This weekend, amid all the hot air coming from the GOP Presidential debate, you probably missed the fact that there was an incident at the Indian Point Nuclear Plant, where radioactive tritium-contaminated water leaked from the Entergy Indian Point Energy Center (Indian Point) into groundwater at the site.
The levels of radioactivity reported this week are significantly higher than in past incidents. Three of 40 monitoring wells registered alarming increases.
In fact, one of the monitoring well increased nearly 65,000 percent from 12,300 picocuries per liter to over 8,000,000 picocuries per liter.
This is only the latest incident — there have been seven just since May — but the most worrisome so far, and bodes badly for what be ahead for this 42-year old facility that has already outlived its expiration date.
“This is not the first such release of radioactive water at Indian Point, nor is this the first time that Indian Point has experienced significant failure in its operation and maintenance,” Gov. Cuomo stated. “This failure continues to demonstrate that Indian Point cannot continue to operate in a manner that is protective of public health and the environment.”
Cuomo directed Department of Environmental Conservation Acting Commissioner Basil Seggos and Department of Health Commissioner Howard Zucker to investigate the incident “and employ all available measures, including working with Nuclear Regulatory Commission, to determine the extent of the release, its likely duration, cause and potential impacts to the environment and public health.”
“Our first concern is for the health and safety of the residents close to the facility and ensuring the groundwater leak does not pose a threat. As such, I am directing you to fully investigate this incident and employ all available measures, including working with Nuclear Regulatory Commission, to determine the extent of the release, its likely duration, its causes, its potential impacts to the environment and public health, and how the release can be contained. We need to identify whether this incident could have been avoided by exercising reasonable care. We also need to know how a recurrence of this episode can be avoided by specific steps that Entergy should be taking.”
Cuomo has been calling for Indian Point not to be relicensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the plants have been operating without a license), and the state has not issued it the necessary coastal consistency certificate.
“Without getting apocalyptic, just the things that are happening now to the river and groundwater — are violations of Clean Water Act,” said Cliff Weathers, communications director for Riverkeeper.org. “This opens up another story here that this is something that we hadn’t seen before, or anticipated before.
“Just since May, Indian Point has suffered seven major incidents — they range from a transformer explosion, a fire and release of oil into the river, power failures and pump failures. This one is way more worrisome. Whole new level of anxiety – adds to a litany of worries that this is a 42-year-old infrastructure that is becoming more and more problematic as it ages.”
The radiation leak is a whole new level of worry, though.
Two months ago, when there was another incident. The building where they keep the spent fuel rods and where the contaminated water is coming from, could be a major security risk if the wall is breached, Weathers said.
The waste material, essentially the stuff of a dirty bomb, is gathered in concrete-lined pools that are filled passed capacity, but they are putting more in, he said. There is no place to put any more. Where they store this is not in secured area, like under a dome, but in a cinder block building much like a Home Depot.
“If there were a terrorist act and the building were breached, there would be large a release of radiation deadly for anyone close to the plant, but totally destructive of the environment. Depending on how big a breach, it could contaminate a 50 mile radius, which would include parts of Long Island, New York City, parts of New Jersey, Rockland, Westchester, Orange County, Duchess, and Putnam — all becoming uninhabitable, he said. “There would be no property value. We would be refugees — if we could get out.”
“There is no other plant in the country that is this close to a major water source, where spent pools already leaking radiation,” he added.
Weathers went on to say the plant had no real valid evacuation plan, evoking the rationale that kept Shoreham Nuclear Plant from opening on Long Island.
“When we ask for a plan, no one can give an answer. There are just too many people to get out at one time.”
Such an environmental disaster couldn’t possibly happen?
Could this become New York’s Flint, Mich. where an entire city of 100,000 have been subjected to lead poisoning, or Southern California’s Porter Ranch methane leak, or BP’s Deepwater Horizon?
Do we want to take the chance? Shouldn’t we all be sick of the “oh if we had only….” Monday-morning commiseration?
On the other hand, despite claims by Entergy (which produces a website oxymoronically named www.safesecurevital.com pronouncing, “Why is Indian Point Right for New York? Indian Point produces about 25 percent of New York City and Westchester’s electricity with virtually no greenhouse gas emissions, at price stable costs”), the supply could be made up from other sources and in other ways, he said.
“If they were to shut down, the impact on the area would be minimal,” he says, citing studies by Synapse, an energy economics consultancy “There is replacement energy sources — things coming on line and things could come on line. Studies have shown that.
Indian Point is just one supplier to the electricity grid (don’t get me started on how the U.S. is in desperate need to replace the grid with a smart grid).
But there is a grid and electricity comes from many sources. That’s why no one has even noticed when Indian Point plants shut down.
And Cuomo has actually been very good in pushing the state toward clean renewable energy sources, and particularly, distributed energy (meaning, a community would not be dependent on a monopolistic utility company), coming out with competitive grant programs to inspire localities and entrepreneurs.
It’s a turning point how to move forward with our energy future.
But now Cuomo needs to really take a big step and push for federal action to call for proposals for the offshore wind farm, 12 miles off Long Island’s South Shore (in the area considered the best in the nation for off-shore wind) that potentially could generate up to 700 megawatts.
This would be enough electricity to power 300,000 homes (a nuclear plant generates 540 megawatts; Indian Point Nuclear Facility, which has already outlived its life-expectancy and has to be re-licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Agency, at peak could generate 2,000 megawatts).
There are various other projects that are also underway – solar, wind, geothermal, and there should be more exploration of tapping water currents.
The situation with Indian Point, the problems that have emerged with fracking (earthquakes, pollution of groundwater, methane), mark key turning points to rebuild an infrastructure that underpins our society and our economy based on clean, renewable, sustainable energy.
President Obama said he wanted to double funding for clean energy research and development by 2020. This will include new investments to help the private sector create more jobs faster, lower the cost of clean energy faster, and help clean, renewable power outcompete dirty fuels in every state.
And this week, President Obama said he would propose in his 2017 budget a $10/barrel tax on crude oil imports as well as domestically produced (but not exports), and that this money would be used to finance the now desperately underfunded infrastructure repairs, while at the same time, serving as an incentive to promote innovations to wean this country’s economic infrastructure off carbon-emitting fossil fuels.
House Speaker Paul Ryan immediately announced the proposal “dead on arrival” and scorned President Obama as a lameduck (yet another demonstration of why the 2016 presidential election is so critical).
And it does come down to campaign finance.
The American Petroleum Institute sponsors ads on during the presidential debates under energytomorrow.org, and “Vote4Energy” with clever spots touting “Think cleaner air is pie in the sky? Emissions are down, all while growing the economy” (no thanks to Fossil Fuel interests, which continue to use their power over electeds to battle back EPA, Obama Clean Power Plan).
The American Petroleum Institute is “the only national trade association that represents all aspects of America’s oil and natural gas industry — speaking for the industry to the public, Congress and the Executive Branch, state governments and the media.”
Do you think they will be pushing for clean renewables? I don’t think so.
“When it comes to energy policy, the next president and members of the next Congress will play a critical role in shaping America’s 21st century energy renaissance, determining whether our nation will cement its position as a global energy leader. The energy policy conversation is about more than oil and natural gas development. It is about American competitiveness, international influence, national security and long-term economic strength and prosperity.”
That’s from www.vote4energy.org. How true.
