[Sustain] PG&E Stealth Campaign For Nuke Plant Extension (After Claiming Pause In Press Release)
Eric Brooks
brookse32 at aim.com
Sat Apr 23 17:36:50 PDT 2011
http://www.baycitizen.org/pge/story/pge-seeking-permission-extend-diablo/
PG&E Quietly Seeking Permission to Extend Diablo Canyon's License
The utility wants the government's licensing review to proceed
before seismic studies are completed
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By John Upton <http://www.baycitizen.org/profiles/john-upton/> on April
22, 2011 - 5:45 p.m. PDT
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The Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant
Pacific Gas and Electric Company is quietly seeking a 20-year extension
of its license to operate the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant, despite
publicly requesting the process be delayed until studies of the
facility's ability to withstand an earthquake are completed.
The discrepancy between the company's public and private stance has led
some lawmakers and environment advocates to accuse PG&E of misleading
the public about its plans for the San Luis Obispo plant following last
month's devastating earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disaster in Japan.
On April 10, PG&E asked the National Regulatory Commission to postpone
relicensing its Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant until the company
completes studies of a seismic fault that runs within 330 yards of the
facility.
"In the aftermath of the Japanese earthquake and the resulting tsunami,
we are working even more closely with various governmental permitting
agencies to accelerate the plant's advanced seismic research," PG&E's
Chief Nuclear Officer John Conway said in a press release
<http://www.pge.com/about/newsroom/newsreleases/20110411/pgampe_commits_to_finishing_3-d_seismic_studies_related_to_diablo_canyon_before_seeking_final_issuance_of_renewed_licenses.shtml> one
day after the April 10 letter <http://bayc.it/dESF/> was sent to the NRC.
"As PG&E works toward this objective, we are asking the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission to withhold issuance of PG&E's renewed operating
licenses, if approved, until after this research is completed and the
findings are submitted to the commission," Conway stated.
The utility's critics and lawmakers praised the delay.
But on April 12, PG&E sent a clarifying letter <http://bayc.it/dESG/> to
the NRC, which it did not publicize with a press release, asking agency
staff to move forward with safety and environmental reviews associated
with relicensing efforts before the company's seismic studies are completed.
"PG&E has not requested any suspension or delay in the NRC Staff's
ongoing safety and environmental reviews," PG&E attorney David Repka
wrote in the April 12 letter. "PG&E also is not requesting any delay in
the schedule for this licensing hearing process."
Liz Apfelberg, a member of Mothers For Peace, which has long led
protests against construction at Diablo Canyon, accused PG&E of taking a
"sneaky" approach to public relations by sending the second,
unpublicized letter.
Related
*
None
Congresswoman Calls on Feds to Suspend Diablo Canyon Permit
Application
<http://www.baycitizen.org/blogs/pulse-of-the-bay/congresswoman-calls-feds-suspend-diablo/>
*
None
PG&E Blasted for 'Disregard of Risk' at Nuclear Plant
<http://www.baycitizen.org/pge/story/pge-blasted-disregard-risk-nuclear-plant/>
NRC spokesman Victor Dricks this week confirmed that the agency is
moving forward with safety and other reviews of the Diablo Canyon
facility in preparation for a ruling on PG&E's request for permit
extensions.
"We're continuing our review," Dricks said.
PG&E spokesman Paul Flake said the NRC's safety review of Diablo Canyon
and the company's planned seismic studies "don't have any connection
with one another."
Sen. Sam Blakeslee (R-San Luis Obispo), a geophysicist with a doctorate
in earthquake studies whose district includes the nuclear power plant,
said it's impossible for the NRC to "credibly perform" safety studies
required for the extension of Diablo Canyon's operating permits without
first reviewing the results of PG&E's planned seismic studies.
"It seems utterly contradictory," Blakeslee said.
The Diablo Canyon plant lies next to the Shoreline Fault, which was
discovered in 2008. Seismologists know little about the fault, including
whether it is connected to other faults in the region. Some fear that
its rupture could severely damage Diablo Canyon, causing a catastrophic
nuclear meltdown.
PG&E says the seismic studies of the 1980s-era power plant will be
completed by the end of 2015. The plant's operating permit expires in
2025, and PG&E has asked the NRC to extend it by 20 years.
At a hearing on April 14 before the Senate Energy Committee, officials
for the NRC testified that Diablo Canyon is considered safe, because no
data exists indicating otherwise.
But federal lawmakers are aware of the potential safety threats.
"We are particularly interested in the safety of the San Onofre Nuclear
Generating Station, located in San Clemete, and the Diablo Canyon
Nuclear Power Plant near San Luis Obispo, both of which are near
earthquake faults," senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein wrote in
a March 16 letter to the NRC. "We ask that the National Regulatory
Commission (NRC) perform a thorough inspection at these two plants to
evaluate their safety and emergency preparedness plans."
More recently, Feinstein asked the NRC to assess seismic and tsunami
hazards, operational issues, plant security, emergency preparedness and
spent fuel storage before it relicenses nuclear power plants.
"I believe that our understanding of many threats -- especially seismic
threats, tsunami threats, spent fuel risks, and terrorist threats -- has
improved dramatically since most nuclear power plants were originally
designed and licensed thirty or more years ago," Feinstein wrote in the
April 20 letter
<http://feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=NewsRoom.PressReleases&ContentRecord_id=744d4296-5056-8059-76d7-22faf75e4515> to
NRC Chairman Gregory Jaczko. "Relicensing these facilities offers a
unique opportunity to review the original assessment of potential
threats, in order to ensure that a facility is designed to endure all
threats safely."
Source: The Bay Citizen <http://s.tt/12jrO> (http://s.tt/12jrO)
<http://www.baycitizen.org/>
Friday, April 22, 2011
PG&E Quietly Seeking Permission to Extend Diablo Canyon's License
The utility wants the government's licensing review to proceed before
seismic studies are completed
By: John Upton <http://www.baycitizen.org/profiles/john-upton/>
Pacific Gas and Electric Company is quietly seeking a 20-year extension
of its license to operate the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant, despite
publicly requesting the process be delayed until studies of the
facility's ability to withstand an earthquake are completed.
The discrepancy between the company's public and private stance has led
some lawmakers and environment advocates to accuse PG&E of misleading
the public about its plans for the San Luis Obispo plant following last
month's devastating earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disaster in Japan.
On April 10, PG&E asked the National Regulatory Commission to postpone
relicensing its Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant until the company
completes studies of a seismic fault that runs within 330 yards of the
facility.
"In the aftermath of the Japanese earthquake and the resulting tsunami,
we are working even more closely with various governmental permitting
agencies to accelerate the plant's advanced seismic research," PG&E's
Chief Nuclear Officer John Conway said in a press release
<http://www.pge.com/about/newsroom/newsreleases/20110411/pgampe_commits_to_finishing_3-d_seismic_studies_related_to_diablo_canyon_before_seeking_final_issuance_of_renewed_licenses.shtml> one
day after the April 10 letter <http://bayc.it/dESF/> was sent to the NRC.
"As PG&E works toward this objective, we are asking the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission to withhold issuance of PG&E's renewed operating
licenses, if approved, until after this research is completed and the
findings are submitted to the commission," Conway stated.
The utility's critics and lawmakers praised the delay.
But on April 12, PG&E sent a clarifying letter <http://bayc.it/dESG/> to
the NRC, which it did not publicize with a press release, asking agency
staff to move forward with safety and environmental reviews associated
with relicensing efforts before the company's seismic studies are completed.
"PG&E has not requested any suspension or delay in the NRC Staff's
ongoing safety and environmental reviews," PG&E attorney David Repka
wrote in the April 12 letter. "PG&E also is not requesting any delay in
the schedule for this licensing hearing process."
Liz Apfelberg, a member of Mothers For Peace, which has long led
protests against construction at Diablo Canyon, accused PG&E of taking a
"sneaky" approach to public relations by sending the second,
unpublicized letter.
NRC spokesman Victor Dricks this week confirmed that the agency is
moving forward with safety and other reviews of the Diablo Canyon
facility in preparation for a ruling on PG&E's request for permit
extensions.
"We're continuing our review," Dricks said.
PG&E spokesman Paul Flake said the NRC's safety review of Diablo Canyon
and the company's planned seismic studies "don't have any connection
with one another."
Sen. Sam Blakeslee (R-San Luis Obispo), a geophysicist with a doctorate
in earthquake studies whose district includes the nuclear power plant,
said it's impossible for the NRC to "credibly perform" safety studies
required for the extension of Diablo Canyon's operating permits without
first reviewing the results of PG&E's planned seismic studies.
"It seems utterly contradictory," Blakeslee said.
The Diablo Canyon plant lies next to the Shoreline Fault, which was
discovered in 2008. Seismologists know little about the fault, including
whether it is connected to other faults in the region. Some fear that
its rupture could severely damage Diablo Canyon, causing a catastrophic
nuclear meltdown.
PG&E says the seismic studies of the 1980s-era power plant will be
completed by the end of 2015. The plant's operating permit expires in
2025, and PG&E has asked the NRC to extend it by 20 years.
At a hearing on April 14 before the Senate Energy Committee, officials
for the NRC testified that Diablo Canyon is considered safe, because no
data exists indicating otherwise.
But federal lawmakers are aware of the potential safety threats.
"We are particularly interested in the safety of the San Onofre Nuclear
Generating Station, located in San Clemete, and the Diablo Canyon
Nuclear Power Plant near San Luis Obispo, both of which are near
earthquake faults," senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein wrote in
a March 16 letter to the NRC. "We ask that the National Regulatory
Commission (NRC) perform a thorough inspection at these two plants to
evaluate their safety and emergency preparedness plans."
More recently, Feinstein asked the NRC to assess seismic and tsunami
hazards, operational issues, plant security, emergency preparedness and
spent fuel storage before it relicenses nuclear power plants.
"I believe that our understanding of many threats -- especially seismic
threats, tsunami threats, spent fuel risks, and terrorist threats -- has
improved dramatically since most nuclear power plants were originally
designed and licensed thirty or more years ago," Feinstein wrote in the
April 20 letter
<http://feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=NewsRoom.PressReleases&ContentRecord_id=744d4296-5056-8059-76d7-22faf75e4515> to
NRC Chairman Gregory Jaczko. "Relicensing these facilities offers a
unique opportunity to review the original assessment of potential
threats, in order to ensure that a facility is designed to endure all
threats safely."
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