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technology without protection from tr,e i

called "one of our heen to hearts" (talks) erthelast hadd'a "' tw =ca"a 'a ' ='ih' a<

has been aimed at what the m,few yeam la sud-February over the future of the down the road. In 1957 Congress passed,

j sselled Commanche Peak nuclear powee dustry calls the ence-Andenon Aa who prohib.ted plant in Glen Roer. llmas. on the outskirts "d " '*" '"d ' '*' P a '" d * *'8

OVer I?gu}8110n and the credence the NRC against nucient utilities,"a law the utJesus of Dallas.

ce,tle, one of the neset pronunent and

' effective organisert and lavestignaors in the PIncess hassometimes#ver, t0last ciaimed prowed sesie suhi = wen. The mjngte g{lpgations. GAP

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access t0 nuclear Construct.ith it.s campeagn by intervenors to force utihties to tion to rest m

Itve up t3 the NRC's quality, safety and 100 Site one day later January 12, it was envirInmental standards, was pressing

" waled that the Secunun and Edarse Eisenhutt for an independent reinspection whistle-blowe. rs, their c0llateral Commission was investigating the of Commanche Peak. Eisenhutt, who was the director of the NRC's Division of allegance10 mterven0!s, access derauit.d >>.25 biii6.n wash;nstoe Pu.c

" *" 5 " * S'"'" ** "d 5 ' C l

10 att0r.nas'n'he c0urts and t

Ucensang from May 1900 until his pro"*

V investisators wanted to know whether top 1

tion on firbruary 3. has the authority to Wash.mgto scenters.Of accutives or wPPSS and the brokerage order the reinspection Garde was demand.

firms that sold.:ts bonds had f ing. but it wasn't a suggestion he was eager anti-nuclear p0%,er, is

,a,ned and oi,cio,ed,he s,s,em.u!,!y swer,-

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belemiby theindustry condition to the bonds' buyers. Nam.ng independent reinspections have become a burword for plant cancellation in and many Wa[]8((pe(

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OhServers t0 be nuclear

-m betsmethat the,nem = =

ed t co i m er n O i and Midtads in Michigan. ended up m big p0Wer S in0St were issued that the now-canceried e a trouble as a result. Both were effectively gp glg were not likely to be completed.

cancelled by January 1984. Cincinnati Gas On January 13. ehe fcItowing das. ime

+;&ppiOnellt.,

and Elevine, the lead utiLty on Zimmer.

O NRC struck. The Atomic Safety and p'J r.;amanounced M est femissey;gl.'J904r it(

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geg,y,,.9bstd (ASLS) for Ihe 'nearly4 %%

convert Zimmer to a coal-fired generator.

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complete 13.35 bi!! ion B>ron Nuclear Work on Consumer's f%wer Company s I

Power Station in R oc k ford, libne.

swo reactors m Midlands. Michigan, had refused to issue the nearty<ompicie p e been stilled for a year by that time, a direct an operatmg been c. saymg u had "no.,

result of an NRC. ordered independent f,;

g,n, the plant was safe. The W d semspection. Consumer's was not findmg decision, which effectisely bloded - r she money to keep Midlands alive and the plant from goms mto commersial one a nuclear c nstructi n sites, have proven to in this game that are beyond my control tron, was the firu of its kind m the NRG t

Midl Jsds Id b ic I y ab I'

and there are a number of things t can't do.

history. The decision stunned ibe emire doned soon if the money was not forth.

Much of the nu' clear power mdustry.s There will never be another independent mdustry.

cn n t Wr M au e W an reinspection of a nuclear pown plant in Waterford til and I oumana Power and u tu id ha in lig o 8

has been aimed at what the industry calls this countrf 1isht in New Orleans were nest \\ small germ et a const on dene over-regulation and the credence the NRC "Wu mean at least in this administra-weekly newspaper. Gumber, pubbhed iss process has sometimes given to last m nute tion?" Garde said she asked.

second article in five weeks on January la plant.

allegations. GAP. with its access to nuclear "You got it:* she said Eisenhutt quoting high lesel saIciy revords mspators Girde works for the Government construction site whiule-blowers, their col-responded. "And the inssructions could not at ihe plant uho allea<s! that top manaire Accourtibility Project (GAPh a

lateral allegiance to intervenors, access to be coming from any higher in ihis countrf ment had implemented.ind.onseated Washington-based non-pro 6s public mter-attorneys, the courts and Washington's Eisenhutt demes the conversation eser trom the NRC a spsematic program to tal eu law Grm which has joined local mter-centersof anti-nuclearpower,isbelievedby

occurred, wfy entical safety records. %milar. allen senors in questioning the quality of the industry and many Wall Street observ.

tions mvoising saf ety program breakdow m sonstruction at roughly a dozen nuclear ers to be nuc! car power's mon formidable led to the Byron ASLB's refusal to hsense power plants around the country, includin8 opponent. Last minute allegations and d) ggplg jagggge that plant.

Waterford 3. GAP which was originally independent reinspections are considered

&s argG U R U S Hug Two days later..,*anuary to. Pubhc seri organized to represent government whistle-the weapons GAP and the industry's ot her ice Ccmpany of Indiana announced ine blowers, was instrumental in forcmg the enemies are using for its destruction.

lack January sent a shudder through abandonment of the 54 percent somplett remspections of both Midlands and Zim-Eisenhutt, as the NRC's Director of the corndors of Wall Street.

123 b don %f arble Hill nuclear power st.a mer. Much of GAP's clout in Midlands.

Licensing, has been the man on the firmg When the Washington Public tica, saymg that the company was unabic Zsmmer and the other plants they are line s nce 1980, taking shots from both Power Supply System IWPPSSL densavely to obiain the 15 billion in capital they ewi involved in comes from the whistle-blowers sides. In that coment, he and Billie Garde referred to as WHOOPS by some, mated would be needed to complete the they represent. The whissie blowers have have come to know each other welt. Garde defaulted on 12.23 billion in munic: pal plant.

been usually former construction workers has worked on Commanche Peak smce bonds dedicated to two of the syvem's five On January 17 TheNew mr4 nmer ran and safety inspectors in the various plants GAP entered the case at the request of the reactors on July 22.1983, some financial a story on the collective impact of one involved. As at Micrford, they bring with local intervenors, a citizen's group called analysts predicted the collapse of the entire Atomic Safety and Licensmg Boa:Ns them compellmg evidence of shoddy work-CASE, Citizens Association for Sound murucipal bond market - an event which refusal to license Byron and Public Scrwe manship and record keeping and plant con-Energy. Independent reinspections, accor-faded to develop. Close observers of the of Indiana's decision to abandon Starble struction managers who maimidate safety ding to Garde, were not something nuclear utility industry and companies Hill, saying that the decisions stunned the t

mspectors into looking the other way-Eisenhutt wanted to talk about during their with reactors under construction, howewr.

industry. In the same issue The Ames rm What the industry calls last mmute alle-mid-February conversation, but she con-knew then that the WPPSS bond col'. apse another story naming Midlands. Zimmer.

gations most often involve the reappear-tinued to press the issue anyway Finally.

was merely the harbinger of the bad news Seabrook and Shoreham as imubled reas ancy tJ what whistle-blowers, intervenors Garde told Gambst in a telephone inter-that would begm to arnve m earnest dunns fors that mere threatening to bankrupt the ud, frequently NRC inspectors have view. Eisenhutt laid it on the lme.

the winter.af not sooner.

utihties building them. Analets f rom sev sailed defective or substandard workman-

"There are some things even I can't do" But Black January - as that month in eral of Wall Street's most powerlui and

  • p anJ/or the records required to back up Garde said Eisenhuts told her. "There are 1984 has become known within the indus-inruential stock brokerage and mvevemen.

good work. The construction and licensing some things that are beyond even my con-try -delivered body-blow after body-blow banking houses were quoted blammg "res-delays that result invanably revolve around trol and I'm telling you I cannot. I cannot to the proponents of nuclear power, a pum-ulatory delays" as the culpne for the mdus work that should have been made nght at

- listen to me. Ihtlie - I cannot order an mehng for which even the most pessimistic try's woes.

the time the problems with it were first independent remspection of another plant analysis were not prepared.

Another Times story ran the fo&remg pomted out, but were not. Although the in this countrf Haymaker number one was delivered by day January 13, quotmg NRC of 0cials specifics have waned, the issues at plants "What do you mean you can*: do it."

the LJ.S. Supreme Court on January II.

describing cracks in the foundation of two like Midt nds. Zimmer. Waterford and Garde said she asked.

1984, when it refused to set aside 110 mil-buIdings in the Midlands plant as bems Commanche Peak. according to Garde and "I

can't:' Eisenhutt reportedly lion dollar judgment against the Kerr "too numerous to document" Ntidiands. it others who have had operience at several responded. "There are now powerful forces McGee Corporation in the much-heralded was clear, was not long for this eorld if 17 GAutil Wesen 30. isee

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Consumer's ha muld not soon come predom nant New York commercial t*anks that sense, accortting to financial commu-i *Me merests wou!d N wrwe % we<it-up with additional financmg a prospect

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naty sources, nuclear power has been a

.ng inunutional codane - ham.; a -

whach looked incnaamely dun.

Wall Street firms are generally broken great boon to %WI Street.

must at least consider the pnotat :mpor-Cincinnats Gas and Electric announmd down into two major functions: with bro.

Nuclear power's voracious costs. how-tance of financial:nstitutions in rrov cmg their pJans so conwrr the $1.7 bGon I.an. ) kerage and market andvsis on one s:de and ewr, comemed with a steady drumhear of the caMal that is 'eWM,

no. i mer rezetor into a coal f;ted generat;ng sta. ! inveument banking on the other Certam construetton delay, have made 'he capital uon of puche setr> sc%ec twn un January 21 a plan. the company Grms speciahae in orie area or another, but market place ;ncreasartgly unft:endly to the Cope!and gces 01 'o ardue ta: ~ gars adnutted, that was adopted in an effort to the dommant hous loaru*

I ing to Copefard and others mierwewd by Whatever happened l

Anxostima to Copeland. the greatest ruk Gember, that is repeated over and over CO VeSterd3V?

famed by bank capitalinvohed in rmancm3 throughout the utdity industry. "The inter-It plCked Up my Chl!dref1 utslitses and their nuclear construction pro-ests that are ttkely be ng served in the effort Jects. "is not that it will not be repa:d.

to prewns inst.t utiona! co!! apse" Copeiand and SCO!e 3W3y.

although this is not a risk they can ignore.

UnMlv argues. "are thus those of the finan.

I me311t CO remember FSp $

i but th t it wd! become unproduct2ve dunns ca'.nst:tuuons that control utility access to hl5 $mHe, her COUCfl.

the pendancy of a bankruptcy. As long as capital and not specfically the intensis of Or.:'

bankruptcy b evoided, not only do such the utiUties' investors per se and certainly Did I see the baby more loans numann productive, they do so with-act theinterests of the consumers" thaft Of1Ce?

out aposuse to intenst rate risk or capital What it au means,in a nutsheH Is that

)

lems*

the critical questions of nuclear power s

Midee South Energx Copeland points come down to money. Who pays? Who p

l out, peps 110 percent of the sum of the loses? Wino Mt=? Basil Copeland and

{

sees and IJ preens for its domestie Seats Riesn anoone others, beuew that in

)i

/

o k credit line. " Owr Si billion of the the final analysis those who control the total ($4.3) bdlion spent to date for the money are making those decisions. Kidder j

Grand Gulf project represents capitalized Peabody's Eugene Meyer belives that he intenst empense, most of this being paid on knows what their decision wi!! be: the rate-I floating rate bank f'.nancing* Banks stand payers. "In the long run," Meyer told Cam-to lose, he concludes, only in the event of 6ar, "the ratepayers wiu pay. Dere is no RESIDENT SPONSOR y

bankruptcy. "Unlike the common and pre-other blood to get out of the turnip -

ferred shareholden of utilities with trou-In the days following Black January, SYDNEY WALL

.a bled tuclear projects (and, to a lesser however, with the utilities building Shore.

861 7902 9

l catent, the bond-holders as well), banks do ham, Seabrook, Marble Hill, Zimmer and decline. They do not suffer a capital loss -

wah at least a dozen other utilities appar-

-/',

f not see the value of their invesiment Mid!anda a 1 talking bankruptcy - and

?

\\

unless the losa cannot be repaid. And that ently teetering on the brink - the answer s' i,)

is an event raderstood to coincide with to the question of who would pay for the 1

! bankruptcy. Banks thus have compelling errors of nuclear power was not nearly so l reasons ta see financial collapse avoided at clear.

I au consa" Finally. Copeland adds the last piece to the pur.zie. In the end, he believes, the h-

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.orom the,una y cos.

A TRADITION IN ANE cf protnern plagued nuclear construction PHOTOCRAPHIC PCRTRAITURE

, projects, leiving completely aside the recisely when the first meetings iarser quesuons of pubuc health and safety betmeen the White House, top that arise from the risk of poorly built Reagan administration officials and i plants. In mots cases, he and a number of members of the financial commurury, the w'g ' y',Jg g

  • a ' i vc p 7 T~"7 l other obserwrs how concluded, the share nuclear power industry and the utitties
  • y

}

v

.j

' and bond holders of most of the compan-began on the question of how to state off -

ies in questson - not to mention their rate-the nudear bankruptcies is not" clear. White

, payers - would haw been far better off House and other high level admmistrauon l ' hect the utilities in question bailed out of spokespersons have said that it was some.

the troubled plants and taken their losses time in early in 1984, but beyond that they early. But the banks, acronimg to Cope-havelittle to say.

taad, how in many cases come to have a Sometime soon after the events of Black h

a "controding interest" in utilities with trou-January, though, probably in February, y

y bied nudear poner construction projects President Reagan authorized the forma-be::ause "they can centsol access to funds tion of a special White House effort to bail that are crual to avoiding insolvency out nuclear power plants. It was called the l

There b, however, another mechanism White House Cabinet Couned on Eco-7 of control owr the decisions utilities make nomic Affairs working group on nudear i

, regarding their nuclear construction pro.

power. The working group, which is still in l

l jects: interlocking directorstes. Bank ofil.

existence, operates under the day-tc> day t cers or mernbers of the boards of directors direction of Assistant Secretary of the Tree-T h

i of banks also sit on the boards of directors sury for Domestic Finance Thomas Healey l

[

a i

of the utdities. "Every utility I have ever and reports, according to Deasury Depart.

snarnined," Copeland states, "has outside ment spokestnan Brian Benson, directly to I

d l

I directors which establish either a direct or Pressdent Reagan. Healey also reports to l l l

indirect financial interlock!' Copeland the Secretary of the Deasury, who was then

[

l does not allege that there is anything con.

Donald Regan.

y yj spiratorial about this, only that these Publicly, the administration says that the ic e

r i

i mechanisms enert strong, irresistible com-Cabinet Council working group was q

i g

munities of com.non interest among the formed to find a way to save the utihties 4

'. top dension makers who control the utili-budding the faltering Seabrook and Shore-

~d

'f f

,{

ties. "A senior vice president of Citibank, ham nuclear power planu. Public Service

+

. for instance, which is the lead agent for of New Hampshire, and Long Island

_r

  • d N

<_ _ hy banks providing the capital necessary to Lighting Company (Ll!.CO). Edwin L.

u

keep LILCO (Loes Island Lighting Com-Dale Jr. the assistant director for public

.re pany, the buader of Shoreham) solvent, sits affairs for the Office of Management and M

M r'n LILCO's Board of Directors" Cope.

Budget, told Gembir that the Cabinet land goes on to cite several other czamples, Council on Economic Affairs was dealing i

- pointing out that it is even more common with Seabrook and the rutancia!!y troubled

' for "utality directorates to interlock with utilities, but there wasn't more than one or

.j}K g,.

' j, J

M" E. -

l regional banks" But regional banks, in two of them? The question. according to

- turn, " haw interests and relationships that Dale, "was whether REA (Rural Electrifi-M.

  1. 'aw

. bind them to the large national banks, and cation Administration) could be indirectly

}

' this is thus a distinction with very little sig.

used to help them out"

- nificance?

Eventuauy a plan was developed to bail

{

I s Utilities

  • 10s duectors, for instance are which REA played a key role, but the y

(q.

Nearly a quarter (23) of Middle South out Pubhc Service of New Hampshire in l

- either officers or mesabers of the boards of administration's efforts went far beyond (t ay.

directors tf beaks in I.oulslana, Missis-bailing out Seabrook and Shoreham.,pse.

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Their astual purpose. Comber's pre mi o

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nar> megaison shoes. mas n Ah must broader f%es.eefod mg'er

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  • arpeawg Le Jo md as *e a s.n I

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"5e c J sa ' s

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,rc rie ne to. w.ci gr.269 I

oiner so mis 6hief, might hase eeen ine l

administranoni motto for their program to save the utdasnes.

1984 =as an election year. Rate shesk.

the huge utshey cost merrases faemd son-sumers in the 3 est osies and m all Ihe orner areas scross the country whssh would won include nuclear ratepsyers, ritade the admmistration's decision pohtically nskv i

Esen if it were all done without a rime os impropneiy, it would hase to be done as quietly as pomble. "You can apprwate" h

Kidder Peabody's Eugene Me>er said of the admarustration's pubbc reluctance to acs. "that trying to d somethms about i

New Orleans-At this problern in an election year is sery Simply Gold, our unpalatable" Whatever the Cabmet Couned's imnal latest shipment of mientions may hase been, their achbera-f d'

tion's quickly took them f ar be.cnd 9.es.

s, l

tions of how the Rural Electrific.nen

(,

adtrurustration cot.ld help baal out the atah.

J i

ties. They ment at least as far as the Necar l

g-f Regulatory Commusion. The "mecha.

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& 6..

y, nrirn" they finally created a:so reached out

.s

'.2'$',h W M

p./ a tory Comrmmon, a broad rage of oeer LA' e;j, at'

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e 4e.

and touched the Scrunties and Eidsa. age ih Comm ss4on, the Federal Energy Regu.a.

ft M

l t,"7D.3 bE '

s ? %,*.,' 4 agencies and departments m tre recci i

. sgerninent and publ4 utdety corntnissacru.g s,

.i,.,.

a.*=,

and other key derision-makers at cther Ie*

1 M:

ets of gosernment who would r9ase :~.c-d

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Judgmems on the critica, pa:n sa use troubled nuclear power plams ail ove t'e k.h b _

Nh b.M Q1(

d[ @.$^ f' country mio sorne strtg4ng un' tis rare 1

' a C y ' g.-

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rsysi'a "

b ', 22.p'7 M,.

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base le quietly c!andesuneis in sorre cases, involsed the administration m u-y.

b

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"eipediting** the hcedung of every trou-bled plant m the country. *orking behind

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  • i -

she scenes in a sancty ot ways to get the s!l I

s@ ply gehs the plantuompleted,lecensed anJ mto ine rate tiane as quisLiv as powble Defas m the completion os sheir iroubled I

readors las at the hears of cash uriktn financial problems that detav. auprJmp to the uem of snost of the mdustrs. Wu-h Q Wg %.f, mately hoiled down to the unhiies Sa mg

'M l %.'A If '

i run afoul of the NRC's safet> and quahis i

requiremenes Junng the conuruction proc t f u u N.M l'. h,M, t.

ess. Eser> sompans haJ or has arguments

'.1,,. g.h thes sas esplain away their ptam s prob.

,fi 4

..n

.p lems. it' only the NRC =cre sulfsientis v

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  • reasonabte" to sonuder ine n The c o nons seems to hase ufumatelv isecome

,'i'*

,eq ham can the NRC help hail out the ui%cs l

and iheir irippled nustear sonstri%i,m

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l.

projeets ' Howsan the NRC he m.ide in tv

' ~.,,. t., c e ' g move reawnable' flesond she NRC. homoer. ihere acre.i number or other hurdles to slear as.vell

\\ tans planes face saisi local oppoution.

/RQ4_

/AMM.I.*D IFAM'IL f I sometimes f rom a small group or ta.rts no h yQg lated iosai civens, cailed iniersenort is 1/

larger and larger pohncal coahtions. ome Q

I U

that mslude the entire state and losa! gos 54 ernment apparatus. Suf folk Coums. New l

j l $ hi York, the home of Shoreham, has a @ircJ g

l i$ M broad popular and powerful pohtwal sup-ii :

a port throughout the state. notably in 'he We80 gosernor3 manoon, m ibeir oppcut.on ta 5eener Used Cheses shoreham s emergency evacuanon pian baskets filled with Degenees Deriessen N Kansas opponemt of wolf (mk ei 's s

M ew tw.

aM opM in Wan) haw mganged

(

personallaed gif ts, food and f un individually designed MM kW the entire state govertiment, incluJing A

esery member of the slaic legislature, mio g

'P "8

any occasion any age b

< '- aj h 488-4994 et> of hu*s ihro a up or the a"~

F$

coalitions that oppose their reactors. The Free delivery

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p,o,,am p,,c,,,her b> t he Reag an

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2 S Magazinie admmniranon sresied a meshaeusm o k{

Vina MC learn about. anatue, react m. anJ. *nere 20 oweituse m ms

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lJ a m possible, resolve the difficulties that lay [ ewryone wants someone cIse to psy.

$16 billion to 30. Bechters plants are l program. Hodel was to be assisted '*v DOE's mond a command. Ns m m ce bee *een a reator whose detts grew by a At the other end of the sca;e wood the among the mdustry's biagest :en*ces. They meen dol!ars a day or more and a reacor

'or* ;nes, (Ares and reputations of many include Grand Gulf, st:d!aNs. Sout%

ass.stan:. +ne man m x w. v.

th.tt was in the rate base sort c.he.e, be:r g cf the cour try's 'aryst indurral corpora.

Tesas. Wo.f Crees. L:menck. Pio Verte.

montms carher. *ad tren kcna, Resp.n s paad for by its customers.

tions, electnc utdty systems, banks and Callaway and WPPSS I & 2. Before ne chtef White House starf adusor on energy At issue were competing intensts: the secunties firma. Thousands of smallinsta-became Secretary of Defense, %einberger affain, Deputy Secretary of Energy Danny top, decision-making executives of the tutions of various kinds as well as some of was a vice president and a director of Boggs.

financial commuruty, the utdities, and the the country's largest insurance companies Bechtel's controlling Bechtel Group and On May g, Secretary of Energy Donald nuclear power industry vs. the rate-payers and pension funds are also heavily invested their top legal adviser. Schulta, during the P. Hodel made several major elements or for each utility and the public living in the in the stocks and bonds of threatened same period, was the president of the the admmistration's nuclear energy policy vicinity of each plant.

nuclear utilities. If several large utilities Bechtel Group and vice chairman of its public. In a speech given in Wastungton to On the public s end of the scale - at risk should capsiae almultaneously or even in board of directors.

a conference of nuclear industry groups, a

both through rate shock froen the skyrock.

the same general period of time, an event These and other Bechtellans were either the Nuclest Power Assembly. Hodet etmg costs of almost every plant and, on that looked very possible in February 1934, actively involved in the administration in announced what The New York Times the other sade of eopardy, from the poten-the consequences for some of those com.

the weeks following Black January and ca!!cd a " series of steps to ex pedite the con.

J taal threat to the public health and safety if partes and their top level executives were since, or they were actively mvolved as struction of new plants?' Although The a senous radiation leak accident should potentially snm.

major architects of Reagan's first c!ection Times covered Hodel's address to the occur anywhere - was no one with access Several top level Reagan administration campaign. Among the tatter was Walter group,it and the rest of the press generally to the White House, appointees are among the accutives with a Wriston, who was then Citicorp chairman played Hodel's remark: as just another While oposure to an accident is a risk major stake in the outcome. Hodel and and later became a enember of Bechtel's speech, No big deal it was in fact the run by everyone living in a densely popul, former Secretary of the Treasury Donald board. Until recently Bechtel also owned administration's public declararion of their ared area within rattge of the wind patterns Regan both have deep personal roots in Dillon, Reed and Company, a large Wa!!

blueprint for saving the nuclear power of a ricarby reactor,it remains an uncertain nuclear power. Secretary of State George Street banking firm.

industry.

and, according to the industry, highly Schutta and Secretary of Defense Caspar At its most basic level the questions were Hodel's plan, close examinanon se improbable threat.

Weinberger also have strong ties to the the same everywhere. Who ws!! pay? What gests, was not aimed at tipejiring the Rate shock, on the other hand. is an ele.

industry, as do a number of sub<abinet are the risks? Who will take them? The

" construction of new plants" at all it was ment d the new reality faced by every rate.

level administration appointees.

public? Or the corporations - the banks, intended, rather, to expedite the 1.censms payer whose utility has a nuclear power Regan is the former chief executive offi.

the utilities, the manufacturers and their of the plants which were already under plant about to come on line. The bitter cet of Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner &

shareholders and bondholders? One thing construction and preparing to apply for struggle between Louisiana Mississippi Smith, one of Wall Street's !argest stock was for sure. Somebody was going to pay.

their operating hcenses. The Reaga, brokerage and investment banking houses.

That could not be avoided. The question admirustrat.on did not think the *a o and Arkansas over the 583 billion com-,

bined cost of Grand Gulf uruts I and 2 is Nferr:l! Lynch is also one of the Wall Street everywhere was: who? There *as another solve the perblems of nuclear powe. ria only one manif siation.ot he.rarepayer.

. firms.that has tradit 90 ally,been.mosh

.sure thi,ngaluring the days fo!!owing Blac,k,,

add @onally, told his audience, was fer 4 3

t

^

o anziety cunently gripping people in dozens

' heavily invoTvedIn arrariging the financmg January, nucfear giowef's prop' nents, the rederaffinanc'ral Banout'oNhe'trdubled' '

e m

cf cities. Even with phase.in schemes sirru.

for uti'ities and their nuclear construction people who would all be on the hook in one utihties. "Let me emphasire," The Ae +-

ter m most ways to those proposed by projecu. MerrCl Lynch, for cumple, has way or another if the trends of the period York Timer quoted Hodel as ref;.ng c: e LPX and NOPS! to soften the blow from been heavily involved in underwnting stock continued, had plenty of access to the federation of nuclear power interests 4:

Grand Gulf, bdis for customers all over the and bond issues for %ddle South Utilities, White House.

thesr Washington conference, that we do country will hkewise increase dramatica!!y especially for Grand Gulf. Robert not support Feders! nnancial ba2iout assist-over the ncit several years, some threaten-Hddreth, an esecutive with that firm, was ance. Federal guarantees are not she solu.

ing to double or triple by the early '90s.

one of the key functionaries involved in A 9 gg tion" he adnuristration had somettung else n nund. Along those lines, the Secte.

a U w ww NOPS!*s everage cost per kilowatt hour pulling together the admimstration. backed wdl shoot from about 6.2 cents per kilo.

p!an to bail out Seabrook that was finally Ph a

tary of Energy called on the governor of west hout to roughly 16 cents plus per kdo-adopted in June.

UEEss U

New Wrk to help the Reagan team bring was hour by 1993, according to internal Hodelis the former chief executive of the Shoreham on line.

company estimates recently made public.

Bonneville Power administration, the uring the months of March April.

On that same day, May 3, he made his Metropolitan areas a!! over the country -

agency that was ultimately responsible for May and June 1934, and perhaps at appeal official. Hodel sent a letter to New Long Island, Cincinnati, Kansas City, the creation of the Washington Public other times that are not yet known.

York Oovernor Mario Cuomo, urging Houston, Dallaa. Phoems, Philadelphia, Ibwer Supply System (WPPSS). WPPSS top Reagan administration offic als from Cuomo to participate in an emergency New Orleans, Jackson and Little Rock, to committed to building five nuclear reactors the Departments of Tieasurn Energy. Agri-evacuation plan for Shoreham ho major name a few - are faced with some varia-in the Pacific Northwest whose projected culture and the Federal Emergency Man-issues continued to delay the plant's licens-tion on the theme -includmg the public costs had ba'Jooned to 120 billion as con-asement Agency, the Office of ing. One had to do with the plant's glarit struction delays compounded their Gnan.

Management and Budget, the White emergency diesel generators, in which cnte.

outcry.

On the public health and safety side, cial difficulties, eventually forcing the House Omce of Science and T6chnology.

ca! design f!aws had been discovered in everyone who would be affected by a radia.

cancellation of two reactors and the plus others, met in a series of meetings with August 1983. The other had to do with an tion leak is potentia!!y at risk - which mothba' ling of two more. When WPPSS the groups of utilities that own both Sea.

emergency evacuation plan for Suffolk might include a lot of people who aren't and 83 municipal utility companies brook and Shoreham, other meetings with County, the surrounding community Sur.

among the reactor's future ratepayers. New defaufted on $2.2$ bi!!!on municipal bonds members of the financial commuruty and folk County residenu, quaking in the face Orlea_s is one example. The city won't being used to finance the two cancelled still other meetings with executives of the of mass.ve rate-hakes once Shoreham was receive power from %hterford (if NOPSI plants in July 1933, the largest bond nuclear power industry - the architect /

licersed and the conviction that there was and LPAL are not merged), but could default in U.S. history. Hodel is currently engineers, reactor manufacturers, etc.

no way to escape if the plant should haw receive what is caued the plurne, the tra2! of one of the defendants in a massive lawsuit T)easury Secretary Regan, who has since an accident, refused to participate in the radioactive gases that are released in the revolving around that default. Known as been named as Ronald Reagan's chief of preparation of an emergency evacuation case cf an accident. NRC regulations the "BPA (Bonneville Power administra-staff, was also involved in a series of meet-plan for the reactor. They took the position require that each plant devise an emergency tion) seduction suit" the suit alleges that ings with the same groups. It is not clear if that it simply isn't possible to get enough evacuation plan, but there is doubt that the Bonnevilfe Power administration.

Regan's meetings were in the context of the people away from Long Istand quickty certaiA areas could be evacuated in time if which Hodel then headed, coerced the 3g White House Cabinet Council on Eco-enough in the event of a senous accident at I

an accident should occur. Whde that issue participating utilities into backing the nomic Affairs workirig group on nuclear Shoreham.

has not been successfully pursued in New defaulted bonds, according to Wa!! Street power or if he engaged in separate, addi-Hodel,as part of the White House Cabe i

Orte:ns, the city's routes of egress are sources. In another extension of the Louisi-tional meetings. White House spokesman net Couned on Economic Affa.rs working I

cle;rly limited. Officials in Suffolk ana connection. Roth S. Leddick, Louisi-Marvin Fitzwater referred Gomber to the group's effort to save Shoreham, had been County, New Wrk the area surrounding ana Power and Light's senior vice Department of 7)easury for comment on coordinating with the fuieral Ernergency LILCO's Shoreham plant however, have president, muc! ear, the man hired in July ai! questions regarding the Cabinet Council Management Agency. the NRC and execu-waged the bulk of their battle against 1983 to get Waterford 3 completed and working group. lleasury spokesman Brian tivrs for the utility, LILCO, to try to find a Shoreham on those grounds, insisting that licensed, held a sundar position at one of Benson steadfastly refused to discuss the way around Suffolk County's refusal to e it phyucally impossible to evacuate Long the now mothbal ed W PPSS plants before contents of those discussions. Besuon con-help draft an emergency evacuation plan.

Island in a timefy manner should there be a coming to Waterford.

firmed that thefnectings occurred, but said When the people of Suffolk Coumy dis-serious radiation leak there - an event the Weinberger and Schultz were both top the administration considered their con-ccmered that,it caused a political fuestorm utilities and the NRC insist is so unhkely cucutives at Bechtel, the San Francisc >

tenu, the time and place they occurred, the in New York that the administration that is 43 almost off the charts of proba5d-based international engmeering and con.

Gs.wims under which they occurred, quickly tried to nurumur. De adnurustra-L4 struction firm. Bechtelis involved as either who was in attendanm and what admirus-taon's attempts to circumvent cx>unty and 12 the end, shough, anost of the public the architect / engineer or the constructor or tration policies evolved from or were stase officsals at Shoreham, hcmwr, was j

opposition rests upon the reaction to rate both in 13 of the 37 reactori at 23 tararians affected by thens "a prtvase mattes

  • only one phase of the Reagan /Hoski plan.

shock. The costs were just soms to be too in ohich the administration eventually What is clear is that out of these discua-Hodel outlined sewn stepa DOE was high. As in New Orleans, ljttle Rock and involved itself in trying set licensed and sions an admmistration plan esolved. The

" prepared" to take. One was to *ur ge" the Jackson, so it is in cities and W.sd ww into the rate base. Roughly $24 bdlion has Department of Energy, urmfer the watchful U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Comnussion lo d cMr the country. No one wants to pay aheady been spent on the plants in which eye of Energy Secretary Donald Hodel, employ something cal!ed " readiness DC7C~~p Or. to ott it another war.

Bechtel is involved, with at least another was given the task of impicmenting the reviews" for reactori under co,ruarwtson.

, W g assess $a y*4.ase.sas0Dse..

..e

.tsis;..eeesse..esesse.ae6

-z nt The goal, he uud, was to identify "poten-l I direct product of the failure of tbc utihtv.

nal conorruction prone-s eary* DOE 4'so l

I :he ara:est, eagmeer. the.eme. -m planned a nutNr er et*'er measures 'o sl i :actuTr or some scr-hmte1 re-c. r,

reate sure that D.ux eternents :he s c.e opedste plant l<ensir's nat *e'e out:med done rignt. Chang:ng NRC regmata, us m the test of Hodef t speed, but went targely unreported.

4-had an impact, but the problems most unh-One major advantage of the " readiness e

g ties are having are a direct result of not haw-review" program, according to Hodel's v

v YY A ing implemented the most basic elements speech, in that at would eDow the NRC to n

of the the NRC safety program that hase close the allegations plaguing to many F

been in effect from the very beginrung of plants once and for all - and to do no

[ulj Wer Operations asit is,Crute Id their consiruction programs, back in ihe days more than a decade ago when what is before the elewnsh hour of licensing. "It 10 d the commasionen, he conceded now ca m tne Nu,ies,R, sui

,,Com.

mehes no sense" Hodel said, "for the envi.

Commissioner James Asselst. from under perststent qtystioning mission was part of the Atomic Energy ronmental, safetw and quality issues that Commission (AEC).

have been considered and satisfactortly tne that uo,t or the deepesi probierns at boin resolved in the course of construction to be raised agaan and 'relitigated' ewn at the the centralqu.estion,the auesti0n

    • ='ord aad craad Guir ran inu +.it i

category. Although the reasons ochmd eleventh hour, when a safe plant ts ready around wWh allthe dissent woe,rord i crac=mg roundu;on,ema,,,

for operation" Whether a plant was indeed safe for within the NRC staff mwhui,

=*ar, r, -pic, ihe ractors isat a,e believed to have contributed to the proWem operation was precisely the point of debate (2 all of the plants that were in trouble.

was the question of safety, e des with breakdowns e runeam,u

.I0n M.a and J0hn Chen, the cr=rt, processionai and managenai s.cs _

Masiy people disagree with Hodel's basic weldmg. inspect.ons, engmeer'ng and mer.

premise, which could faarly be character.

ued as the mdustry's point of view: that the.

NRCsstaff experts On the sgs.

what was the AEC aJso included a num eivironmental, safety and quality issues nUCSti0n o.f Water.f0!ss ber of other departments that were regen-

's [0Undal100, helleVe blocking the stalled plants had been " satis.

sibi, for promorms nuclear po*er. carwr factordy resolved" in the course of con-d"'* * ' by *c u'""rer2""$ r =""

that the emcks in t.he hnks m the cha.'n of imerdererder.

That, a wide range of cntics of the m. dus-try and the intervenors in each case charge, basematEnder1(

mted nuclearInhnolog n Com.it is precisely the problem. The environrnen.

Unsafe t0 0 W up the AEC effective m January in en tal, safety and quality issues raised at many it passed the Energy Reorgannaren Ai, 4 gf abe plants mAuestion -eShpreharri.., e.,.

,g*

,,.y

?hel0Ce

.=...,m.>u

. sendins.the regulatory elements oft io, -

( e become the NRC. Elements of she AEC Diablo Canyon, Waterford, Grand Gulf.'

'ggg.g g g Ccmmanche Peak, Midlands, Byron.

shat mere operanns Imks m the ngar Cttamba, for mstance - have not been the cracks my cha>n or other ae m oi ed :n adm r,

dealt with in many mstances, except to nuclear power prograns were spun o f r i.

cowr up the breakdowns in the system.

a succession of aeences and ese-Some of those breakdowns, accordmg to b

ff wound up m the Departmem of E art, as the miervenors and the former workers M

(f offkes headed by anmam scercices os eho made them public, have potentially energy. Congress wanted to presen? the profound impbcations for the public al confhcts of iruerests that inevitabtf arose large, both in terms of risk to the public h

between the AEC's sphe personahts as health and safety and the threat to their both advocate and overseer. Those old pocketbooks.

AEC roots of nuclear advocacs, Camus What Hodel was ca!!ing eleventh hour investigation shows, eventually came so "relitigation." is, to the people fighting tia!!y crincal safety issues only if the allega-course of construction" LPAL has insisted play a major role in the Reagan campogn reactors all over the country on a vancty of tions had already been venged.

Since the first revelation that the cracks to save nuclear power. Hodet's pla1.,a pubhc health and safety grounds, some.

Despite the mdustry's cry of " post Three caist that they have no safety significance effect, set aside through esecutive fiar the thing very different. They believe that it is a Mile Island" rule changes. most troubled and, besides, the questions about them will of Congress espressed a decade cartier process Congress included in the law creat.

plants are far behind schedute, their entics have already been resolved durms the early Three elements of the plan cuifined is rg the NRC - and the Atomic Energy argue, primanly because of a long lisa of construction process.

Hoders May geh speech cre mnmarel, Commission before it - as the price cach plant's fa!ures to meet enany of the Nearly eighteen months later two NRC related to the events m the rea:m of nudear atracted for agreeing to embark on the more basic safety and construction stand-engmeers Gled afGdavits with the NRC's regulanon and licensing that have s.n.

enormously tapensive public spending ards established long ago by the NRC. In Atomic Safety and Licetising Appeal unfolded, events that include the licenar:g campaign that was required to develop many cases, accordmg to members of the Board for Waterford on February 28,1985, of both Grand Gulf and waterford and commercial nuclear power. The rules, put antunuclear lobby and many others, those one of the N RC safety advisory bodies that several other reactors under precedent.

simply, allow any members of the public to faitures came to light only because inter-must okay Watetford's operating license.

setting, some say irregular and highly ques intervene - thus the term "intervenor" -

venors were able to reopen a plant's licens-The NRC engmeets said that new tests tionable, circumir ances.

at any stage m the hcensms to ra2se legiti-ing process, and, by doing that, forems the raised serious questions about Waterford's Hodel was establishing his own DOF mite safety, quality and environmental eustence of significant safety questions safety, showing that the cracks are much staff"mechamsm" to momfor progreu m inues regarding the construction ce opera-into the open.

more numerous, that more of them are the licensing of reactors currentfy under toon of a nuclear power plant if they can At Waterford, in a local eaample, the "through" cracks than previous!y thought.

construction on a plant by pfant ham show that st threatens the pubhc health and cracks in the plant's foundation that the and that the cracks are twice as large as pre.

Additionally, Hodel said, he supponed safiy. The threshhold of evidence becomes NRC has been investigating since June viously thought - larger than the mino NRC Chairman Nunzio J. Palladir:o's progressively more burdensome on the 1983, came to light, in part, because local mum safety standards allow. The cracks March 20 memorandum. Those po!vv dec meervenor the closer a plant comes to full intervenor Gary Groesch brought some run from top to bottom n some port ons larnhons, combined with his assertion thai power operation.

records regarding the breakdown of of the 12 foot thick foundation alonJ a line DOE would " encourage and provide sup.

Its purpose, intervenors around the Louisana Power and Light's safety pro-that runs directly through its center. Under port to the NRC" to use readiness reviews country and some Congressenal sources gram at Waterford to the attention of a certain earthquake conditions, the two camed with them the implicit understand-say, was to allow the pubhc to resist the Comber reporter. Combst's follow-up on engineers said, the foundanon could sheer mg that DOE was going to become much powerful economic and pohtical forces those records eventually led to the revela-or hiera!!y break m half. LP&L's primary more involsed in the NRC's day in das who, the same sources say, now have a tion of the cracks m Waterford's "Doating" line of contrary argument, that t he pressure operations.

stake in the speediest least scrunn red con.

foundation and LP&l's tardy nonfication applied by the soil piled along the plant's Pivotal to Hodel's pfan was the 6testien structen and latensing processes possible.

of the NRC regarding the cracks.

targely4ntrenched outer walls, the "back-of what was in effect his own nuclear imet.

That goal, the speedy, least scrutinized Groesch and the other intervenors in fill," is dismissed as unsubstanuated.

hgence operanon. Mentioned desd laa in process possible, seemed to be at the heart Waterford then filed a motion with the Had Hodel's proposed new standard his May g speech and ignored by a'l but +e cf Hodel's plan.

NRC's Atomic Safety and Licensing been in effect in 1933. it could have been trade press was Hodel's "rneshanism* for Esiending his theme of eliminatm.

Appeal Board, ask mg the board to re open used to block the Groesch motion to pur.

keeping tabs on the troubled plam s. Hodel

" eleventh hour relitigation* of resolve the hcent ng hearms record on Waterford sue the safety imphcanons of Waterford's said that he had asked his " staff to es'ab-issues Hodel proposed to expedite el to mvestigate the cracks and their potential basemat cracks. Instead, in the course of lish a mecharusm wishm the Depanmens hcensma process by allowmg the NRC e impact on plant safety. Such monons are esamining the question, NRC engmeets (or Energy) to ensure that problems with I

block the raning of allesauons dealma en e one of the primary avenues members of the have now concluded that Waterford could specific nuclear plants are broughs to my breakdowns in the construction and qual-public, intervenors, currently have to raise be unsafe, attenuon" The purpose of the met hanism.

icy assurance programs once they had been questions concerrung what Hodel called lavestigations have shown that in most Hodel saad, in effect, was to allow him to l

" resolved" durms construction. The new

" environmental, safety and quahty issues" instances the long chain of delays in each coordinare all the elemerits of so*ernment, rules would allow the re opening of poten-that have already been " resolved in the plant's construction program were the, both state and local, wi;h a!;ine affected I

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private interests in the admmistrapon's Palladmo's March 20 memo also out.

--D Imed the carber snrrings of the NRC s new 3.k y cf fort to espedite the speedy hcensms of '

r he proble n p;ams. "to soorWnare ne 'ed-Jemtvn to espeditmit %cntr's On Starch

  • ". L_h I

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sal merests ' and '5e atsle io et *e me A aard r's to the memo. W ram D.rcss.

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.p pusential Ntate. hxal and ernate mte*eus

'r'e NRO esecutne direc or of otierations, i 5 E ihan might some together to find so;u.

reported to Paudd:no Thai Shore

  • tam and nons" The Reagan plan to solve the unhty Limenck I were going to be co!!ectisely debt crisas was clear: the rasepayers would

" delayed" for an adduional f 4 months.

pay. The object was to get the plants on hne Limenck I is a "near term",eactor on the

+

and get them mto the rate bases. The ques.

outskirts of Phdadelphia and the twin to ll

i non was how? Hodel's nuclear intelhgence the plant put on an Ig-month hold in the apparatus, his met;harusm, was designed to waning days of Black Janaury. Known
  1. (*

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a:swer that question.

throughout the NRC as "the EDO," Dircks I

reports directly to Palladino. There is some debate about which of the two. Palladino

..J' m

8a pth 338 or Dircks, is the most powerful of the s o-K!

1 e t:

- sw w agwfB NRC's top ofGcials, but no debaic that f

ff'7 A,

between the two of them they have firm

+

the NRC,inued a memorandum on A week later. March 16. Palladino's

/

operat onal control of the agency.

Nunzso J. Palladino, the chairman of

[

March 20 calling on the NRC to memo reports, Palladmo alone met with

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adopt a specific pohey, accordma to Hodel, key members of the NRC staff, its Office 6

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i' "to handle last. minute allegations of of General Council.the head of the NRC's safety, environmental anJ quahty prob.

admmistrative faw judges and the chief

" D.

h A9 h

,Q.

lems assottated with plants neanns com.

administrative judge of Shoreham's pletson. Others, however, saw Palladino's Atomic Safety and Licensms Board, B.

s,%.

i 1

memo as much more than that. They saw it Paul " Tony" Cotter. During that meetmg, y

i

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as Palladmo's declaranon of an advocacy Paltadmo reported four days later, he also postion in support of the utihties with trou.

learned that at least eight other plants.

.N g y-"sig, Q bled plants. By the tirne Hodet announced includmg Waterford and Grand Gulf, P,4 g

g rf h:-

q..

his support of Pa!!ad no's March 20 mem.

might be facmg substantial gaps beiween e i.

I ',

. Ant free.4I: e,i eNis og ers, es had #gnsted an uproar within the the actual date when the NRC would be i/.

'prodbens m l.rw. fm t. a pd NI*d orandum to his fe:!ow NRC commaston.

the:r unhty's target date for hcensms and

/us% N,

$,a'b h.M p,, y,,,,g h a m,q, s

o.& '

y f

antwuclear and the nuc' par neutral com.

able to legally justify the hcensms under

.g,1g4 to Moo,.

(a

+,j V M, ; Wp rtlinities, pbhicularly among the group of '

' IWRC regulationa. That Jap.the diffmace.

e

^

,,,y Washmstun-based specialist.s that mctuded between the utihty's target date for fuel 7737 ygggyglg $7H co.

g', '

.C ;

%y N NEW ORLEANS, LA fot30'

'l the majonty or congresuonal staff experts loadmg and hcenung and the NRC staff's Paffadmo's memo cafled on the other estimate of when the attual hcensing date e

gg commisuoners to Jom wit h him specinca'ly would be, was the measure that Palladino, s 7.7'+' -

a to "take steps to both (a) reduce t he de!ays Hodel and the Reagan admmisiration were at Shoreham and Limenck. and (b) ali now usmg ehen they referred to "hcens.

reduce the possibahty that delays at other mg delays NRC uasfers, meervenors and plInts may anse." If delays did artse at congresuonal sources agree that the unh.

<I

< f other plants - and Pa!!adino provided a ties' esumates of when they would he ready 7

hst e,f seven other plants, meludmg both m the past haw been nottwiously optimis.

8 Grrnd Gulf and Waterford, where such tic.

dehys were anticipated - the chairman Also contained m the March 20 memo POSen&iS recommended a number of specific hcens.

was a liu of suggestions Palladino pro.

mg achons to be undertaken by the NRC posed As ways to ureamhne the hcensing v1(I to mitumue them, proceu for each of the ten named plants.

tJnder the provisions of the Atomic The goal of his suggestions on ewry plant.

AMNM MHNN WM Pallad no said, was to " expedite" the NRC Enctgy Act and the Energy Reorganuation hcensing process, an emphasis which ORE Act 6f 1974 the commisuoners of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission ut as an seemed to presuppose that the prob! cms at adjydicatory and policy setting board, each plant could be resolved by umply

~

~"

1 They are charged to review the applicauons shuffhng the paper faster - a propouuon p

  • mm for full power opertuons of the utihues hotly contested by two of the NRC's five j

in.ilding nuclear power plants and to owr.

commissioners, numerous congressmen

' f.

f F

q d,,,

see, through the N RC staff, their construe.

and every interwnor.

g tion and operation. The commiss on's vennoned in the Palladino hst was a

'.y fundamental obhganon under the law is to bnef descripuon of the special NRC task protect the heahh and safety of the public.

force that would descend on Waterford on I

j i

April 2. just two weeks later. Dircks I

,lP" ]

[

When an applicant, such as LP&L for ordered the task force created on March 12 g

h k

b

.t Waterford or Missnuppi Power and Light for Grand Gulf, comes before the panel for to mvesugate a flurry of alleganons of sen-y% g P

review and approval of a heense apphca.

ous breakdowns in the safety and construc-paj

'77f host, the commisuoners are required to non programs at Waterford and another l

hear the pounons of the tenkty, the NAC one created to probe umilar sharges at

  • .*t*

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staff and the pubhc,if the pubhc wishes to another southern plant, Commanche be heard. Theorencally, the commissioners Peak, near Dalfas. Teus. Dereks. Palla.

l act as judges on hcensmg decisions and, as dmo's memo said, "mformed us that he

~

such, the law requires them to favor the has placed one semor esecutiw in charge of posinons of none of the parues over the identifying the problems and laying out g

g

{g others, not even that of their own staff.

solunons and schedules for getting to a Q*

==

Palladino's memo, therefore, raised hcensms daision at each plant

  • Pal!adino's March 20 memo created an alarm bells to everyone who had questions about the plants named m it speci6cally, uproar among those in Washington and and about what tome saw as a formal shaft etscwhere who were either outright anti.

away frorn she --

    • s required neu-nuclear or highly skepocalof the mdustry's trahty in general. Esperienced obserwrs of safety programs. Many found the revela.

the NRC poun out that etaminating bcens.

Hon that Paundano met pnvately with the ing delay - a phrase Jhat means differera chastman of Shoreham's Atomse Safety thungs to different people - had been a and Licensing Board to discuss the topic of PLANNING CENTERS pnorty of Chairman Panadino since tua apeditmg Shoreham's ticensms apeciany F

P but in early March 1964 the suspicious, a mow they saw as an astempt O

MN UD ON NRC*a efforts to apedite hcensing began by the chairman to improperty influence (504)467 5358 (318) 237 1617 (504)3819641 o demonstrate a previously untaown ihe been.mg boa,d's denberanons.

on uarch 2: Congrmman Edward J.

duecuo. and ini,

23 c=ait uwe ao isas n

~.

'~

"The flight to Paris was cancelled"

$ @ G id N M "I knew something was up when you left word to meet here" Maaev wrnie 4%;ad.r o a Mme&g etter

, llea% ens, no. A bttle relle%ed, reany,,

.arn., esii.sd,no aonst umn, o., m us, "A coast then-to Pans-next time:',

d eW"N menm m we s e crv* out of the licensmg process. Markey.

..N, wait.To us-at WsCale-any time,..

the openi,.nt,.nuci,a, d,,oc,,,

f,,,

' Massachusetts, then chaired the House Intenor Commaree s Overta%t and inses tigations Subcommit:ee. one of +e Home

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p suncommutees auihonted to osence ine l

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NRC's operanons. Maracy saed he feared s

q that Palladino's suggesuons for apedams

?j('

hcensma could be used to " circumvent" g

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the "due conssderation of genume public J

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qr health and safety issues" Palladino's pro.

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posals on Shoreham we e specifically sm.

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gled out by Markey. who asked the

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f 4 g Chairman to recuse himself from the

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l Shoreham case. Palladino's plan to ape.

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dae Shoreharn's hcensms led to a " reason.

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tem ab!r mference* that he had prejudged the

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lt Shoreham case. Markey sasd.

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l Markey's letter also took Palladino to

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g task regarding the delays the chairman h

complamed about regarding the plants y

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other than Shoreham Palladmo singled out RH h

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I' for special, apediteous greatment by the 1

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g NRC staff. "In each of the cases men

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's tioned m your memorandum ti e.. Shore.

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ham. Limerick. Waterford. Commanshe Feak. Diablo Canyon. Byron. M dlands.

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Palo Wrde and Grand Gul0. I am aware of j# 2

[', r delays resulting from senous safety prob.

y 3g s

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Iems that were actually caused by the uhlity N

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d and/or as contractors"

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i'g,,,F q[

si On May 17. dunng heanngs before the (p

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on Energy and the Environment, two NRC

~-

Hou-t Intenor Commatee Subcommntee i

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g commisssoners. Jarnes K. Assetsune and y# : (6 i"

'T T'.

s.

' Victor Gi!!nity, sasd that they'thougf a Pat.

f.

p*ha rr eetmg with the NRC uaff and the head ladmo acted improperly for his March 16 k,

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of the NRC's admirustranse law sudges on

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3j the topic of expedsting plant licenung-l' y I.

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NRC admmstrative law judges must ulto

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say mately decide the vahdity of safety. envr ronmental and qualiey issues raned bs

,M.

mtervenors, the same issues under anath

  • Y

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from Hodel, the utildies and she admmn-l trahon in general as the source of "unnec There,s new excitement in the French Quarter-a lively bit essary" licensing delays. Asselsime and l

of I'aris in a new, casual elegance that makes any occasion Gilmsky both charged that PallaJmo had i

" abandoned" his rok as an unbiased pnige a happy time.The new atmosphere and new rnenu offerings of the rpms of Shoreham's Imense appio afford you a delightful taste of contemEirary Paris.

ration, becommg instead an " advocate los Come. savor the fine new cuisine of one of New Orleans' a parucular outcome in the ease she I

favorite foue stat testaurants.Save your airfare to Paris-come issuance of a low. power deauon wnhin an unreasonably short pened of ume-to L'Escale.

Congressional entics kept up the heai on

.m Palladino throi.ghout the sonna and men

,4 I'

summer. There were more heanngs beftwe

'd'

<J subcommittees chasred by Represenaanwes RESTAURANT PARistENNE Richard Ottinger and Moms Udallin June 7 N Ree B.en Ile-in the 5e. Louis Hones and July concernmg the way Palladmo and two other commissioners. Thomas N.

Reservesione 124 N21 Roberts and Fredenck M. Bernthal -- all Reagan appomtees - seemed to be rush-Ar's a number of plants towards ik,rname despite the taistence of senous safety clues.

9 hons. The NRC staff. directed by Palla.

l dino and backed by the Roberts. Bernthal and PaDadino majonty on the commisuon stself, had rushed to decisions on Diablo rafft our si[Utr Canyon. Shoreharn. Grand Gulf and the

. 'IfW Lister restart of Three Mile Island Urut I wah a d.

1e trt treat.

tfw

' $.NMdL3)$

speed and apparently delibersie ignorance Ce j

of the past decade of rederalia* and reau.

bib latory practice that Congressmen Markey, ICC110ft of ds3Cfqs l

i fUnsters, dopts

$gkg Q $d3 Udall and Ottinger and Commissioners I

Giluuky and Asse!sune and their staffs, as arufotfWFt g

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9 wed as the intervenors in each case, were M*

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vonferously enticiang.

9* m y % s) @t v WWU*

Pf

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But the mdustry has its friends m Con-d$

r gress as well. Chief among them is Tom t.ft8 t

PARKER &SLOSS,INC.

Bevin. an Aiabama Demouai who is reportedly the largest sirigle congres.

9 FINE JEWELRY QJt/}U

[

sional recipient or campaign donanoni from the nucicar power mouniry. Bevill n

.JMf~' 5 chastman of the House subcommntee on DANTE VILLAGE e 70I D A NTE 5T.

  • 861 36$8 Sw.2W i

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- omeio ao. isaa

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3

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Energy and %hter Dewlopment, the sub-resources. Through his control of promo-sommstree that controls the NRC's purw l l

tions stafr astgnraents and *c nuses A

D.co 5 mm.y w m e a strings flevillis famous m Washmg on 'ee Ns tirades aga.nst the N RC, egera,'ly dp.

m acn m M

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,;sA v}O One of me 7eforms" on' be Dergy ing appropnat:ons 'learings. In lH4 the e

'A.Av AV v

Reorganisation A6t of 1940 acated an NRCs appropnations hearegs were held that.1NRC C PaHadirlo met m. hairmani accuuve bonus system. It was micrward to on March 22. Just two days after Pal'a-

-o-mro-rs-mo -,enn.d. in pr~e.n m_e :- t. _ rage aceflence among the NRC's highest ache.

chase hearings Bevig threatened to match 6

vatel with the w

.,ner,*,s a =w is cow the NRC's appropnations to number of the Scruor Emecutiw Service ISES). But the hcenses the commissaon issued - a threat chairman of Siomham Atomic SES bonus,,,,e,n, a,,,,d,n, m m,i, rnost practiced NRC oberm in %tahing.

Safety and Lice,nsing Boani,to dis.

-ha u-6-n =*ias ii 'a acian ="

'a 'a"" *"' *" d"- *iad-was created, b.ckfind. Its nn.ciu,e piays Inmewners at other pianis as a r the cuss the topic of expeditin e ina = hands or a can=n. aus

~~rw na awhii'. w r= raisine simitar say, who wants to enforce staff adherence cornplaints that the NRC - which they said had never been ternbly careful about Shoreham,s beensingespeci y

. what - a, - mi,,*t aiand nomic resolutions of techmcal safety ques-honoring their administrative and due St!Spicious,a move they saw t,o. The SES,,,,m was d,,i,a,o process rights - were suddenly giving them the bum's rush in a fashion that was RS an attenlnt bv the

=o' ace ihe top ii'rs or the aid cs sriie=:

unprecedented, as they put it. "even for the r J GS 16 through CS 18. There are currently NRC Most intervenors believe that the chairman to 20 io 30 SEss in ihe NRC - Dwii me and so are the nat 70 or 90 dow n the hne.

NRC has always been vigorously pro.

improperly m. fluence Oni,,he SES ornce,,. an,

,c, u, utibry, but in the early part of 1984, they agree, there was a demonstrable sea thelicensin board's

=^aar"'" =a 16'< ror '"' $oa"*' -

change.

of which about 20 are awarded escri > ear.

delibera ions.

wr -se m na f-52.om io s o.=

There are usually only a few at the sl3.oco Although no one outside the NRC knew lk range, the norm being in the 55.0U0 to it r3 the time. Palladino's March 20 memo I

59.000 range. Everyone else in the NRC.

m>uated a new, highly focused NRC carn-inc!uding all the SESs who don't receae a paign to apedite the licenstng of a!! pl ants 1

bonus, are simrly stuck. They make as

%h(

much as they make and that's a;! there is which their utihty owners were schafuhng

[/

foi bcensms within the not la months. It The bonuses are hotly sought aAer ey the

, lj - u.,. mas a plan in whialkWaterford and Graod compenns SESs, acsonAng to one soarce,.

Gulf were to play prominent roles.

and the decision is u;timately up to Decks When Williarn Dircks, the EDO, issued ticense issuance dates" for all NTOLs dur-was ordered to report to Darreft Eisenhurt.

Drrcks decides mho gns ehem s.ia

.u fus March 12, 1984 memorandum out'.in-ing the coming 12 months. He was also who was then the directoe of the Division doesn't. Sources on Capi:ot H 11 aix r tac mg the creation of speial NRC task forces told to determine the " currently known of t.icensing. Eisenhutt would n turn commissen think that that plays s enter to investigate hundreds of allegations and potentialissues" that might come up at report to Denton, who would report to role m keeping the staff m iine en ey Lt.e charsms the breakdown of the safety and each p! ant and slow down its hcensing.

Dircks, who reports to Paltadino.

Dircks establishes - or Paracno estao-construction programs at Waterford and including all the various types of NRC tishes.

Commanche f%sk, the NRC's new era of inspections and investigations that rrught Accordmg to one source, that makes a apednad hcanning apparently began. A anse "and the potential for a large number Chairman Pa!!adino's power to work his big difference. The sta ff "comes down and designated seruor esecutive, one of the of allegations" will within the NRC is generally seen as bnefs Pa!!adino - and no one else - on a tpproximately 70 top NRC caecutives, Denton responded to Dircks on May 9, a vast, although that is a relatinly recent vanety of issues regularff How often they members of the Senior Executive Service, day late, providing a list of 16 near term development, according to assessments come down was unknown, but they come would be put in charge of each task force.

plants and adding three more plants and a made by commission and congressional down frequently. Once the SESs. Dircits.

The Mterford task force would be created generic issue - the restart of San Onofre in sources eho asked not to be named. It and Palladino get in that office, it's just and beam its investigation first. The desig-California and Three Mile Island Unit I, seems from the Energy Reorganisation Act Palladino and whoever he wants to brsng nated senior escutive, Dennis Crutchfield Midland and the Transamerica Delaval of 1930, which changed the relationship and Dirtks and whoever he wants to bnng.

O the case of Waterford, was to be in (TD!) Diesel review - to the list. In addi-between the staff and the chairman. Under What they say, what they do, only they charge of coordinating the total NRC tion to Mterford, Commanche Peak and the terms of the act, the staff began to know. "!t is quite a mechanism for con-effort. The goal was to apedite the plant's Diablo Canyon, which also had an NRC report directly to the chairman, through trol the source observed "and it looks to licensing. Everyone in the NRC with a bon specia! management team already assigned the EDO. The commission was to set pol-me like it works damn wet!"

t3 he checked before Mterford could be to it, Denton suggested that sirrular efforts icy; the staff was to do the work of imple-licensed would be coordinated by Crutch-be assigned to five other plants - Wolf menting policy. The chairman would field.

Creek m Kansas Riverbend near Baton interpret what the polley was and direct the

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That task force structure, with a desis.

Rouge, Palo Verde in Arizona, San Onofre staff on how to implement it.

nated senior executive, would be seized and TMI restart. Meanwhile, Denton said, Whether Pa!!admo as chairman et Wil-gg upon a few weeks later as the model for a strctal repnets on the overall licensing sta-liam Dircks as the esecutive director of w

Ip mijor thrust of the NRC's program to tus of each near term plant were bems pre-operations has more power is a matter of espedite the licensing of all near term pared.

opmion; between the two of them they are

!though Secretary of Energy Donald plants.

TWo weeks later, May 25, Dircks issued clearly the most powerful two people at the Hodel's May g speech suggested dif.

On Aprd 6,1984, William Dirchs, the another order to Denton, this one requiring NRC. Palladino, by being able to direct the terently, the admmistration's plan for EDO, issued an order to Harold Denton, the dewlopment of an " integrated sched-Staffin the day to-day management of the savmg the nuclear power industry.the utih-the NRC's director of nuclear reactor regu-ute of all NRC activities to ensure the NRC's operauons can, in effect, compte.

ties and their unfinished reactors had lanon, directmg him to develop a seven-speedy licensing of eight plants: Comman-tely circumvent the rest of the commission already been in action for nearly Iwo step " plant specific management plan

  • for che Peak Fermi 2. Wolf Creek, Diablo on most issues and in most cases. Since the months when Hodel announced the enry "NTOl'* (near term operating Canyon 2 TM' *estart, Byron I. San Ono.

NRC's commissioners re'y for nearly all of admmistration plan m early May hcensel, NRC jargon meaning reactors fre I restart anJ Limerick l. All NRC what they know about any given plant on Sometime in March - adm nistration that edt be conung up for beensing soon.

offices that might dewtop issues that could information supphed by the staff, the spokespersons have to far refused to pro-Referring to the task forces recendy created dow down the plants - hcensmg, inspec.

chairman's control of the staff's day.to< fay vide a specific date - Hodel estabhsned ta opedste the licensing of Waterford and tion, hearing and investigations - were to operations gives him broad powers to something called the Departme tr of Commanche f%ak " provide for an inte-be po!!cd. Four days later, May 29 Denton shape the vision of ewnts presented to the Energy T1sk Force on Nuclear Power Plant grated approach to the completion of NRC assigned a " designated senior executiw" other commissioners, according to these Construction. Its staff was draen from regulatory activities associated with the from the NRC's senior executive service

sources, those elements of the Department of pending licenses issuance" in Dircks' words roster to each plant on the list. Each was if any of the other commissioners want Energy that had once been part of the

- the EDO ordered Denton to prepare for assigned full time to the task of developing to direct the staff to undertake a panicular Atomic Energy Commission, primardy a sunitar approach to all the other near.

schedules, etc., for the purpose of expedit-course of action, the other commissioners those working under then Assistant Secre-term plants and to report back to hirn by ing the NRC's licensing of each plant, must wm a majority vote among them-tary for Nuclear Energy Shelby Brewer.

May 3 - the same day Secretary of Energy including Crutchfield at Waterford and selves. The chairman, however, can either Brewer's prmciple amissant deputy sewe-Donald Hodel was scheduled to address Carl Berlinger, who was assigned full time go for the vote - or simply direct the staff tary. Dr. Thomas Dillon, was named to the suclear power industry with what to resolving the TDI diesel problem that to pursue the course of action he dictates head the task force. Ddlon.

  • hose staff set would turn out to be the administration's plagued Grand Gulf, Shoreham and 11 and then,if he chooses to, manage the way up shop in an office "right down the hall" plan to bad out the nuclear power industry.

other plants, the hst of scruor NRC caccu-it is reported to the other commissioners by from Hodel's office in the forrestal 3*iJ-Denton was instructed to determine the tives asa gned to expedste the licenssng of a the staff.

ing, reported to Hodel through Danny "reahstic construction completion and particular plant tota!1ed 10. Each of them Dircks, howewr,is not without his own Boggs, the man who had been Reagan's 25 GAW64 Ween M. 'Ms

s

-a

~ a a a mamaanan an inaiv.am mmammansw.an.;aa.--masm

, - e W e Hoac t&sor on energy j HNei's Iisa Mrse on hear Pnwer and i5ree dozen DOE ca:fers n.ase been cial. fuil ist'ae an antnems L em s.sme

.1 e an umed ibe menber I. P art Cons:rwtion. Wh.na for ds o*1 rr"*4r'e rervr's wJ arames or "ase nin-DOE rechnisa. uaif r'ea-m.e e asti

, 31E re,rcuw Osteer ' w*ers. vrarem1v heean to ssir inta oper.

erm.se neen reau.ar.s nres :o ihe rionadv asugned ro "mor.tce ' Mit achb.

i ik gst eraased Sethielicalist W Aenneth ation two to three weeks iater. Although its task force effort at any given t me at least trations on certain genenc prohiems suth Daws an that position and Davis returned specific beginmng date remams unclear, through late January 1945, although their as the Transamenca DelavaJ derset genera.

o Wel Jerry Griffith, tle director of one of numners have now Jropped to some tot review, and anen special necess in NRC

- s :.tsk fart e. a nat Se eferred to.n DOE *s ofNes frem *5ici uaffen for the estent discussions and trips to nam ues from

+:m i.ss DOE 's "methan.sm" j lask farce aere drawn. said his calendar Di.lon's 106. as he aescrtett :t. *as to wh.ch the pubisc souid merrradv t$e

-1%-

iforrred on the progress of showed thai the first DOE meeting to dis-osersce the tollation of a sasc arrav of raw escluded.

1x e.sr peers on a plant by plant basis, cuss Tom Dillon's new assignment was data rev6vmg around the economic, tech-As the details of the economic and tech-tvehed directly out of the White House called for the mornang of Aprd 3,1934 -

nscal or pohtical inues that might conceiv-nacal problems confronnas each plant Casaret Councal on Economic Affairs three days before NRC Earcutive Dructor ably slow the imensans process of any one began so reiter en. Dillon's snart began to workmg group on nuclear power, some of Operanons W liiarn Dircks ordered the of the 20 plus plants the task force was admm6stration spokespersons and others NRC staff to take steps to duplicate the keepmg tabs on. issues that could threaten gl IIllgl

=ho were nvolved in the process have told Waterford task force effort for several the survival of the utshties buildans them.

Gamber the same group that had been other near4crm reactors. Workms under To that end, the task force was organued community, the nuclear power industry quickly began to establish a chain of con-matrut approach" One penon specializing

,I

] lll meeting with members of the financial the direction of DiDon, the DOE task force into what Odlon described as a " cross ll ard the utalities in their search for a safe tacts within the NRC and the utdaties. The in licensms issues and another specialaing l

l s

cut from the nuclear morass. Hodel, with task forte was specifically directed to fol.

in "some of the economic parameters" s

his atensive personal contacts in the utdaty low what Dillon desenbed to Gambit in a were assigned to each plant. One of those lI mdustry, the financsal commurdty and the recent interview as "the realities...of the two was easigned as the "pnmary point of l i l

riuclear power industry from the days when licensms process" contact" for each plant, although there

' ll1g,h l

he headed the Bonnevdle Power Adtnitus-Although Dillon was not destined to might be different people somewhere in trsuon, had been chosen to take the adtrun-remaan with the task force long, he owrsaw DOE following as many as a dozen darfer-istranon's lead on apeditirig the licensing its initiation and the fint "thne or four ent issues on each plant, anyone of which analyre and weigh the information. On of nuclear power.

months" of its early operations before leav.

might hang up its license, all of them technscal problems that might delay a reac.

Precisely

  • hen the adtrurustration began mg DOE to take a posinon in the nuclear reportma mio the task force regularly.

tor's Scensing they checked wuh DOE con-nn concerted cainpaign of direct contacts power mdustry. Followmg his departure in Task force staffers spent their days gath-sultants, apparently seekmg suggeshons with the NRC as not clear. Although late June. Gordon Chipman became the ering information from two principal for arguments or solutions that could steer Halci's DOE task force was organized m new task force director. Chipman had pre-sources, accordmg to Dillon: the NRC and each plant around the snags. Other infor.

rart with that role specificaJly m mmd, voously been DOE's deputy assistant secre-the lead utility for each reactor. Colla.

mation was compared mth what Dillon whte House momtonns of the NRC and tary for breeder reactor programs, a terally, they were ordered to estabhih a hai.

characterized as "other data bases" Dil-their decsion-makms process apparently poshon that had brought him mio frequent sori with a smgle renon for the unhty and lon's own DOE financial and economic ber;m sorr:ew has carher.

contact with nuclear power mdustry execu.

another for the NRC on each reactor and

" experts" examined and meshed those cat.

Staffers associated with the White tives. Dillon desenbed Chipman as "very to deal only wuh that person. In some esory's problems facmg every plant seek.

House Cabmet Council on Economic knowiedgabie" and "a very appropriate instances, according to Dillon. they aho iria possible solunons on those fronis as Affa.n wornurig group on nuclear power guy to play the roic* Chipman, respondmg contacted Inendly state utslity regulaton, well. All the mformahon that came m was were intanately aware of the detads of the through is DOE spokespenon, refused to*

although that was an area he desenbed as weighed and measured, accordmg to Dil-NRC's waterford task force plan "mtNn speak to Gamb r about the task force.

"sennuve? Documents and meerviews lon, in the search for what *as usable and Peurs" of ;ts formulation - something Dillon's staff began to gather mforma.

obta.ned by Comber. howeser, sustgest that what was not.

meran o5*.erven of N RC operanons char.

tion regarding all the remaanmg nuclear Dillon's staff enjoyed a considerably mder Once Dillon's group felt they had ac:cr:re as very unusual. WNte House offi-power plants that were under active con-range of contacts for most of the plants enough detaal on each of the 20 plant sites cNs *ay hast actually helped formulate strucuan and/or opected to be going mio they mere trackarig.

they originally set out to monitor, they

he Waterford task forte plan themselves.

the "finallicensing phases dunna the next.

The precise nature of the retanonship began to prepare what he caJied "compre.

according to a Wail Street source who from that time, year to eighteen months" belween the task force and the NRC hentin data books" documems that col-asked not to be named. Mark Kerngan, a The emphasis at all levels of his staff's rtmains unclear. According to Ddlon, his lected together brief resumes of each budget auditor assigned to energy assues work, accordmg to Dillon, wu particularly task force staff didn't have any more access plant's techrucal and financial sialus rela-within the Office of Management and airned at discovenna the issues that might to the NRC than anyone else. "They didn't tive to licensmg. wuh the emphasis always Budget, gave the Combat source and others delay a plant's licensing. The admuustis have any more special access to the NRC targeted on apediting the issuance of its a detaded account of the plan less than 24 tion, acting through Hodel, wanted than you would, but they esercised it regu-license. The data books were and continue hours after it was devised in early March, nuclear power plant licensing expedited lariy" Dillon said. "The people as the N RC to be updated as developments demand, According to Combit's source, Kerngan and Dillon's task force was the advance were very cooperative in providmg up to always looking toward lacensms first and was thoroughly knowledgable and enthusi-unit to that end Hodel's nuclear intelli-date informahon and it was always at our commencal operanon and inclusion m the am about the Mterford task force plan, gence operanon.

fingertips after we got started

  • He charac.

rate base second.

so much so that the source saad he thought Ddion irut, ally gathered a group of " sin terized the NRC peop's has staff spoke to as Combit has obtained copers of venions that the plan had actually come from the or seven" people from other areas of DOE of the fint three comprehensive booki pro.

White House, not the NRC.

for his core staff. They came from two pri-duced by the task force. They contein Contacted by Gombst, Kerngan derued mary areas of DOE: planning, whach pro-detailed financial profiles on each com-havmg known anything about the Water.

videi people with espertise in utility pany, including charts showing the history ford plan last spnns, saymg that he had not economics and financial analysis, and If of the utihty's dividend, stock and bond

" played an active role" in the Cabinet nuclear engineers, people "who could performances, their cash flow needs, the Couned nuclear working group. He would understand technscalissues associated with amount invested in their reactor construc-he glad to talk about the Cabmet Couned's licensms the reactors" The task force core I

tion programs, estimates of how much is ef' orts. Kerngan said, but before he did he staff, who worked "just down the hall" shl! to be mvested, etc. They aho contain wanted to make sure that he was " covered" from Hodel's office, were in turn sup.

bnef summaries of aJI upcoming pohtical Defere saying anythk.s more Kerrigan ported by DOE wuh engineers, attorre,

{

and regulatory events that will impact asked Gembst's reporter to check with speciahsts and upper echelon managers either their licensing or the plant's inclu.

OMB's Office of Public Affaars before he drawn primanly from the offices of the

[ ; \\

sion or exclusion from the rate base.

would discuss the matter further. Con-assistant secretary for nuclear energy Precisely how Dillon's staff amated the

acted by Gembat. Edwin L. Dale, the (Shelby Bnwerk the assistant secretary for informanon they reaived is not clear. His assistant director for public affairs for planning and policy development (Jan own accounts of that, as told to Gember, OMB, responded that "Kenigan doesn't Mares), and the assistant secretary for

" key people" people wh3 would either appear to be contradictory. On one hand know about any NRC stuff and won't talk international affairs and energy emergency know the information DOE wanted or who he insists that his mission was samply to abnut st*

(Helmut Merklem), Dillon said. All thne would be able to get it at a moment's provide an accurate assessment of what the Told of Kerrigan's denials, however, portfohos carry some responsibihty for notice.

heensing and financial issues on any given G(r-brt's source insisted that he remem.

nuclear power operations or advocacy Other sources, however, suggest that plant were. His staff's task, as Dillon tedts it 1

be*J the conversauon very clearly. He was withm DOE's normal organuahonal uruc.

lask force staff had access to informanon at one point, was simply to en i, e that I

quite sure an his recctiection that it was Ker-ture. Brewer, Mans and Merklein have as that the pubhc could not trvmally apect there was

  • good, accurate, dispassioqate rips:s he spoke to, Kerrigan, he said, mcmd on to other posadons smce then.

to obtain. In addanon to etwir segular con.

data and information" about the status of )

wen ed to have had a thorough knowledge DOE's public sesstion has been to nuni-tacts enh each plant's NRC project man-the 20 reactors nearing Licensms. "The idea of the NRC plan for Waterford and had mue the sue of the task force. Spokesper-ager, Dillon conceded that has staff "may was," he said, "that we needed to have i

dementmd it in some detail, outlarung it as a son Barbara Flemming insisted m recent have" been in regular touch with the scruor good, accurate, comprehensive data to pian to "espedde the process and make interviews with Gember that the task force execuuves the N'tC designated to sheperd support any poucy decisions" the admirus.

sure the (NRC) resources were apphed so is composed of "only two dedicated" DOE those rune most troubled plants through trauon nught be makmg.

that answers could be found" staff people. A small samphng of DOE the process. Few people outade the NRC Whale msisting that the informahon his task force documents recently obtained by and the DOE task force even knew that group conected and the way in ufuch it was eee Gember, however, show that between two those scruor execuuves had been given spe-presented was carefully tailored to be 26 canaeit swo. isar

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"Gnd out whas the srucia, issues were that before he ne promoted to assistant director

,riisttes thev were threaten.ris to wbmerte

+tk dfect ar.v%ng Jtr*ce ;' aa a rior* rial of ; rte Of fNe of Pnhe Deseformeni and F mts 0f the task Srce e% ene beme g

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tt qs.: sad t cen pi t in the r s'it con-ton, accordirig to all the sources meer-Cabinet Counoi on Economic Mfairs tot.. There mas a sery real attempt to do viewed by Camber, ncluding DOE working group on nuc. car power, workms G

G some prcphesyms of the technacal and eco-spokesperson Barbara Flemming, as "the under the day to-day direction of Assistant nomic information in terms of what its energy guy in the White House?

Secretary of the Treasury for Domestic validity was?

But on September 9,1983, two months Finance Thomas Healeg Staffers assigned Odton demured when asked if the pur.

after the WPP5$ bond default and sia to Healey's project were in daily telephone pose of that informabon was to enable the months before the DOE Thsk Force on contact with Dillon's task force staff.

I admitustrat on to help facahtate licensing Nuclear Power Plant Construction was according to Dillon, conecims " specific the troubled plants, which included all 20 formed. Doggs was nonunated by the presi-information on specific projects" that they were tracking. The admmistrataon dent to be the deputy secretary of energy.

Healey's staff *as additionally prepar-was looking not so much at facilitating He was confirmed by the Senate on Octo-ing and submitting for the task force staff's

icens.tig. he said, but rather to see if "there ber 28. Ed Rothschild.with Citizens Labor review and wntten comment "vanous were stages (in the licensms process) where Energy Coahtion, a Washington-based drans* of papers Ddion refused to charac-g the federal getrnrnent, either directly or energy mterest group. has dealt with Boggs tenze. Saying that the Cabmet Council indirectly, was an inappropnate barner" tegularly since the Reagan administratiort working group's efforts are " privileged There was a " strong sensitivity" that the came to power. Rothschild descnbes Boggs information" he would only say that the

'I admitustration did not become *a facilita-as "a Chicago School Harvard lawpr who papers dealt with topics that went beyond toe to the extent that they would become an would tell you that he interprets economic information that "would imbact financial

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s active party to a licensing proceeding or is behavior in a very conservative, traditional decisions What the purpose of those

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arry way appear to be contraverung the manner. He beliews that pnmanly market papers was or how they were used remams

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NRC" forces should determine economic out-uncicar.

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But there are signs spnnkled throughout come. He also thinks, therefore, that fed-Dunns the same penod, March to Julv

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Ddlon's account of what happened to the eral regulation ought to be at a minimum if 1984. Healey was bus:Iy convenmg a senes h

.N iriformation the task fbree gathered, as well not ehminated entirely and that regulation ofinteragency meetings under the auspices

)

J as sigrials found at the NRC, which suggest m the safety area, at least, should exist for of the Cabmet Council workmg group on otherrte. Task force documents obtamed enample on nuclear power, but it should be nuclear power. "Almost every agency of d

v kg' f by Combst since show clearly that the such that it doesn't make it too difficult for government was represented" at those A

f'h

  • hele pomt of the task forte was to coUect people who really want to get nuclear meetint', accordm g to Dillon. mho i I g' r-
  • g---*

y, f aGL Barr.ack

- ' I tr'fermation that cou'd be ced ro mfluence power off the ground to do the job that has attended many of the n. Asked about the j

NRC decisions on specifk plants and spe-to be done..in their terms. So he is bast-sub;ects discussed. Di!!on reiterated his t

cinc lssues.

cally from the non federal and non-reurion that the meenngs mere pnvileged, J/4 " U 70

% hen trere was a confhet between the gosernmental interventionist school of but said that those involvmg nis task force

_' W T.dj, way the utikty and the NRC saw a particu-thou6ht" revolved around issues concernitis the

, (

u

~a 1.ir techtcal question that might be delay.

Preenely what Boggs. Hodel and others nuclear power plants pushing fer heensms me a plaris's progress towards full power m the administranon did with the informa-Spokespersons for the % hite House, the s/ mfd.4,k:'**$3 CMrsacn, for aristance. the task force took tion bems gathered by Dilon's - and later Department of Energy and ihe Depart.

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an approach that appareritly differed from Chipman's - task force is not clear.

ment of Treasury hase all refused to discuss sot /*- gs

  • A d

,g an objective assessment of a particular Responding through a Department of the meermss.

. 9

, or,

,s y y mue's vahdity "If the utikty and the NRC Energy spokesperson, the former White While Dilon msisted that his task force

' N. '. T lQ 7..

arrested to be seeing ihmgs oppositely?

House chief energy advisor refused to efforts were strictly aimed at collecting s,, !

sc'.. p.

.s Dillon told Gamber, his staff "would try to speak about his actmnes to expedite the information, he conceded that Healey's

,N.,

r get other information that could be beensing of problem nuclear power plants.

workms group staff took the mformahon

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rfg g'" g,

brought to bear. We didn't ever try to bnns Boggs, howeser, was apparently DOE's provided by Dilon's staff, did "the proc.

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g i' to the point of saying who is right and pnme mover and shaker, actmg on his basic esung of it? then " circulated it 10.. all the who is wrong. Just that here's this new-free market instmcts, the mformation pro-federal agencies that were mvolsed and r-e peirit, here's that viewpoint and here's this nded by the task force and the president's concerned? Persons m those agencies, act.

'..pi gg '.

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^s oIPer information? Precisely what "this mandate en the admimstranon's campaign ing under Healcy's coordinanon, would

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aeg 9[O AL$ d other mformation" might be and how it to salvage the mdustry then act in ways that remam unclear. Trea.

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m:ght be used was something Dillon Boggs worked "sery closely" with the sury spokesman Brian Benson told Cument tr; irs ;

u-4 4 n* I ( '

dethned to discuss, task force staff. which reported directly to that Healey refused to comment.

JQ'd

~

W Asked if DOE's tuk force wu a nuclear him. accordirig to Dillon. He in turn did a At the same time these staf f actmeies at jA f$.5

]

Pa L mielligence gathering operation, Dillon

" great deal" of brnrf'ns of other people in the Cabmet Couned on Economic Affairi 7

again demurred but did not deny the sus-and out of the administration regardmg the working group on nuclear power were f / "q tw, gestion. Cajbng the term " super <harged7 status of the program to expedite hcensing goms on, the Cabinet Councd prmcipals M,M f,

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i-3 t.g g,, g Dtilon said he " tended" to thmk of the and the administration's efforts to that

- Hodel. Treasury Secretary Donald

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group "as developmg a factual and objec-end. Armed with the mformation and Reagan. and high rankms o(Sciais of the n

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u',

tsve data base 7 rather than as an intelli-analyses of the task force. Boggs was also a Office of Managernent arid Budset. the i. *

- c sence gathering operation. The task force prirnary force m irnplementing the admm-Federal Emergency Managernefit Agericy, was managed, he saad, as a " fact Andirig istration's policy to espedite the licensing the Departrrient or Agneulture and others

'3

.,j 1-,

. pr '.

g'. k.. c actavity7 as opposed to a " pokey actmtf process and to help the utilities in other were meeting with esecutives from the utsh-4-

*g-%, N; ways. Esactly what actions he took, to ties building Seabrook and Shoreham, the

.=

' b',f..f;( g N -

8' whom he spoke. etc.. remains unclear, financial community and the nuclear Although task force staffers did not although there are some hints to those power industry The question under discus-

".@W 7 E. ~, f, make them, pohcy decisions were neverthe-quesuona contained in the DOE task force sion was how to bail out Seabrook. Shore-less the fruit of thest work. Dilon reported documents Cembet has obtained.

ham and all the other probiernatic reactors.

l a.

to Secretary of Energy Hodel through while the administration was assi-Hodel. Boggs and one other DOE offi-

'g

,$.i

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t i;a y

DOE's number two man. Danny Boggs.

duously working to conymce the public cial. Earl Ojelde, occasionally accompa.

Both Hodel and Doggs received detaded that all matters relative to nuclear power need by Dillon, meanwhile, began to

,,' p

.q y M Wt (J,9" br'efings at least once and sometimes twice and electncity rates were matters best left : 3 convene their own senes of meetmas with a week from Tksk Force members. The the NRC. state and local authorities.

the financialcommuruty todowmg Hodel's

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)' ;

D13on, usually concentrated on plants that admirustration representattives were just as bly. According to Ollon. at least "four or f

y M 1 q h'S.

i IWing sesmons with Hodel, according to Danny Boggs. Donald Hodel and other May 3 speech to the Nuclear Power Assem.

iy we hot topics of the news day. Those with assiduously workmg behmd the scents in five" of these meetings look place between v

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Desss. however, were much wider ranging.

the interesta of their friends m the financial Hodel, et. al., and groups of utahues ana-f-

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, y it,7Qrg, mort detaded and generally rnore frequent.

comm6nity, the ruclear power indus'ry lysts from several of the country's largest Det.ny Boggs was no stranger to ques-and the utihty industry.

envestment and co.fimercial banking firms 4 gt,'

n ". V-(th, y* h 6.kg y tions of nuclear energy and national pobcy.

All through the spring while the ta.*

and some other " natural groupings

  • from g

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. 1 (s Dunna the first three pars of the Ressan force was collectmg information from t>

the financial commuruty. The character of

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admisustration Dcggs served in trie Whate NRC, the utdaties, press chppings and the meetmas, accordsng to Dijon, was to g

Hssise as the president's number one

  • othee data baass," the Reagan adnunisen help the financial communsey " separate Gamest use 30. isa$~

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  • f act from 6ction n terms m.aasthe g

j On the other hand. Dilion said. ihe adnun.

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estrabon hogvd io learn fmm ahe r na oces

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g G morY 'lemfhfiel. et,nd mentsin nwlear peser pm ects ard ahat t,

/p AIll A 8 Cf lO'M-they thought the 'Tev iuves" *ere "ano.

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eral order M

7 Hodel also maintained whee Dillon

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1 86 per session, no appointment necessary causd a virtuali, unbronen an.g of con.

3 tacts mth the utilny mousary" thmughout

/e '#

(Membership packages available) his tenure at DOE. In and of nietf. most s

dgi 3017 N. Causeway Blvd.

9 a.m. 10 p.m., Mon.. Sat.

obserwis beGeve, thm is nothms unusual b

Metalrie. Loutstana Right across from Lakeside about that, especialty considenng Hoders it.I'L long history as a top eiscutive and consult.

ph. 895 2H3 835-3595 ant with the utdny mdustry.

  • 4~

The key usue, according to several Cem.

M Gnancal commuruty sources, mcluding Kidder Ptabody's Eugene Meyer. has long i

been the questions of when and whether some of the most troubled plants are going to be licensed by the NRC. What,if any, Cont commitrnents Model or other members or 4

adtrurustration made to the banking and investment firms they were dealing wnh regarding setting ik NRC on board are J-not now known. Nor is it known ir any or the admanistration's representatives were S

M passing on inade informauon to mernbm of the rmancial commuruty resardans pos.

sibie pre <ieterminations on sp onc sce A stimulating series with four w.dely published fiction writers and poets, ing inues by iw NRC ma,oney. dot i

hk Force on Nucicar ibwer Plant Con.

moderated by Randolph Bates.

i struction. however was clearly structured j

to pay nearly as much attention to the l

firancal problems of the utsbes building n

the endansemi reutors u a wu pawns to Featured guests I

expedeting the PiRC's lacensins process.

l Documents now in Gem 6#s possession I

make it equally clear that the admarustra.

John B,guenet, editor. New oricans Review: editor. Foreign fictions:

i i

i7k rs. an e s"baYiy Yh president. American Association of Translators of Literature; criticism in e n ear y wunsng system on how the NaC was gaing Ploughshares. Georgia Review and the Norfh American Review.

to deade certam issues regarding all of the troubled plants.

David Madden writer in-residence at LSU; author of the novels Bijou.

I The Suicide's Wofe Pleasuredome and On the Big Wind.

l,llglgg gggg s

OR M Eric Tretheway, author of the poetry collections In the Truces and Dreaming ofRiwrs: criticism in Yale Review. Southern Review and American

'""**^'w*"'**'"**"'***'**

pnest ho now lives in Page. Arb 5chofar.

ona. On the approach 10 the Tom Whalen, director or the writing program at the New Orleans Center

'""'T'ci,*m*'a"n"dy,%7,7,"nl c ny for Creative Arts; author of The Eusfachia Sffries: An Astroromance; hetion, spring or 19s4. however. derare incieti poetry, translation and criticism in Paris Review. Chicago Review and North M,$',*,,Departm ner a

role in DOE *s Office of Converter a eactor American Review.

Deployment to a spenal assignment for DOE's Thsk Forte on Nuclear Ibmer Plant Conuruction. Thcket's amignment was to 4 sessions beginning April 8

" monitor" the NRC's progress in resolving Mondays. 7-9 p.m.

a major technical problem that was cut.

Tuition $75,2.0 Continuing Education Units rently stopping iwo or ihe country s mon problematic and expensive nuclear power pianu. Grand Gulf and shortham, dead in

  • ".'em"'er*ge"nc'y dieset generato k

MT"*'***'

- - - - - - ~ ~ - '

For infor.mation or 8'-- ~~~ ~ ~ ~ -~ ~ --~ ~ Unherwry Cidlere tric i

registration call 865 5562 l g,,,,g,,p,,,,,,,,

j in August i,g3 enenem et ihe shore.

h'* ""*' pmr plant on Les Island or fill out and return 11 MC i2.5 cih-n Haii i

mere firushing routine testme on three giant u

emergency diesel generators when the g

ac the Coupon, g gggyggSg7y gggg,ggg or Mg crankshaft broke on the last engine. An i

1 NRC investigabon or the diesets, manufac.

i pe,.ir I

tured by a company that had previously j ~- -

specialised in producing large marine 2*

engines, Transamenca Deisval Inc. (TDIL g psrw e 4i.e ann, c.w.gwwy mem F**"

uncreered a number of design deficencies g

m and a substandard quabty assurance pro.

CN O%w 5

Aa==

grarn at TDI. The quaht y. deusn and dura.

I I O as==acans O mA bisty of all modeh of TDI dnsei generators sma red Acame Pa.

gepere.= Deer consequently became suspect in the eyes of the NRC safetyprogram.

S.emmwe TDI's design radure threatened a total of G W31 g

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1 wm aa: 'sid *ata.ied te mus,w wened a uri.ar aJ from Harnid Den-nuctear enoncer and thea part ome pnest ine Government kcounsatnhn,%ett a-m.*i a : Jacet,*rnem *as en ton. :Pe NRC's d.mior af the Otrkt af wrote tu the tua ferte vrt.ra an meet.

hat IPe Jeu.cns now heins mace nn weae the NRC cada the "entmaJ path
  • for Nuclear Reactor Regulanon (NRRA the mas of three assoca.ed grou;;s eurbr.g on the hegnest echelons of the NAC acre ds Ece*tsing on two other plants as well as NRC office ultimately responsabk for all the TDI issue: the NRC TDI task group, tated by " powerful fortes
  • issuing muruc.

%oremarri and Grand Guif: Duke PWwer's reactor licensins programs. the man one the TDI owner's group, and N RC commis-tions thal "could not be comma from any Ca's es a Wat Carsna. ms acnm the step removed from the NRC's esecutne leoners Thev susse=s that DOE imerwn-hsgher <n this country"

+ e L. c f.Sm Oar'otte. Nor h Caroeuia.

director. Wilham Dircks Denton told tion in the TDI quesoon was t$eing actaeiy w hen pressed on the quesnos M ine ed 1sa L:iate' Comtrunche Wak on Berlmger that he would soon meive a call pursued w'ien some of the most contrmer-DOE Tut Rme on Nuclear f%er Pf ant t'e ounksrts of Danas, Taas. Uncal the from someone an the Department of sial NRC inens.ng deus ons mvoivuis the Construet on. Eisenhuts denied kr.cwmg TDI d esci tssue was resolwd none of the Energy who would ask to sit in as an emergency generator issue were made.

anything about a DOE task force. "errind.

four wmud be issued an opevaung iacense.

obserwr on all the TDI projecs group Among those was the widely cnticised scally we hear there's a big task force way N4C regulauons reqmre that each oper-deliberations. If thchett had any ques-ortler the NRC issued on May 22,1934, up 6n the high levels and then there's a def.

atmg reactor haw standby generators on tions. Denton told Berlinger, "try to allowing Mississappi Ptewer and Laght to ferent task force," Eisenhutt saed. "The sate. If an off-site power failure should answer them? lt was clear to hun,8erlinger continue operarang Grand Gulf as low staff down here really doesn't hear any.

occur at the same time the plans was open-told Gem that somebody had coordi-power whle one of their two TDI engmes thing about it. I've had casesoncally aero enems c loss 4f<colant accident - wtuch nated wnh on shout Thchett. Denson mes sorn down lor inspecison, the ntss tame contact with the Secretary of Energy's could lead to a senous radiation release or in turn anned Berla'nyt to be amine in LLS. nucient regulatory history that had office or any of has working groups, task ewn a meltdown - the emergency genera-when Thchnet caued.)

been done.

forces,etc?

tors are des.gned to come on lane auromata-Berlinger insists that THckett was an One THckett memo, dated May 23.

Pressed again. Eisenhutt agaan demed caHy. energuir:3 the reactor's emergency obserwr only, sittmg in on the TDI techni-19s), bnefly reports a May 24 comtrusason any knowledge of any DOE task forces or sh9tdown systems, whach rely on pumping cal dancussions, tom 4 on the fate inspee-meeting cased to discuss the precedent.

that he had person &Uy had any contact or enormous volumes of water through the tions, and attending the joint meedngs setung NRC order issued two days earlier.

communication whatsoever with anyone reactor core. Without rehable standby gen.

between the owner's group and the NRC The second section of the memo reveals freit the Department of Energy at all.

erstors, according to long established N RC staff and reporting back to his supenors in Thchett's own analysis of the protlem and "I'm act aware personally of any ask regulations known as GDC 17 (general the DOE task forte. Berhnger,1hchatt and his understandans of how the infcfmauon forces that gas working over there naht now desigs cntensk nuclear power pianu are Houston an agree that BerGneer's recep-he is providing to the task fdtce will be at as* he reiterated. He also derued having ntt alkr+ed to operate. As problems at uon of THckett was cool at best. "The first used. Concludaris that there are indeed seri-any knowledge of Kenneth A. Thckett or nuckar power planu go, the TDI diesel ume l cased Arn," Thchett saad of Berlmger cus techrucal probkms with the diescis, he of any efforts by DOE to monitor the News rneart big league trouble for ewry in a telephone mterview with Gember.,*he then turns to an analysas of the NRC's han-NRC's TDI daesel project group and oss piant that had thern.

sold rne to drop dead? That was the way dling of a specific techrucal questaos on progress. "Thchett?" Eisenhutt asked.

Dbcowry of the TDI probian at Shore-Berlinger remembered it also, which the issue was finally decided, which "Newr heard of ham that I can recaH" If hart proroprad the NRC to organArt a spe-

"He didn't come is here throwing his is foGowed by an outime of acDons being Thchett had indeed been allowed to go to cn! " owners group" composed of weght around," Berlinger said of Thchett.

taken by the Department of Energy's pro-project group sete vssats. Eisenhutt said, reevr*auws of each of the IJ affected "There's nothms that I neuld how toler-gram to move the NRC to a possuon that that would have been improper but he t4ars. tt was designed to help the andsvid-ated. When he first contacted me and wdl capedite licensing of the TDI delayed himself was not awase of any such visits, caJ o@s wrestle the problem towards asked if he could be on distnbutaon hsts plants.

any such person or any such DOE task resolunen, O't the NRC staff side. the and be notaGed of sneet.ngs and be able to One of the most veung problems with for:e.

soranuuios estabbshed its own special attend meetmas, I asked lum why and he the TDI diesets, aside from the problematic Memoramia wntten by Thc.ett or based TDI presect group, whxh was likewise optained and I said: 'fbie. you can come.

design of some models, was that the qual-on utformar.on supplied by Thchers for the ordered to seash for an acceMable techru-You can participate as an obwrver. But the ity assurance of TDrs parts was poor and task force m May, June, and July of 198W, cci etuuon m genesal as nu as for each first time you interfere wdh what I'm has not mes NRC quality assurance stand-howver, mcludma the one quoted abme, smcaric plant. At its peak, the owner's doing, I'm soms to ask you to leave' "

anis. Cracked and broken parts, such as suggest differently. An unsigned memo smup had roughly 120 people working on Despite h6s resentment of Thchett's pres-the creakshall as Shoreham and cylinder dated hne I,1934, for instance, discussms (Se vcblem f.sil time at an olJ ranch house ence, however, Berlinger apparently heads at Grand Gulf, have been an arts of the ' TDI Diesel Status at Grand Gulf" r*ecr the s.te of the Shoreharn piant, anxor-accommodated thchett as long as Thchett special concern. la she extraordanardy seems to quote from a direct conwrsation dies to the NRC TDI project group leader.

wanted him to.

compect world of nuclear regulauon, enti-with Eisenhutt in whuh the director of Tnchett, according to Carl Berlinger, Trxhett reported back (eithfuHy and cal safety assues onen turn on the defini-licenung optains the reasonma behmd the NRC's TDI project group leader, was often to the Tksk Forte on Nuclear Ibwer bons used to set performance standards acceptance of a new emergency diesel assigned to " keeps tabs on the NRC" to Plant Construction. Smed on the informa-That has been the case on the TDI issue.

standard at Grand Gulf. The wnter of the find out whethet or not the "TDI issue was tion now available to Gember. the question One of the major struggles between the same memo is careful to distinguish at a real problem

  • and whether or not "the that remains to be answered is not whether owner's group and the NRC project group other points in the memo that the source of NRC was proceedmg as expeddiously as Tbckett interfered w th the process, but was just that: how to denne an acceptable certain comments are from Mississippi prusib e to resoiw the tssue, if it was a real whether the mformauon he supplied to the performance standard for TDI parts. The Ibwer and Light spokesmen, for insaance.

issoe" Berlmser was the NRC seruor czecu-DOE task force was used to mterwne ur NRC standard at the tune was "nsk free," a in another place MP&L is said to quote trw servxe officer Harold Denton assigned manipulate the process at a higher, more benchmark they were apparently withns to Harold Denton the director of nuclear to steer this particularly troublesome issue poldical and perhaps sophisticated fewf modify to " defect free.*

reactor regulanon, Eisenhutt's boss. No nut of the way of hcensing plants like When Kenneth Thckett spoke to Gem 6st According to Thchett's analysis. that such distincuon is made in the reference to Crar'd Gulf and $horeham, As he under-about his role wuh the task force, he denied 51andard was also too high for the utddies.

Eisenhutt's itatemenis, stnod Tra kett's " marching orders" that he or anyone else assigned to the task "The maior problem." Thchets reported, A hand wntien memo penned by Tht.

De imger told Gember, the DOE nuclear force was mvolved in tryms to circumvent "is the NRC mowment from 'nsk free' ett on July 3, l964 refers to comments by enameer was mvolved "to assure his man-N RC safety, quality or environmental res-(which is in iuelf unnecessanj restncted) an Eisenhute assistant. Mark Wilhams.

y agen ent (at DOE) that in fact the NRC ulations. He conceded, however, that he to

  • defect fra' componenu and sysiems m

" Don't be opurrustic" the note says, atinb.

was not dragging ats feet and causms any was assigned to look for ways for " DOE to the TDI diesel case. This win create an utmg the comments to Williams. "NRC unceremry delays m the hcensing proc-mtervene" m the NRC licensing process.

unacceptable and unnecessary analysis, not tied down" cas*

" People thought." Trakett said, "you inspection and NRC review burden upon Dickett. according to Berlinger and know, is this a good pettalltem for the involved uulities*

Dean Houston, who was the NRC project DOE to use tointerwne?"

Immed4ately following thet assessment Jerry Ortfnah was the deputy director of manager for Grand Gulf at the time.

Ultimately, Thcheti sold Gamb/r, he is Thekett's outline of DOE *s tesponse:

DOE's Office of Converter Reactor auth)y began to art'end allof the meetsnas came to the conclusion that NRC's con-

"The DOE action bems taken is:

Deployment in 19sa. Under normal condi-tions Kennet h Thchett reported to Gnfrish.

tvwwn the TDI owner's group and the cerns about the TDI design and quahty

. % determine what constitutes a reason, When THckett was assigned to the task NRC's TDI projert group. He also acxxms-problems were well taken and he recom-able technical approach to the TDI diesel force on Nuclear Power Plant Construc.

perund the NRC TDI project group on sev-mended to the.ask force that DOE lesve problem thsough direct, informal contact Hon, howewr he began to report dirady to eral site inspections at specific plants.

the NRC task group alone. "I recom*

with the involved industry and regulators.

the task force and another of Griffith's inchading thett trtos to both Grand Gulf mended that DOE not interwne, THchsts.

  • % dewtop.on a nmely basis ruommen subordmates. Dr. Peter Lang.

and Shorehamethe two plants where the said. "% the best of my knowledge that dations to DOE stenagernent for DOE Gnfrith's office was one of DOE's repo-titimate resolution of the TDI lasue was fouowed. But...when staff at the acHon as appropriate, such as high lewt sitories of nuclear engineering espertise.

bussie body contested pubbe contsover-nuclear engmeer lewi make those kinds of matings with the Commission and/or Fiw of Gnffith's 29 fun time staff people, recommendeuons and they pass through 88 W88 aH professsonals, were "heavdy invoted" secs.

!)shnser dd not take to THebert's arts-au kinde of hands and a group of peopde ings on Iscensing prmredings.

with various task force assignments.

crue M &aA mam toad r " As far down at the Forrestal(DOE's main ofra "There were a bunch of tasks going onl*

as ne was concerned Berlinger sand, THchett budding in hahmston) think about them.

was scerwbody who was thee to look tur I haven't the foggiest nouon of what hap.

Darrell Eisenhutt, who was then the GnfLth recaued, some of w hich are contin.

director of the NRC's Dmsion of IJcens-uing. In addition to their assignment to has shoulder, an impucadon he did not Bhe.

pened other than an impression that that ing, told Gember he had never heard of the

" keep tabs on au the troubled plants...to "I didm*t osed anybcufy teeing me how to was never tahrn up as a subsect for the Sec.

DOE lhrk Force on Nuclear Power Plant try to assess if there was something the do my jeds" the NRC curcutrw later sasd.

rotaryof Eastgytointerweeon" Construction in an interview on March 13.

department could do to help." Gn(fith But somecour at DOE had cor=ars== as THcbets apparently knew more than he is the sep of the NRC, A few depe before wilung to adsut, however. Gem 6er has Eisenhuts dermed during the same conver-said, the lhsk Ibrce has also been looking THchess ceded him the feet timme. Bertegne obtained a sortes of mesmos the DOE season that he had ewr told Ihlise Garde of at "ongang seguletary rule. making to see 29 OAsserT,seweso iset

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T' if there es sometNng the department could On May 1,1934. the NRC staff issued James Asselstine, both of whom voted feet. Among the steps he would 'a.e to do Thev are looking at emergency preper.

an order requirms %f P&L to comp'ete the against the measure and crisione i is keep Seabrook gowg. het ave; c e harshr. *ere rtos esen aware at the time me'ioiders. *0. J *e o at. -

edness. toterte term - thevie Seen into TDI tear.down inspestion. L'nJersianard v

juts about everything* Trskett agreed, tell-that that order tarried *rth it the oilateral that a DOE Task Forte on Nus! car f%wer

  • ithm the adminicaron, m ing Gdmber that "I'lere *ert umpteen items requirement that the reastor be shut down.

Construction ettsted, much less that its the irrponaten or' Jeg ( ana an

.O on the stask fone) hst and the TDI diesels the company refused. Sometime durms representauves *tre bird.doggmg the entire po*er irito the New Ensiand area. vp rg

  • ereJust oneof them*

that penod. Dean Houston recently told range of decision-makms processes that to frustrate the move to Jump itarsch.

Source term refers to the spread of red 6a-Gember, Jim Magehy, MPat's vice press.

led to the Grand Gulf TDI order, according The Department of Ener3y and ame non that eeund occur eher en accident in dent m charge of Grand Golf's operations, to Galensky and a spokesman for Assels.

Department of Defense would each argi.e ehach a reactor's fuel was damaged - gen-

" mentioned" to Houston ihat he would see sme. Nor did they know that the informa.

against the Canadian power or nasenal evally considered to be the teverest form of if the DOE task force could do anythms to tion collected by Kenneth Thchett and secunty grounds. Hodel assured moor amdent at e nuclear power plant short of a help get MP&l, owe the TDI hump.

others was being fenneled to people in investors in Seabrook and ets asumased I

mehdown. A jaset industry NRC study "MP&L made reference a time or two to DOE who were apparent in contact with uutities. Cheap foreign hydro power. shes group has sucently announced new studies this group (the DOE task force)" Houston the "high lewl* NRC o a who made would saw - and now hase sami - is,s which claien that the spread and lethality of told Comber, "they had knowledge that that decision during the time when the thss decade's equivalent of cheap foreyn r

radiation following such an accident is this group was there and they evidently decssion was in fact enade, oil.

much less than previously thought. That went to them to see what the group could in an interesting " Dear Don

  • letter that When the NRC's Office of General group, esconhng to Griffith, was originally do for them in any way, shape, or form to may be related, Harry O. Reinsch, the Couned suggested that a " fair reacir.g" of broug'is toesther by DOE staffers, apper.

get them over some of these technical president of 8echtel Power Corporation, NRC regulations required that the meer.

ently working on task force assignment.

humps...I remember the guy on the diesel the architect /engineser sad prime contrue.

venors in the restart of Cahfornia's San The earty meetings of the industry.NRC generators....he was asking me what DOE tor for Grand Gulf, wrote to Secutary of Onofre reactor were endtled to i heanng group actua#y met at DOE offices in the could do, how DOE could get into a posi-Energy Donald Hodel on August 3,1944.

on the issues they were raising. Gordon Wtstungton area.Griff th said, tion to shed some light on this particular It was three days after the NRC voted to Chipman, the new task force director.

NRC's new asussment of the dangers of subject" issue Grand Gulf its full power operating issued a letter signed by Hodel offer ry ;o source term, which is be.ng used in the Houston, who attended most of the license on July 31. Reinsch wrote to Hodel have DOE's attornen issue a lega, op r.en truggle owe emergency planning for the NRC TDI project group meetings because to, in part, thank him for his help in saying that she insersenors were not erai.ed Long Island Lighung's Shoreharn nuclear of his role in Grand Gulf, had becorrie a obtaining a full power operating license for to a heanns. The NRC subsequently wee posee plant between officials in New Wrk, favorite of Kenneth Thchest. THckett had Grand Gulf. "I would also like to express 41, denying the hearing.

and the utdits the NRC and the adminie developed a habit since bems assigned to my personal appreciation for your efforts in June the %)ute House Cabinet Coun.

tration,is currently under attack from a cover the emergency generator issue of on Grand Gulf ' Reinsch told Hodel, cil on Economic Affa.rs, workirs c'ese.y verwty of anti-nuclear and other interests.

spending long sessions with Houston "which I beheve were instrumental in the with Mern!! l.ynch and other ma;or M Documents have recently been unearthed pumping him for information about receipt of a full power license on %esday of Street firms, succeeded in producing an on the task force involvement with the Grand Gulf in general and the TDI ques-this week" emergency bailout program to iahage Public Service of Nr. Hampsh.re aN is source term tuue, according to sources in tions there in particular, according to mvestment in Seabrook. L'ncer 'he N a Washington, that show top level DOE per-Houston - an assertion Tnckett at 6rst new corporate entity *as created, ut... -

sonnel discuuing how ihey can manipulate attempted to defiy when questtoned about the NRC procenes to produce the decision it by a GewiN reporter, but later conceded.

h many ways to %ddie South Derv.. w straw corporation crea'ed by \\the Wr:

stught by the admmis ration.1.fnder Prectiety what, if anything, 4f P&L's c>'*-<-

source ter.n according to the source, the pleas for help from the DOE task forte had Hun v"'" ' r ' c' "',ct ure savior corporate stri s c 2..N memo es"s it a " technical-emotional-to do with the plan that issued forth a few Nc= brook. It is m many use I.ie W.a political croblem. going on to discuss weeks later allowing the cornpany to con.

using DOL teneanch laboratones to jusury tinue to operate Grand Gulf at low ppwer i did not take long before unlities in Gulf, designed to be a res onal generr.ag what the admamstration wants to.

while one of their TDI diesels was torn trouble because of their nuclear con.

station owned by a company w>en no os t er 1%ople on h., staff who were given task down for inspection is not clear. Dunne the struction programs began to turn to the assets which will sett wholesale electrie force assig'une ts, mcludmg source term, intenm inchett and other DOE observers DOE task force. The task force, under the power to the unlines that subsenbe to :

Gnfnah saad,, lomed the same work pat-of the NRC were sending the task force a watchful eye of Danny Boggs, and in turn, Admmistration efforts designed to save tera as Thche..: attending NRC staff and steady stream of memos outlining the the Whne House Cabinet Council on Eco-LILCO and Shoreham continued me:n.

commission meetirgs; dealing with any problems, the disputes and what appear to nomic Affairs working group on nuclear wie to pressure Suffolk County and New scocial industry or utihty groups that had be suggestions on ways to sausfy the differ.

power, together seem to have skillfully fun.

York Hate officeals to play call os a been formed to address whatever NRC ences in MPAL's favor, including one neled their appeal to the appropnate level LILCO-conceived and admirmtrauan.

hcensms issues they had been assigned to memothat seems to closely reflect the posi-of powrnment very quickly. At about the blessed emergency esacuaron program Qt cover; following press accounts of their tion that was ultimately taken. Carl same time the task force was bems orea.

Shoreham. Task force efrorts.ere enw assigned tuues; analynng it all with an eyt Berlinger, the NRC TDI project group nued, accord:ng to DOE's Jerry Gn(nth, ing as late as Starch 9.1935. enrg ta toward ME interwntion and uit mately leader, adamantly denies that DOE had esecutives from Pubhc Service of Indiana's hase the Federal Emergeno \\ tan.ye nect reporting back to the task force and, anything to do with the final decision, stalled ll.7 billion 4farble Hill plant ingency schedule emergeno essaanon through thern, to Hodel and Danny Boggs.

msisting instead that the decision to let the approached DOE and the iask force dnlis for Shoreham. a mose beirig rerces plant contmue to run while the engine was statthing for a way to revive the comatose resisted by Sulfolk County of naaf s and 'ne dismantled was a product of his project reactor. Although they have been unable to goverrior of New tbrk.

Dean Houston oss the NRC project group with no input from the DOE.

find a way to revive the plani so far. Grif.

In midduty the owners or ime aprarevv manager for Grand Gulf between March Congressional testimony snen by Dar.

nih told Gembr, ofncials from PSI. DOE doomed %diand twin reacters. Coesum-and " October. November'* of 1934. As ret! Eiserihutt, the NRC's director of the and other elements of the go ernment and er's Power Company of %ch gan.

project manager Houston was responsible Office of Licensmg Harold Denton, prware sector, coordinsung through the announced that ther were making smd on task force, spent a good deal of ume and their threat to cancel the plants. Secret for drawing together all the required negotianons hetmeen Consumer's. ene threads of safety evaluation at NRC head.

energy trymg.

By late spnng/earty summer, Hodel and

%chisan Public Seruce Corrmisuon. and quarters, a major component in the final steps of the licensing process. As a result.

fIf/

top members of the De;artment of Encesy a number of maror corporate interests

  • no Houston was deeply involwd in the dispute J

were actively circulating throughout the had jomed the fight asa,nst %dlartd under between Missineappi Power and Light and unlity industry, the nuclear power industry the orgaruaanona' banner cated ABATF.

I and financial community, aggressi ely continued for sewral weeks after that ist a the NRC staff over Grand Gulf's Dansa-moving to resuscitate nuclear power's sag-desperate,last ditch effort to mort out an manca Detaval emergency diesels.

agreement to salvage %dLand, accord.rg Throushout the earty part of 1984 the gma prospects, At Seabrook and Shoreham Hodel to DOE documents obtained by cum,wr l,k {k NRC staff had been insisung that MP&L issued letters to affected stockholders, urg.

and sources in the Mchigan Pubbc Sersice complete a tear down inspection of their

/

)

ing them to stand by the industry. He sent Commission. When those negotistior.s TDI dieseta, a demand with wluch MP&L

/

letters to the NRC urging them to adopt appeared headed for disaster, the %f PSCs saeedfastly refused to comp 4 Orand Gulf certain positions favonns quick licensms staff director, Roger Fi.cher, appea e4 :o had been licensed to operate at low poner on porticular plants, promssing to have the task force for help. Fischer conn med since June 16. 1932. Besieged with one problem eher another stnce that time, the Eisenhutre boss and the director of the DOE attornen issue legal decisens sup-in a telephone interview mth CamN last Mississippi plant was finally running at low Office of Nuctear Reactor Regulanon, and porting certain actions on certa n plants.

meek. Hodel and his task force responded power in the late winter /earfy spring of NRC Chairman Nunzio Palladino, to One stockbroker. who asked not to be to Fischer's pies, moving quickly to 1984. With their reactor at last runrung and whom both Eisenhutt and Denton finally named, told GemWt that one of his firm's arrange new negotiations between the par-the entire Middle South system undet answer ho=vwr, Indicate that the Grand biggest clients, charactertaed as an investor ties, but those efforts sailed when the 6ntense financial pressure because of the Gulf TDI dartsian was utrianately made as mth large holdings in most of the north-industry group. ABATE, refused to parts.

construction probierns at both Orand Gulf their level. Eisenhutt and Denton issued eastern nuclear unlities, was personally ipate, Fischer said. He has been in res la-and %bserfood. MP&L officiale were loath the order and then, a mer the fact, the com.

urged by adtrunistrauon sources to main-contact with DOE's Task Force on Nuc.aar

- to shut down ser the required TDIinspec-mise 6en, led by Palladino, voted 3 2 to taan thane investmemas because the presi-Power Plant Construction since last %tair, tions, seensthing that was a condkion of sphold k.

dent's people were implementing a plan to Fischer said, having spoken to them eiu.an Commissioners Victor Gilinsky and get the nuclear power business back on its the last month.

their low power asense.

cwucuw M~

~

h f

s dhf f,

h

% ' E e nsd. IP.e peuJent of

,,erwade t'ie \\tmewpre commm.oners to j p

/

M mei Mst Ormwn, the sountry's iet Grand Gulf 2 go forward, ehde l g

u s s:

, a mMrua.on Erm. uhed wnimams t'te gvhtica;.jamage in b,u h '

j

.,j mh Resgr. aw lioces to.nterscre on 4tidd.e South and the adminiuranon. One C,

i their bena f in the days following the memo warns Hodel not to address the eto.

nYN, N

O

.?-

',%,4 t f ' b.

%dland Jecision. In Remsch's " Dear nomacs of Grand Gulf vs. powble alterna.

OW':euer o' sucust L 1944, he offers to taes because they are ultimately unknown M

p&--+}

h A

" mane".we Setrei czecutiws. Ken Davis and the costs of the reactor are cepetted to and Frana 5:aucesky Jr., "availatne" to contimie to merease. The memo aiso shows 1,'

7a.

that DOE staffers have sousht the advwe

"~"

of MPAL attorney Jim Child, who estab.

l testimony, advice uhimately followed when

'k.

lashes the advisable parameters of Hodel's Illl g e [ lllu[ll j

Hodel did addrus the MPSC on July 80, j

l 1964.

ll l

Appenntly inspired by Middle South, a ll g

l later task force memo, dated October 22

!ll k"E i

l 8

1964, suggests that Hodel wnte to the Mis.

ll sassippe Public Sernce Comnussion and to

'lll g,,g g

Mississippi Governor Bill Allaan urging them to work for the completion of Grand Gulf 2. Analynns the pohtics of Mississip-e '

pi's PSC, the substance of which appears Bntta pur birthday party ellout or more e Benthana charing the fnon:hof Aprd, Danny Bogas and the DOE task force.

to have come from Middle South soun;es, bet t+o man at DOE. In additon to thank-the PSC vote on Grand Gulf 2. "One of the 0

hbecN 'thehonored acombinatlorn Davu was Boggs' predecessor as the num-DOE ofreal Thornas J. Grahame nues up i andwel andten sanakdnner.

ins Hodet for his " instrumental" efforts in thne PSC commissioners (Lynn Havens) k Sted dsced,and siasjed beforeyour eyes.

obtainir 3 the operstmg license for Grand has announced he will voit for cancel

  • Offer Apnll.30ei One free combinaskm Gulf, Reiruch thanks Hodel for the task lation ' Grahame writes, "and a second t,achicht wnyakiewak dinner cd 4 cr force's unsuccessful but concerted attempt (Nedson Cochran, brother of the incum.

, Tha ep.akthree twrage nasine to "act as a mediator"in the Midland case.

bent Repubhcan senator) has indicated birksaar nganns Wr s licenst binh Arkansas Governor Wilham Clinton that he is leanmg towards cancellation:*

also appealed to Reagan for help in the ear Grahame goes on to lay out the poutsons bet seen the states of Arkansas, Misstssippe of several Mississippi offmals regardmg i

and Louniana owr the allocation of Grand the high and uncertain costs of nuclear

' EM

-[

Gulf in the p*oceed.ngs with the Federal power, concluding: "It is clear that the j

Erwrpy Regu!atory Commsssion (FERC).

uncertamties about the abihty to accurately f

In a d. rect plea for Preudent Reagan to predict the costs of nuclear power are sssert his mf%ence m FERC's delibera-among the most important factors dnvmg tioni on Grsad Gulf CLnton wrote to eventa m Masissippi.

W w M* * ""** ** ** d ' 'l N Na"8 Resaan on August 21,1984. Saving that "In the case of Grand Gulf 2" Grahame 8"*'""*'""**"'*d both Grand Gulf cases before FERC contmues, "wah one of three Commission-mirude in an area of " basic retad rate set-ers apparently the swing vote. leaning ung" for uuhlses tradttionally reserved for aga2nst completion, some uncertamties states, Clmton asked Reagan "to urge your might be alleviated if the PSC knew of the appointees to the FJRC not to erode that substantial actmties currently ongoing at E

fOMMl CC OC Qi (state) authonty under the guise of equalu-DOE and at the NRC that are designed to T

C w w aWU svu u L bw wa ha ens rates across state bnes? FERCis by law prevent costly delays and bnns more certi.

a tr. independent ngulatory authonty, suni-tude to the regulatory process. These

'ar in theory at least to the NRC. "Under include work on source term and smaller nortral circumstances" Clinton continues, emersency evacuation areas, readiness

-i uid noi mk you to commun cate with renews. a ponibie backra ruiemaking and Strongly Urges Your Support for the commissioners of a federal regulatory last minute alleganons* Gordon Chipman, agency about a pendmg proceeding

  • Such the DOE task force director smce Dr. Tho-commurucauons are generally considered mas Dillon left DOE tut June, subse-improper. The White House dispatched quently submitted letters to Mississippi copies of Clinton's letter to the DOE task Governor Allain and MP5C Chairmaa

@MIE COMWEY force and FERC under a " hash pnonty" W.D. Snyder for Hoders signature. Both cowr Icter. How the task force acted on mere drafted along the lines suggested by Assessor 8 First District Clinton's letter is not known.

Grahame's memo. A covenng memo to Hodet from Chipman and Jan W. Mares, who was by then DOE's assistant secretary

%ddle South Utihties apparently found for policy, safety and the ennronment and AND a particular fnend m the task force.1hsk who has been heavily mioived in task force force documenu obtamed by Combat show efforts, urged that the letters be sent. Both thai noyd ve,s.cha,, man orihe boa,d or ictie,s. acco,dmg to the,, coverms memos.

MADALYN J. COCHRANE Middle South Utditjes, made at least three were " viewed as potentially decisive in aptvals to the task force and Danny Boggs obtaining a positive decision to complete Assessor Third District s

in addauon to their cad for help on Grand the plant" A move by MP5C Commis-Gulf's diesel generator issue, efuch appar-stoner Lynn Havens to call an MPSC vote ently bore generous fruit. ~lhe first was last to cancel Grand Gulf 2 was subsequently sprms whde the %ssissippi Public Sernce blunted.

Com,nission was,,e,aring a se,ies of M5u Chai, man of ihe Boa,d rioyd PLEASE VOTE ON MARCH 30 show cause heannes ordenna Masaissippe Lewis went to the task force well again in Ptr+er and Light, the M5U subsidiary in November. This time the problem was with charge of buildsna the twin Grand Gulf the Securities and Enchange Commission reactors, to conymce the MP5C that (SEC). According to a task force memo Paid for by the Committee of 21, Grand Gulf Urut 2 should be completed.

dated Friday, Nowmber 16,19tta, Dwis uwis aad Mme 5outh s =hmaton eb-miaed Deputy 5-=ury Daany Boges ihat Sherri Dazet, Treasurer byist, George White, asked Energy Secre-day, asking hun to intervene with the SEC tary Hodel to tesufy on Middle South's in order to expedate consideration of three behalf at the MPSC hearing. A senes of Grand Gulf financing issues then pending assk force mernoranda in Gamber's posses-before the SEC totating 1810 million, Milt e Charles. Sandre Duncan. Norma Eddeeton. Louise Ghchman.

sion show the dehberations within the task monew which was to be solely dedicated to Oretha Maley: Betty Huddienton. Eleme Johnson; Edith-Gee Jones.

force on the pros and cons of Hoders tests-the completion of Grand Gulf.

Rosa F Meller. Hesen Mohlenen. Ruth Mullman. Mary L Landneu.

many.

Middle South wanted to offer $160 mal.

verna Landneu; Sharon Litwm. Renato May. Ruth McCusher.

First and foremost in their thoughts is lion in Middle South Energy cornmon Betty McDermott, Elsaabeth Rack. Louadnan Reed. Jean Reeves.

how to maasmue Hoders appearance to stock, $400 rndlion in first mortsage bonds Donnes RingstaN. Florence Schornstem. Helen Slanwood. Bonnie Warren omat, newmo. ises 31

4 *Mt)."L*? ',': *V*..*.': s.~.* n f-* fff*

.h.

Y t p T h.; U# v. i', M 2l4 pf.,,..';" '

eMN_

h.

  • 'u'

^

^

('

l W;ir'c

$ gpangs a,..m c.s.

t-m:

};

u ~.

~ if and 125o mdlion in pollunon control tas

'g* #f. 1, q '.'

enempt bonds. %ddle South Energv.

s

.N Pt c

accord ng to the LX]E memo.excn,

$ %be ' W& y s' fi :(','.ass.t ant. is.he nnanesi a,'i s ass :or.r May Ann Nossa. Chtma i G ann 1{

ah l

m et m.u e s(, j Sousa Unhties that was created to bu.;J

['g and own Grand Gulf. MSE's only sourses of fundmg. according to the memo "are

@ iy' the parent company and citernal Gnanc-g hg ings. MSE has ethausted its hnes of credit

=

p.

f,let.

d wuh banks (approsumately $2 billu a) and j

ha(d) an $80 nulhos payment unr te theie 1

h J

credit agreement with la commerc.al bsnks O Kg r

'O due on Janaury 2.190$*

4 9

e Lawis' problem. according to fus pleas to

  • M 9'"

Boggs and Novak as related in the Nuuk

. c g.

i 80 memo, was that t!'.J Arkansas Public Serv-gjp

  • y g.a,.,,

.Wh ice Commission had fded a motion to

..., m ~

.'I.,. i.

I intervene in the case with the SEC. reweta

.5 4F/

ing a formal hearing before the federal

.. 'Aa w

8,

'q s

  • J@'

securities regulators. Because the full fa.th and credit of Arkansas Ibwer and Light a

g i.

.[;J

~,

. s't was being pledged as part of the col;ateral

. f..E i

,4

  • k I'8 on the three secunties issues. APSC attor-M " yr '

7 neys wem a!!eging that MSE had not saus.

6[-,,

.k

  • *i a

p q, '

y p

'84 fled all the requirements of Arkansas uste J1 law in the 1810 mdlion Ghngs. a require.

4,,.

,V.

.at*

state law in turn requires that uti! files issue y J..

  • ,,,j di ment under SEC regulations. Arkansas 4

9

,$6 securities of a certain value only after

- wp p

g )

. N,; 7 ' ' 8 8? l obtainmg APSC permission - someth.. i f

i

.I(g.,

?e., I[t m

ai I that had not been done in this caw: hense

,g

.Ig I9.Q Q(a '

g,

.* @ ',,%%- lfdlg' jlM h'.d'iS ((

.'d the APSC's request for an SEC nerwr iN a

before allowmg the issuance of the scorr

,e.

'.M. ',M{

y, hf ',1 Y t' *

i 7

,.[

Y'. - '

Someone on the SEC staff had alreadv e g(( answer ioid a task ro,c. iiarf memher. accora.ng m3" GAMBIT'S summey ((gVel qui to the memo, that the SEC had scheduled a i n meet, on the tssue,o, th, we,k o, that question by surveying f amily vacat opo

i. J ill pubhe"*y kno' wn. 'if ihe st C de<ie"ed :e y*-

,,an, A,iansas,,.mion r, a hea,.n,.

Mouse or bre

,.. s

,iowe it wouid deiay ihe si6o nuu.on Include places to see M. key ic T * -* *E I

v a=' r **'- '*='

"=a

"'as t,,, sawi,",to,anua,y or i,=3 3.t m'a. a,iie,i Perhaps a mighty moose as it details trave to e.e Vn.M' Yt e es lw<1 a",However," Novak wrote. even if tney p.mndi such places as Disney World' Epcot Center e

,,,,e t ie nnay,ng o,s ouembo 3

.J.i o,su m=i== me sao minen io pur.

M Mn. a Natione) parks and stops in between. Gambit's oe usE,mk by sanua,y i. im-4 ri w= m-fme or da soua to s,oid a,ru urge =y io u e..

sEC uann,,ou,n, y

$ac 10 p

by me Arkania, rubhc s-via Com-e'+'.

w't s,on.

P,-i.e how ihe iuk fmn i

l*

responded to Lewis' request is not clear.

I l

,8 "

  • Ns but within a few weeks the SEC issued the l

{',

  • ]

first of what APSC attorneys and the.r Washirston counsel considered a series of

[# - '

. I,d ruimss that were cunous and got curiouser.

..-+O V. '.. k.f a e. pys The SEC denied Arkansas' monon for a e

4., C heanns on the M ddle South stock sa:e.

+

c*

  • o.

-.r. v' O that their ruhng imphed no judgment

  • *8 allowmg it to go forward. But acy a'so saiJ or 6

.;r m.e.

..n.

,,24 g w, is about whether Arkansas law was in fact

'l-

4,

bems comphed with By the end of Janu-

  • e y

ary 1933 the SEC had issued an additional three rulings, one each on the other two offerings Middle South was seeking for l

l Grand Gulf and a supplemental rufirs expanding on the first three. All of them contamed what attorneys for she APSC i

Gasua11v Elegaat

~""d-da"~'*"~*"-

.r the last of the SEC ruhngs was issued m i

.gg sanuary, Wally Ni.uon. an AP5C attorne)

Cf said in an interview. "we wondered if some-L body rm. Midda soum haan t gonen io in the French Market

-y@g ihem in some war Sandwich a dessert croissants Homem1C e feShney finest Thai cuisine

10. Banner Year Salad 1932 Canal Street Homemade Creole Chnken New Orfeans' Ethnic-Chic Restaurant U'ncan og our wu a bannn gar Salad THAlLAND neservations 523-3114 E M n't,' I'lo",','"$ a*,'e s""*,'e',','

Cu*,'d FRESH FRO 2EN COCKTA!!S I cenm to load ruel, operare at low power i

  • ad I"'8 P *" '" ' * * *" *"' "*" "

A DA!QUIRIS Open 5 p.m. 11:30 p.m., Closed Monday since the accident at Three Mde Island

  • ('u"'d

'a ' '7' 0"'y ' h"' P'* "' '

912 Decatur e 123 7812 Q

32 h.t was,oc im --

-w y m- -.m rw-mmm. y=m we 1

+

---d rus p-a m 1,8>. -

n

,eep_ C.awm..m was a s_

?!EB=32'

_le ariancia

=. = = = =fm 8

D'aelo Canyon in penreemgs for.' w Easly in the year three plants that had

% file ts!and t.l nit I re-starr, Sherer. t Grand Gulf. Dablo Canyon and San 0.5 been in the in;ensing pipehne from 193) and were not particularly notorious as J

fre. the commmion ignored the advics of s'a?' r" "" "L"#P:'""'a searchm, g for some sure

"a ", o='a=dre-*":

n m,

"", 'ti".,'"pn'a", "'m'~n'".","":'

sign that they had found new

  • A";<;;ro',;,. e ie,,on,a,,ee,,,,,,

'=

-*""C

"""'"sc'hhn'"of local im'emnors,"tM friends in the adnu'nistration and the

=n* Wke W NRC inud LP&L ses low on W wa pouw opmting license on March 13. the

      • ~w=d aad~*r ia5
  • NRC... " Eve n WallStmet)

Aio* scay and uansm: 4mu NRC and the DOS 1hsk Pons on Nucles' Board Pbwer Plam Counsa.

feels that t e N wants very veno,s.had sill! not ruled on the intes.

,,,ot,on to,co,e,t ihe us,.,,,

e,f,st M'i /a*l,,'".ts. s,$'*'

badly to license these plants aiid

""ja ;*a ';;6f,"a' 0,;a;g=g a

p that the,on,1 way thev will fail to

'a d'*esi man enpen who hd

  • weva wiii be reversed by ihe feaerai assigned to innstigate a new round of hun.

v J

courts do tha.t ts the courts stop them.

-Ts, - so bicam about ii.- t,nn

  • of a.= =iofru m - mara
  • r and safety progre breakdowns, and LM advice of their staff attorneys, the NRC It tS n0w a whole different Sernabel told Cembrt after the NRC's deci, ion to issue Wat,,fo,d a run,o.e, commissione voted 3-2 to anow Pacirie atm0S here What reallvset we = 6d a 'u ^
  • ai n ard ud " "

Cas and Electric's longaroubled reactor to on the safety sigmficance of the plaris or been la po== tauns.

this t off was the licens.

=ains 'buaua. -Ther = - ~i Shoreham was the nett test of Gre. Wkh letting iheir own internal boards iase a the hcensing process short circuited by ingOf ablo Canyon and i k the. uo,,,ns becau, th,, ino.

Wir TDI die.1 problema. LILCO was nIanf( n.,Wu vmi, Onu kat0 e-0g rl h how the board wel decide. They di sno,,na, es,,,3,, 3a,,,su,.

,d.t as making serious sounds of bankruptcy by v

m u,,

early March and pressuring the NRC to was henomenal...Now

===> fr== = ^rpeal soard oa iu d -i allow them to go anto low power testing pe0p Ilreprirriarilycon'.

generator issue by graming a los poner anyway, bnnging in an atgument sinu'ar to incen.. rm A, pea, Bea,d ste, pee in a,.d the one eventually used to allow Grand Gulf ta go forward despur their TDI prob.

cerned with w, hat the slogT,ed that. but it is p',etty crazy ',har ir

.t u the, ad,ud,ca,o, bnu.,,,,,, m iems. when oie comnuanon reienied, mu.

ITbfillat0rs will do* how se"ae= dec'de 'ke '^er d d >' T'"

+

mg an order allowing shoreham to besin the question was whether the,udge do4.-

much of the co.sts of low power opmuon cespite alw unresolad b <wu-d.Thuorn- - i anis problems with their diesets sewral weeks later, the resultmg outcry forced them to these lants willthey let the A.ppeal Board touch that iss6e becau.

yw a% dor.h a,,.m wahdraw the onfer wnhin a week.

0%,10 be going to do. and they%e done it,as Wa:en A low power hcense was issued for Calla-t ro,d ws, t3,, nou,,,,,,,, a a way. a plant in Missouri on June II.

filU ed int 0

    • f"r qua8'oa* befor' "'e Apsni Board Catawba, another chronically plagued t'

which they are taking very senously, astins

{ ]e ra,t,e plant on the DOE task force and NRC ror riiings. so they iate it a.ay rrom them watch list, was issued its fuel load and non-g and grant them a full power hcense in the nuclear testing hccm on July 13. The dam pas 0.

midst of tfus huge controwrsf bsoke. homewr, with the

's vote Meanwhile. the DOE Task Force on on July 31 to issue Grand Gulf its full h

Nuclear Power Plant Construction.s power license. followed three days later.

August 2. =Hh a sinular vote for Dablo beginmns to attract some attennon it may not hke. On Manch 26.1933. Congreumari Canyon, a vote =Nch was subsequently p ' g\\

Edward J. Markey, the new Cha.rman of t'aved by a federal court-the Subcommittee on Energy. Conserva.

But that didn't matter to Wall Street.

tion and Fomer. Commutee on Energy anJ The nnancial community was searching for Commerce. has eritte - John S. Har.

sosne sure sign that they had found new Wa!! Street's mid-summer rally, in fact, out the NRC, a nord passed and pushed by rington, the new secretary of energy. *ho frwnds in the adnurustration and the NRC.

began with the bcensms of Grand Gulf.

DOE's Thsh Force on Nuclear meer Plant replaced Hodel when Reagan nominated The ewnts of Black January had shaken The NRC had telegraphed their mtention a Construction. Intervenors at plant after Nm to become secretary of mienor earl cr Wallierset to the core. " People were scared week earher when NRC seruor uaff mem.

plant - Diablo Canyon Shoreham, this year, askmg him for cornplete accen te to death back in February and March

  • said bers Denton and Eisefthutt testafied before Byron. Catawba and Waterford, to name a all of the task forces meern.d docume'us an analyst for Paine Webber who asksd not Congressman Morns Udalrs hearing on few, found themselws faced mth Atomic and staff. Markey's letter upbra.ds Har.

to be named. " Marble H Jl closed. Zammee Grand Gulf on July 24 that they intended Safety and Licensing Board and Appeal rington for the actmties of the tasa torce ment down, wluch no one could belww.

to recommend the fuu poww bcensms of Board and commission decisions piled one regarding their activities on behalf of Byron wss devued a heense, wtuch was a the plant at the comimssion meetma sched-after another that sirnply dismissed their LILCO on Shoreham. A Markey arJe debec'). Diabio Canyon was stdl on hold" uled for July 11. The market began to admirustrative procedure and due process otHained task force documents rela:ed to Analysts up and down Wall Street, the mow upwards the day before the scheduled nahts to rnase questions about the safety of Shoreham last week. "These documents source said, mere speculatins on how many Thesday NRC vote on Grand Gulf, but the plants, reveal that the task force has taken a9 plants would be canceded, with some bet.

when the commission actually voted to At Dablo Canyon the commissioners acttw role in runrung interference for the sms the number would be half of the cur-issue the chronically crippled reactor's met in closed session and chose, agamst the Long Island Lighting Company in its remly scheduled planta.

hcense tPe next day, the market took off advice of attorneys in ther Office of Gen.

attempt to implement an emergency plan "Now" he said, "there is a pervasive bke a shot and dsd not look back for more eral Councd, to deny the intervenors a for the Shoreham nuclear plant aga.nu trse mood of opsun sm. Ewrybody feels that than three mombs.

hearing on entical safety issues.

wishes of New York State and Suffoli the NRC wanta wry badly to bcense these Subsequent actions by the NRC, mean.

At Shoreham, when the chief judge of Countf plants and that the only way they will fad to while, did nottung to suggest that the mar.

the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board "This activity on the part of the task do that t2if the courts stop thern. It is now het's readmg of the commtssion's frame of scheduled heanngs on the interwners' con-forte is at odds with President Reagan's a whole different atmosphere. What ren!!y nund oss wrong. Between the licensms of tentions, which looked as though they and your own pronouncements on this set this thing off was the licensing of Grand Gulf and the end of the year, Cada.

might take months, the hearings mere reas-issue. It raises a tenous concern as to Doblo Canyon and Grand Gulf and the esy was issued its fuu power bcenae, the signed to another judge. The new judge whether the task forte is out of control' taksoff was phenomenal. There was a won-commiasion fought off the stay on Dablo ordered beanngs on an "espedited basisT Markey goes on to demand complete derful raUy beguuung at the end of July -

Canyon's mow to full power and sts more givmg the interwnors only 11 busmess days access to all of the task force's dacun:ents early AYgust, really - and just closed plants, including Waterford and Shore.

between the beginnmg of the discovery and fJes and a detaded report on actm-about two weeks ago It started in August, ham, mere asued fuel loading and/or low process and the beginrung of the hearings, tes of the task force smce ets inceptton" consi;ued strong into September and power hcenses. Every one of them was on all of which feu wittun the Easter holiday Markey is now convinced that the actmoes October and has now petered out in the NRC, DOE and Wall Strert watch lists season, including Palm Sunday, Good Fn-of the task forte and ther relanonship to Nowmbee. Now, people are prunarQy coe-of plants that trusht not make it. The d.f.

day, Passener, and Easter.

the NRC requires a thorough a ring, a corned with what the regulators wiu do:

ference, ewryone now agrees, is the change At Byrott, the eterwners receiwd s1mi-spokesman on Markey's uaff eho me'J how rauch of Lhe Cost 8 of thsee plaats wiU in the NRC's asutude, las treatment, tmng rushed through their not to be named said. That process nas they a5ps to be phagged kilo the rase W EJtpedite became the try-tord through.

heanngs in ten days with only a teek to now begun.

caus,s vaan a m r 33

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