ML20062J786

Forwards Senator Stevenson 800521 Ltr Requesting Response to Encl Atty General of Il 800512 Ltr Opposing Const of Facility

ML20062J786
Person / Time
Site:	Bailly
Issue date:	06/05/1980
From:	Seal M PRESIDENT OF U.S. & EXECUTIVE OFFICES
To:	NRC COMMISSION (OCM)
Shared Package
ML20062J784	List: ML20062J781 ML20062J786
References
NUDOCS 8011100578
Download: ML20062J786 (6)

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THE WHITE HOUSE OFFICE REFERFAL l

1 I JUNE 5, 1980 ID: 072275 ,

TO: NUCEAR REGULATORY COtMISSION

' t REPLY: DIRECT REPLY, FURNISH INEO COPY  ;

IF A DEIAY CF MORE 2HAN 9 DAE IS NE PLEASE TEEPHCNE  ;

456-2717. BASIC CCRRESPONDENCE AND CCNIROL SHEET AND COPi OF  :

RESEONSE (CR DRAFT) MUST BE REIURNED TO:

AGENCY LIAISON (ROOM 94), WHITE 100SE. ,

MEDIA: Is*.T, IER, DATED MAY 21, 1980.

TO: SIUARE EIZDEIAT FROM: THE BONORABE ADIAI E. STEVENSCN , (

UNITED STATES SENATE ,

456 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUIIDING  !

WASHINGICN, DC 20510 l SUETECT: COPi CF IEITER FROM WILLIAM SCOIT REGARDING BAILLY POWER PLANT BY DIRECTION OF ' HIE PRESIDENT I

MARY MAlmiA SEAL DIRECTOR AT CCRRESPONDENCE AGENCY LIAISCN 3

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3Cnifeb afales Senafe Office of Senator Adlai E. Stevenson 456 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510 .

Attention: Althia Harris E!>

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Assistant to the President for " "' '

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Secause of the desire of this office to be responsive to all inquiries and com:r.Inications, -

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WILLIAM J. scott AMORNEY GENERAL STATE OF ILLINOIS j l

TELEPuoNE 160 NomTH LA S ALLE STREET 7ss3m CHICAGO 60601 May 12, 1980 Mr. Larry Hansen Of fice of Senator Adlai Stevenson United States Senate l 456 Russell Office Building ,

Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Larry:

It was good speaking with you on the telephone about the Bailly Plant last week. The history of the plant is complex. Briefly Bailly, proposed as a 675 megawatt station, was first estimated to cost 0150 million to complete. The latest cost estimate, last fall, was over 1.1 billion dollars with that cost increasing significantly each month. Bailly received its construction permit from the Atomic Energy Commission in 1974. That permit expired in September of 1979 and the company seeks a renewal from the NRC of that permit until 1987. The NRC has determined that the application for renewal extends the former construction permit until the new construction permit is acted upon, by virtue of the Administrative Procedure Act. The only Environmental Impact Statement ever prepared on Bailly was completed in February of 1973 -- long before most of the major events to effect the nuclear industry occurred.

There are several major considerations which make Bailly unique ,

among nuclear power plants:

1. Population density. Bailly is the worst sited nuclear station in the country. It is even closer t'o Chicago (by 10 miles) than the Zion Nuclear Station. Bailly is located

. 20 miles from the Chicago city limits, 30 miles from the Loop and 6 miles from Gary, Indiana. In the event of a major nuclear accident evacuation of this area would be impossible. In the event of a lesser but significant nuclear accident - such as Three Mile Island - many people would still evacuate the area causing an economic loss of tens of millions of dollars.

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Mr. Larry Hansan Page Two May 12,1980 An NRC task force recently proposed six new criteria for siting nuclear power plants. An NRC official using available data recently ,

determined that of all the nuclear power stations in the United States Bailly alone fails to meet each of these six criteria. .

The memo with this determination appended is enclosed.  ;

We have sought a hearing from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on the siting of the Bailly plant both in the context of the proceeding on the extension of the construction permit and through instituting'an independent proceeding-regarding this matter. The NRC has resisted our efforts to hold such a hearing.

2. Steel production. Twenty percent of the nation's steel making capacity located a short distance from Bailly including five out of the six major Illinois steel mills. The Bethlehem i Steel plant is located only 1,000 feet from the proposed reactor site. Many facilities within a steel mill such as the coke ovens i' can only be cooled down gradually over a number of days. Evacuation ,

of steel mills.quickly is not possible without causing a major ,

accident which would result in the destruction of much of this steel making capacity.

Steel worker opposition to the Bailly Plant is strong. The United Steel Workers of America Locals 6787 and 1010 are participating

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formally in proceedings designed to halt construction of the Bailly Plant. In addition, District 31 of the United Steel Workers of  ;

America has come out against construction of the Bailly Plant.

3. Affect on the~ Indiana. Dunes.u The.. plant: ~ shares a common boundary with the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore - a park whose beaches, woods and campgrounds attract thousands of Illinois ,

citizens every day. The plant site has a high water table, so to i carry out construction extensive dewatering must take place. This t dewatering will impact upon the Dunes and Cowles Bog, a Natural Landmark within the park which contains a fragile ecology.

i Heretofore the impact of dewatering on the park ' as been minimized '

by the offset of water from ash settling ponds where the utility dumps ashes from its nearby coal fired plant. Over one million j gallons per day drain from the ash ponds into the underlying r aquifer. The company is presently sealing the ash pends hence terminating the drainage from the ash ponds into the aquifer.

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Mr. Larry Hansen Page Three May 12, 1980 Dewatering was originally to have been completed by mid 1976. It will now continue for at least 18 months after construction of the plant resumes. Further, a second lower aquifer previously assumed to be protected from the dewatering activities has been discovered to also be affected by the dewatering. This will result in water being drawn down from the entire region during dewatering. The major point of access of this lower aquifer to the upper aquifer is under Cowles Bog.

The National Park Service and the Department of Interior.have been studying the impact of the dewatering on the Dunes and the 3og. They have not come up with any firm conclusions. Historically, however, the Department of Interior has been opposed to the nuclear power plant. In its 1972 comments on the Environmental Impact Statement for the Bailly Plant the Department of Interior opposed its construction. Further, at the initial construction permit hearings Assistant Secretary of the Department of the Interior Nathaniel Reed testified in opposition to the plant.

However, the Department of Interior has been reluctant to take formal steps to protect the fragile ecology of the Dunes and Cowles Bog. Enclosed is a copy of recent documents from the National Park Service regarding dewatering. In addition I have enclosed a copy of a recent paper of the Lake Michigan Federation, which provides a useful summary of the dewatering situation.

4. Impact on the Lakeshore. Finally, there is little rational reason to locate the plant on the Lake. It cannot under Indiana law utilize the water from the Lake to cool the plant and must rely instead on a massive cooling tower which it plans to build adjacent to Lake Michigan. A cooling tower will impact upon the lakeshore both visually and climatically. The company owns property along the Kankakee River where it could relocate the plant.

This option was considered in a construction permit proceeding but rejected because at that time the AEC licensing board determined that there was a need for the power to be provided by Bailly by 1979. That demand for power has been satisfied through the construction of alternative generating facilities an'd because the rate of growth for electricity has not been as large as originally anticipated.

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Mr. Larry Hansen Page Four May 12, 1980 Construction may resume on the plant as early as June. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff is reviewing a plan by the Company to support the plant on short foundation pilings rather than on pilings that are driven all the way to bedrock. That review is predicted to be concluded in June at which time work on the plant --

which has been halted for almost three years '-- is expected to

. resume.

Senator Stevenson's assistance at this time would be helpful. The plant is only 1 percent completed. If in June the Company is given

.gf permission to proceed with construction it will do so rapidly to build equities in its favor to be allowed to complete the plant.

The Senator could encourage the Department of . Interior to take formal steps to protect its interest at the National.Lakeshore from the impact of dewatering on the Dunes and on the Bog.and make the President's staff aware that although nuclear power may play a major role in future energy development of this country the Bai'lly Plant should not be allowed to be built at its present location.

If you have any questions regarding this matter, please do not hesitate to contact either myself or Bob Vollen at Business and Professional People for the Public Interest.

Very truly yours, A ., # w /'l ._

DEAN HANSELL /

Assistant Attorney-General Environmental Control Division 188 West Randolph Street Suite 2315 Chicago, Illinois 60601 312-793-2491 DH/jg 6

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