A recent report leaked to Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) concerning wrong doings at Southern California Edison’s San Onofre Nuclear generator, prompted their office to call for a full investigation by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) into the chief operator of the plant. The NRC has been sitting on this document since last October and refuses to release its contents to the public claiming it contains trade secrets. Arnie Gundersen, the Chief Engineer at energy consulting company, Fairewinds Associates said;
” Claiming trade secrets as an excuse is really a smoke screen because last year Edison invited Mitsubishi competitors to figure out why the steam generators leaked. Mitsubishi has no trade secrets to hide. “
That letter includes allegations that Edison instructed Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to keep the NRC out of the process by making only minor changes to the replacement steam generators which ended up breaking after two years. Mitsubishi and Edison knew of potential problems during the design phase, but Edison chose to ignore them, and did not follow proper licensing procedures because if the NRC was involved, Edison would have been subject to a license amendment review, that included public input.
Edison shot back claiming that they always put public safety first and that Boxer and Markey were ‘cherry picking’ certain comments made in a lengthy report. In other words, Edison is once again playing the victim and is completely innocent of any wrong doing. You can call Boxer’s office (202-224-3553) and ask her to make that report available to the public.
Eight million people live in the surrounding area of the San Onofre Power Plant and the county does not have an adequate evacuation plan in case of an emergency. So far ratepayers have shelled out over 770 million dollars for these faulty generators. Instead of doing the right thing and taking San Onofre offline permanently, Edison wants to get it running as soon as next month.
It’s up to us, the citizens of Southern California to make sure San Onofre stays closed. This your future that’s at stake. The citizen’s of Fukushima allowed their representatives to decide for them and now they cannot live anywhere near that nuclear site for generations to come! And in case you are one of those who think nuclear power is the only answer to your energy needs, San Onofre has been off-line for a year. Home owners and business insurance policies are not covered against anything that relates to nuclear disaster, but you are still responsible to repay the mortgage loan on a home or business affected by it. Are you willing to gamble with your investment so Edison can do whatever they choose? Are you willing to believe a company who has a track record of lying to the NRC and the public in the name of company profits?
February 12 is the last public meeting the NRC plans to have before making a decision about restarting a defective reactor. San Clemente Green has organized a 4:00 p.m. rally and press conference at the Capo Beach Church. Organizers do not trust the NRC to make the right decision and neither should you:
“The public must demand a trial-like hearing with testimony given under oath, with cross-examination by independent nuclear experts, and with the outcome determined by a judge or panel who has no financial stake in the matter.”
Please visit their Face book event page for details and to sign up.
“The public must demand a trial-like hearing with testimony given under oath, with cross-examination by independent nuclear experts, and with the outcome determined by a judge or panel who has no financial stake in the matter.”………. Hmmmmmmmm
Sure!
*Now you see……..what would life be like without Nuclear Energy? Well, Kim Jong Ill the 2nd…..would get less Global Press coverage….for sure. Also, the Japanese would not have to call 20 square miles of their land…..a Disaster Area Unihabitable for 60 years. Other than that……we are all free to travel about the country.
When average temperatures in the Central Valley of California are above 140°F during the summers in 2100, and no one can live there or raise crops, the 20 square miles affected by the Japanese Fukushima accident with an old nuclear reactor will be trivial.
The reality is that SONGS generation is being replaced by burning fossil fuels.
Nuclear provides base load. Wind and solar cannot function without fossil back up. Please think through the question of whether it makes sense to keep SONGS shut down and burn more fossil fuel instead.
“Wind and solar cannot function without fossil back up.”
I wish that you could make those of you who say this put up a bond that you’d forfeit to the rest of us when this turns out to be untrue. Spain and Germany are already laughing at you and pointing. Oh, maybe it will still require some trivial amount of fossil fuel, once there are enough developments in capacitor technology, but the false dilemma of carbon vs. nuclear just isn’t bearing up.
Tell you what, though: how about if we completely nationalize the nuclear (and nuclear component) industry. Still as interested in it?