Decommissioning takes center stage in first day of final Vermont Yankee hearings
June 17, 2013, by Andrew Stein,
vtdigger.org (here)
The Vermont Public Service Board on Monday kicked off what's expected to be the final two weeks of hearings on whether it's in the public's best interest for Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant to obtain a new state operating permit.
"This is a very critical phase of the case," said Geoff Commons, attorney and director of public advocacy at the state's Public Service Department. "We think this is the last evidentiary hearing the Public Service Board will hold before issuing its determination."
Shut It Downers cited for blocking driveways and roads near Entergy headquarters
June 12, 2013, Press Release, (here)
"Dry cask storage now," the women chanted, as some handed leaflets to passing drivers who rolled down their windows to accept them.
VY gets generator, drops suit
June 8, 2013, Rutland Herald, (here)
NRC orders safety upgrades at Vt., NH plants
June 7, 2013, Keene Sentinel, (here)
WASHINGTON -- Both the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon and the Seabrook Station on the Seacoast are under orders to enhance systems for venting accumulated pressure from containment structures during an emergency. Vents must also be able to safely handle rising temperatures, hydrogen concentrations and radiation levels.
NRC orders modifications in response to Fukushima
June 7, 2013, By Bob Audette
Brattleboro Reformer Staff, (here)
BRATTLEBORO -- In response to the nuclear disaster at Fukushima, Japan, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has ordered the owners of certain types of commercial nuclear reactors to make improvements to their emergency venting systems.
In an order issued on Thursday, the NRC instructed the owners of GE Mark I and Mark II Boiling Water Reactors that they have until 2019 to make the necessary improvements, but should begin the work "promptly."
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Issuance of Order to Modify Licenses with Regard to Reliable Hardened Containment Vents Capable of Operation Under Severe Accident Conditions
-- Adams Accession No. ML13143A321.pdf
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State defends authority over Vermont Yankee
June 4, 2013, by Andrew Stein
vtdigger.org (here)
FEMA to present initial observations on Vermont Yankee nuclear plant exercise Friday
June 3, 2013, by vtdigger.org
FEMA Press Release, (here)
June 4, 2013, UPDATE, by vtdigger.org FEMA Press Release , (here)
Boston, MA. -- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Region I today announced that a public briefing will be held on June 7, 2013, to present initial observations of participant actions taken during a full-scale exercise at the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant located in Vernon, VT. The briefing begins promptly at 4 p.m.
FEMA encourages members of the public and the media to attend this briefing at the Vernon Elementary School, 381 Governor Hunt Road, Vernon, VT. Representatives from FEMA and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will present their observations of the full-scale exercise. Written comments or questions from the public and media may be submitted at or after the meeting.
Drip, drip, drip
May 31, 2013 by: Sue Prent
Green Mtn Daily, (here)
Howard Shaffer came out with another of his dewey-eyed defenses of Vermont Yankee a few days ago in a letter to the editor. We know the line of patter practically by heart now: "...safe...clean...cheap...blah-blah-blah."
VY Push Poll?
May 31, 2013, By Ezie, and Nancy Braus, iBrattleboro, (here)
Welder builds mock motor for Yankee
May 30, 2013, by Jack Deming
Deerfield Valley News, (here)
WILMINGTON- Frank Sprague has been in the welding business for 12 years, bending iron into everything from handrails and gates to shepherd's hooks and cowbells. So when Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant in Vernon chose Sprague to create a replica of a 2,450-horsepower motor for their cooling tower, Sprague said "No problem."
Action urged on nuclear
waste storage
May 28, 2013, By Joshua Miller
Boston Globe Staff, (here)
VT to NRC: How Do We
Get Rid of Waste?
May 24, 2013, By Dave Gram,
AP / Valley News, (here)
Vermont Supreme Court
Reviews Vermont Yankee
May 22, 2013 by Sandy Levine
CLF Scoop, (here)
Can the Vermont Public Service Board determine the meaning of its own orders? The answer would seem to be "Of Course!" But that is the question that Vermont Yankee's owners are putting before the Vermont Supreme Court.
In two orders the Vermont Public Service Board issued a strong rebuke to Entergy.
The Board refused to amend its prior orders and confirmed that the conditions of Entergy's permits remain intact. Those conditions include that Entergy will not operate Vermont Yankee past March 2012 without new approval from the Board.
Entergy brought this appeal to challenge those orders.
On Monday Conservation Law Foundation's brief, filed jointly with New England Coalition and Vermont Public Interest Research Group challenged Entergy's claims.
CLF-NEC-VPIRG-Brief.pdf
The State of Vermont also filed a brief opposing Entergy's appeal.
2013-042-2013-05-20-Brief-of-Vermont-Public-Service-Dept.pdf
YUCCA MOUNTAIN AND SCIENTIFIC INTEGRITY
May 21, 2013, House of Representatives - Congressional Record, (here)
Diesel generator recommended for Vermont Yankee plant
May 21, 2013, By Bob Audette
Brattleboro Reformer Staff, (here)
Hearing officer: Give Yankee permit for diesel generator
May 21, 2013, By Susan Smallheer
Rutland Herald Staff Writer, (here)
"with reservations"
Dummerston signs Vermont Yankee response plan
May 18, 2013, By Mike Faher,
Brattleboro Reformer, (here)
DUMMERSTON -- After years of debate, Dummerston Selectboard has approved a plan that details the town's response in the event of an emergency at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.
But the divided board did not offer a ringing endorsement: Even the three members who signed off on the plan inserted the phrase "with reservations" into their affirmative vote, with each saying they doubted the document's effectiveness.
Hearing Scheduled On Latest Yankee Court Case
May 17, 2013 5:56 pm, By John Dillon,
Vermont Public Radio, (here)
A federal court judge has set a hearing date for early June in Entergy Vermont Yankee's latest legal challenge against the state of Vermont.
The owner of Vermont's only nuclear plant sued the state last month, charging that state regulators have delayed approval of a back-up emergency diesel generator.
Story update:
Bill Allowing Hotter Waste in Texas Passes House
May 23, 2013, By: Kate Galbraith, The Texas Tribune, (here)
* * * *
Bad radioactive waste bill increases threats to Texas while rewarding a major Gov. Perry donor
May 19 2013, Lone Star Sierra Club, (here)
A bill that would increase the concentration of radioactive waste to be dumped in Texas is set to be heard on the House floor on Monday, May 20.
Waste Control Specialists (WCS) would benefit even more from having hotter radioactive materials going to their radioactive waste dump in West Texas, and would get to bring in the waste sooner, raising the annual cap on waste imported from other states from 120,000 to 275,000 curies.
Vermont's waste partner:
The Toxic Tycoon
May 13th, 2013, By Bobbye Pyke,
Natural Resources News Service,
DC Bureau , (here)
Andrews County, TX -- Tucked away on the Texas/New Mexico border is a 15,000-acre low-level nuclear waste disposal site run by Waste Control Specialists (WCS), a subsidiary of Valhi, Inc.
(......) After WCS received its license, it lobbied hard to expand its market, which the state had restricted to waste from the federal government, Texas, and Vermont. In 2011, the legislature passed a bill that would allow 36 states to dump low-level waste in Texas.
Simmons had contributed to nearly three-quarters of the legislators and 83 percent of voted for the bill. Simmons also contributed half a million dollars to state politicians outside of Texas since 2000 - nearly all of them in states with nuclear power plants but without nuclear waste disposal facilities. When the dump was opened to 36 states, Valhi, WCS's parent company, saw a stock jump of 62 percent and Simmons saw his net worth jump from $5 billion to $9.6 billion in a single year.
Tom "Smity" Smith, the Texas director of Public Citizen, said that opening the site to waste from other states could create a capacity problem. "We may not have enough space for our waste - for Texas waste and Vermont waste," said Smith. He also cited concerns about the increased number of trucks carrying hazardous materials on Texas roads as well as the potential impact on local groundwater if the wastes migrated.
Worst Week Since Fukushima: 4 Major Setbacks In 3 Days Are Latest Stumbles For U.S. Nuclear Power Industry
May. 8, 2013, Wall St Journal, (here),
By Peter Bradford, adjunct professor, Vermont Law School and Mark Cooper, senior fellow for economic analysis, Institute for Energy and the Environment, Vermont Law School
WASHINGTON -- Reverse Renaissance? Experts Point to 6 Reactors on the Chopping Block and Passage of Anti-Industry Florida Law; Beleaguered Industry's Woes Start With Bad Economics ... and Go Downhill From There.
Prudent precautions?
NRC defends beefed-up security for public meetings
May 8, 2013, By Olga Peters, The Commons issue #202, (here)
As Vermont moves to green power, VY won't be missed
May 8, 2013, By Gary Sachs, The Commons issue #202, (here)
 NRC Chat Open
May 7, 2013 , (here)
"NRC Chat is a new tool for engaging in real-time two-way dialogue with you. We plan to do about six months of Chats, usually holding two each month, and then we'll evaluate it."
 "Comments on blog posts do not represent official NRC communication, and links to internet sites other than the NRC website do not constitute the agency's endorsement of that site's content, policies or products. Please read our Disclaimer for more information."
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Groups to tell NRC that Entergy's Financial Problems are a Nuclear Emergency
May 2, 2013, from Citizens Awareness Network, Alliance for a Green Economy, Vermont Citizens Action Network, & Pilgrim Watch
What: Concerned residents of New York, Vermont and Massachusetts will testify in front of a Nuclear Regulatory Commission Petition Review Board about their petition for emergency enforcement action against Entergy Nuclear Operations and its subsidiaries. The petitioners will present the case that Entergy is in violation of NRC regulations by operating two Northeast Reactors at a financial loss. They will make the case that the company's economic problems increase the likelihood of major nuclear accidents at the James A FitzPatrick plant in Oswego, New York and Vermont Yankee plant in Vernon, Vermont, and that the NRC must suspend operations at these reactors. They will also request that the NRC investigate the Pilgrim nuclear reactor in Plymouth, Massachusetts to see if it, too, is in violation of the NRC's financial qualifications requirements.
Where: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, One White Flint, HQ-OWFN-16B4, Rockville. Maryland
Video and audio available remotely:
When: Tuesday. May 7,2013, 1 :00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time)
Background: NRC regulations require nuclear companies to be "financially qualified" to operate and maintain nuclear reactors safely. Recent analyses by the financial services company UBS have stated that Entergy is will be operating FitzPatrick and Vermont Yankee reactors at a financial loss for the foreseeable future. UBS additionally reports that Pilgrim may also be losing money. Citizens Awareness Network (Massachusetts, Vermont, and New York), Alliance for a Green Economy (New York), Pilgrim Watch (Massachusetts), and Vermont Citizens Action Network (Vermont) filed a joint emergency enforcement petition on March 18, 2013 challenging Entergy's financial qualifications to operate the three reactors based on the UBS analyses.
The petition points to the inherent conflict between nuclear safety and Entergy's short-term bottom line at its economically troubled reactors. Entergy is likely reluctant to spend money on equipment maintenance and replacement as well as safety improvements. It points to a string of recent equipment failures and emergency shutdowns at the plants and asks the NRC to determine whether there is a connection between these failures and Entergy's economic issues.
For more background and the full petition, see:
http://www.nukebusters.org/cms-assets/documents/111489-422135.2.206-petition.pdf
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Report: Changes Vermont energy project reviews
May 1, 2013, Associated Press, (here)
MONTPELIER -- The public should have a greater voice in picking the locations of Vermont electricity-generation projects - like windmills - and the state should speed up the approval of smaller projects, a panel recommended Tuesday.
The commission formed by the governor released its final report Tuesday after six months of work. The recommendations come as Vermont considers more renewable energy projects, with a goal of 90 percent renewable energy by 2050.
NRC to discuss
VY inspection report
April 30, 2013, By Bob Audette
Brattleboro Reformer Staff, (here)
On Monday, Chris Miller, the director of Division of Reactor Safety for Region 1, spoke to the media about the report. Miller said none of the findings in the report rose above the level of very low safety significance. Overall, he said, all performance indicators were symptomatic of a plant being run in a well-regulated manner.
Findings documented by the NRC's resident inspectors included a fire door that wouldn't self-latch, procedures related to identifying and isolating sources of water lost from the cooling tower basin and the failure to replace a degraded battery cell prior to its exceeding operability limits.
Vermont Yankee asked to pay $200,000 in 2014
April 29, 2013, vt.Buzz: Burlington Free Press, (here)
Letter: Fearing the Worst
at Vt. Yankee
April 26, 2013, Ulrike von Moltke,
upper CT River
Valley News, (here)
It is in our nature to hope for the best when stuck in a dangerous situation. But with the aging Vermont Yankee nuclear reactor still operating beyond its 40-year license and experiencing a series of breakdowns and operational and oversight lapses that are covered up by its owner, Entergy Corp., we have to fear the worst.
Entergy Raises Preemption Claims In Latest Lawsuit
April 25, 2013 5:37 pm, By John Dillon, Vermont Public Radio, (here)
Entergy Vermont Yankee has sued the state again in federal court, claiming the state has delayed approval of a back-up emergency generator.
NRC is not our voice
Federal agency has shown contempt for citizens' concerns
April 24, 2013, by Nancy Braus, on
behalf of Safe and Green Campaign,
The Commons issue #200, (here)
NRC expanding social outreach efforts with new live chat next week
April 24, 2013, Enformable, (here)
updated info
NRC to Hold Public Meeting April 30th in Brattleboro, to Discuss Vermont Yankee Nuclear Plant Annual Assessment
April 19, 2013, Elec Light & Power
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued the following news release:
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will conduct a public open house, followed by a question-and-answer session, on April 30 to discuss the agency's annual review of safety performance at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.
The open house is scheduled for 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. in the multipurpose room at Brattleboro Union High School, at 131 Fairground Road in Brattleboro, Vt.
It will provide an opportunity for attendees to hold one-on-one discussions with NRC staff members about the plant's 2012 performance and the agency's oversight of the facility.
Then, beginning at 7 p.m. at the same location,
the NRC staff will hold a group question-and-answer session regarding plant performance and oversight topics. There will be a security bag search for all attending.
last paragraph, an after-thought?
... Among the areas of performance to be inspected at Vermont Yankee this year by NRC specialists are activities associated with the dry cask storage of spent nuclear fuel, underground piping and tanks, emergency planning, fire protection and radiological safety.
NRC seeks continuation of credit from Entergy
April 16, 2013, By Susan Smallheer, Staff Writer, Rutland Herald, (here)
BRATTLEBORO - Entergy Nuclear will again be required to give the Nuclear Regulatory Commission a letter of credit of $40 million because of shortfalls in Vermont Yankee's decommissioning trust fund.
NRC spokesman Neil Sheehan said that the $40 million financial guarantee was a preliminary figure and it was possible NRC staff assessment might require a higher figure.
According to a report on various decommissioning funds for Entergy Nuclear power plants in the Northeast, Vermont Yankee is the only plant that has such a large shortfall that it will require a guarantee from Entergy.
According to a March 29 letter Entergy officials sent to the NRC, "Entergy Corp.'s management has concluded that the amount of decommission related parent guarantees at issue is very small as compared to the balance sheet amounts."
According to the report, current estimates to decommission Vermont Yankee is $620.8 million, while its decommissioning fund was $543.2 million, a $77 million shortfall. (....)
'No such thing as an
orderly evacuation'
Friday April 12, 2013, Editorial,
Brattleboro Reformer, (here)
On Wednesday, the U.S. Government Accountability Office issued a report critical of emergency response plans related to the nation's fleet of nuclear power plants.
The GAO concluded that those of us who live and work within the 10-mile emergency preparedness zone around plants such as Vermont Yankee in Vernon are well informed about the nature of nuclear emergencies, have a general idea of what to do if one happened and generally trust emergency response officials to give us the appropriate instructions.
But, the report notes, people even just a few miles outside of the 10-mile radius around a power plant are not so well-informed and "may not respond in a similar manner to a radiological incident as those inside the zone."
And even worse, noted the GAO, (....)
NRC to hold annual Vermont Yankee safety meeting
April 11, 2013, By Kyle Jarvis,
Keene Sentinel Staff (here)
Repeal Price-Anderson NOW!
Apr 08, 2013 @ 19:31:13 PM EDT, by: Sue Prent, Green Mtn Daily, (here)
It's really telling when former Nuclear Regulatory Commissioner, Gregory Jackzo, goes so far as to say that all U.S. nuclear facilities ought to be"phased out" because regulators aren't doing their job.
"The next accident is going to be something that no one predicted. At a certain point you have to review the fundamental
problem...that evaluation tells you you can't rule out a severe accident."
And he is isn't alone in that belief, which is echoed by another former commissioner, Victor Gilinsky, who cites the NRC's recent decisions not to immediately and fully implement the recommendations of ASME
(The American Society of Mechanical Engineers) for reforms in the wake of the Fukushima disaster. (....)
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NRC Region I, Notice of Public Meeting in Brattleboro
It's about safety, too!
April 8, 2013, NRC, (pdf-file)
On Tuesday, April 30, 2013, Open House: 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. (Multipurpose Room Brattleboro High School)
Question & Answer (Q&A) Session: 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. (Multipurpose Room Brattleboro Middle School ???)
"The U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will host an open
house and Q&A session to discuss the NRC's assessment of safety
performance at Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station for 2012, as
described in the NRC annual assessment letter dated March 4, 2013."
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Vt. nuke back
after refueling outage
April 6, 2013, AP/BostonGlobe (here)
VERNON, Vt. (AP) - The Vermont Yankee nuclear plant is back in operation after a 26-day outage for refueling and maintenance.
One year later, a resolve to keep up the fight --
Anti-nuclear activists say they will prevail in effort to shut down VY
April 3, 2013, By Randolph T. Holhut,
The Commons issue #197, (here)
Hundreds march against Yankee nuclear plant
March 31, 2013, By Susan Smallheer, Staff Writer, Rutland Herald, (here)
This Just In
Two more problem areas
discovered at Yankee
March 30, 2013, Staff Report,
The Times Argus, (here)
VERNON -- Two additional water infiltration areas have been discovered at the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant's switchgear rooms.
Update:
Failed flood seals
discovered at Yankee
March 28, 2013, By Susan Smallheer, Staff Writer, Rutland Herald, (here)
VERNON - The Vermont Yankee nuclear plant reported that a failed underground flood seal last week compromised the flooding-prevention design of a nerve center where cables from the plant's control room are routed to the rest of the plant.
The problems required formal notification to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Vermont Yankee has been shut down since March 9 for refueling and maintenance work, and the problems were in part triggered by maintenance work.
Recchia inquires into NRC relicensing of Vermont Yankee
March 25, 2013, by Andrew Stein,
vtdigger.org - Vt Journalism Trust (here)
The new commissioner of the Public Service Department is concerned about systemic problems at Vermont Yankee, and he wants the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to provide more details about the federal agency's 2012 decision to relicense the nuclear plant. ....
The first incident at Vermont Yankee occurred last Monday, when plant workers were testing the ventilation system in a reactor building.
The plant is currently shut down for refueling and maintenance, and during these tests a 6-by-10 foot "blowout panel" blew out due to over pressurization. ....
A day after that incident, water flooded into an electrical switchgear room at the plant from dredging on the premises.
According to the NRC, a worker was installing a new transformer in the room, when the individual noticed water entering from a manhole.
"The level of water inside the switchgear room manhole was less than two feet at all times," NRC's Sheehan said.
Vermont Yankee personnel began inspecting outside manholes on Saturday, and they found a displaced mechanical seal on the outside manhole, which allowed the water to enter, according to the NRC.
Sheehan said that Vermont Yankee replaced the mechanical seal with a foam seal on Sunday.
"The bottom line is that the water in the switchgear room manhole was quickly identified and action taken to mitigate it," Sheehan said. "There were no impacts on the electrical equipment. The replacement of the seals will prevent a recurrence of the problem."
Vermont Yankee spokesman Rob Williams said the situation was resolved immediately.
"We have since replaced the seal plug and four others with a better design to preclude a similar situation in the future," he said.
Recchia said he's concerned about the incident because it's reminiscent of a similar manhole problem the plant experienced a year prior.
NRC Probes Entergy Finances After Yankee's Value Drops
03/22/13 5:50pm, By John Dillon,
VT Public Radio, (here)
(NRC spokesman) Sheehan said the commission usually probes a company's financial health if it's buying a nuclear plant.
But he says the NRC can also seek assurances that a company has enough money to decommission a plant, and to run it safely.
"For us, the bottom line is do they still have the financial qualifications to continue to operate the plant safely and if not, what are they going to do to address that?" he said.
State wants info on Yankee system failures
March 22,2013, By Susan Smallheer,
Staff Writer, Rutland Herald, (here)
MONTPELIER - The state of Vermont said it wants more information about this week's blowout of a safety panel in the reactor building at Vermont Yankee nuclear plant, a result of three system failures.
Chris Recchia, the commissioner of the Department of Public Service, said Thursday he had written the Nuclear Regulatory Commission about the early Monday morning panel problem, saying he wanted information about whether the NRC had reviewed the systems that failed.
Finances, panel blow-out at Yankee raise concerns
March 21, 2013, By Susan Smallheer, Staff Writer, Rutland Herald, (here)
BRATTLEBORO - Changes in the energy marketplace have forced Entergy Nuclear to write down the value of Vermont Yankee nuclear plant from $517 million to $162 million, prompting the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to ask for the company's financial projections for the next five years.
The NRC took the unusual step of asking for additional information from Entergy Nuclear about the finances of Yankee, citing a recent Entergy filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Meanwhile, the NRC also announced that Yankee, which is currently shut down for refueling and maintenance, had a panel in the secondary containment of the reactor building "blow out" early Monday morning because of over-pressurization in the building. There are 40 such panels.
Robert Williams, an Entergy spokesman, said workers had started up the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system in the reactor building early Monday, but the exhaust fan did not come on, creating what he called a "slight increase" in air pressure in the pressurized building.
"One of the relief panels dislodged, which it is designed to do," Williams said. The panel are designed to fall away in the face of intense pressure from tornados.
A 6-by-10-foot aluminum panel was blown out and landed dozens of feet away, on top of the turbine building. The panel is supposed to be attached to a wire rope, according to Uldis Vanags, the state nuclear engineer who sent a memo about the problem to members of the Vermont State Nuclear Advisory Panel.
Puppets of Protest on Parade
March 19, 2013, By Pete Redington,
The Valley Advocate, (here)
Bread and Puppet Theatre lends its legendary hand in the effort to close Vermont Yankee by leading a parade through Brattleboro on March 30 with the Safe and Green Campaign. The march marks the one-year anniversary since the nuclear facility continued operation without the approval of the state Public Service Board. This violates a condition of the 2002 purchase agreement for Vermont Yankee by New Orleans-based Entergy Corporation, critics contend.
VT Public Service Board admits Connecticut River Watershed Council reports as part of review of Entergy's certificate of public good application to continue operation of Vermont Yankee
Mar 17, 2013, by vtdigger.org, a CRWC Press Release, (here)
Nobody likes Senate Bill 30
Mar 15, 2013, by jvwalt,
Green Mtn. Daily, (here)
Antinuclear groups Citizens Awareness Network and Vermont Yankee Decommissioning Alliance say promoting renewables -- including utility-scale projects -- is the only way to wean ourselves from nukes and fossil fuels. The groups note ...
Correction to Amendments Issued on December 28, 2012, for the Entergy Fleet RE: Request for Approval of Change to the Entergy Quality Assurance Program Manual and Associated Plant Technical Specifications Regarding Staff Qualifications
Adams Accession No. ML13025A306
March 14, 2013, NRC, (pdf), 25pp
40% of U.S. Nuclear Reactors Have Had "Near-Misses" Since 2010
March 11, 2013, AllGov, (here)
a newly released report raises serious questions about the safety of the nation's nuclear power plants. According to the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), over the past three years 40 of the nation's 104 nuclear reactors suffered one or more near-misses. A "near-miss" is an event that increases the chance of core meltdown by at least a factor of ten, thus causing the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to send a special inspection team to investigate.
Vermont Yankee's safety
record gets NRC approval
Mar 7, 2013, by Andrew Stein
vtdigger.org , (here)
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UCS 3rd Annual NRC Review
Mar 7, 2013, Dave Lochbaum, (here)
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Vermont Yankee Inspection / Activity Plan, 01/01/2013 - 06/30/2014
Mar 6, 2013, NRC, (pdf), 5pp
Vermont Yankee granted inspection exemption
March 5, 2013, WCAX-TV-3, (here)
Entergy, Vt. utilities
fight over documents
AP / March 5, 2013, (here)
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) -- More than five years after the spectacular collapse of a cooling tower at the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant, legal wrangling continues over the incident between Vermont's utilities and plant owner Entergy Corp.
Relevant past
Monday, March 4, 2013
The Recorder, Editorial, (here)
Under pressure, we'd guess, people will say just about anything.
That includes an executive from Entergy Nuclear trying to persuade the Vermont Public Service Board that Vermont Yankee's operating license should be extended for 20 more years.
Appearing before the board during hearings for the licensing request, T. Michael Twomey, vice president for external affairs for Entergy Wholesale Corp. of White Plains, N.Y., asserted
that problems that have occurred at the plant in Vernon, Vt., during the past 10 years of Entergy ownership were not relevant to the request to extend the license for two more decades.
In other words, he suggested, officials should pay absolutely no attention to the company's stewardship of ...
VERMONT YANKEE
RELIEF REQUEST ISI-PT-02:
FOURTH 10-YEAR INSERVICE INSPECTION INTERVAL
March 4, 2013, Rec'd NRC Release: ml13055a009.pdf
12 pages dated March 1, 2013
.... Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. requested relief from the requirements of
the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (ASME Code),
Section XI, IWC-5221, for the fourth 10-year inservice inspection (lSI) interval at the Vermont
Yankee Nuclear Power Station.
Specifically, pursuant to Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) 50.55a(a)(3)(ii),
the licensee requested to use the altemative in Relief Request ISI-PT-02 on the basis that
complying with the specified ASME Code requirement would result in hardship or unusual
difficulty without a compensating increase in the level of quality and safety.
IMPACT OF SEQUESTRATION ON NRC ACTIVITIES
AND NRC STAKEHOLDERS
March 01, 2013, NRC, (pdf-2pages)
Deny certificate of public good
Feb 27, 2013, By Fletcher Dean, Letter, Barre Times-Argus, (here)
I urge the Public Service Board to deny a Certificate of Public Good for Entergy's Vermont Yankee plant.
1. The irradiated nuclear waste continues to accumulate on the banks of the CT River with no plans for safe, permanent storage, either there or elsewhere in the nation.
2. The plant is old, leaking tritium into the soil and ground water, and just another "incident," or God-forbid, a Fukushima-type of disaster away from rendering the whole northeast uninhabitable for generations. These plants weren't designed for more than 40 years and then to be propped up with duct tape. We're coming up on 41 years in March.
3. Vermont Yankee continues to pollute the Connecticut River and endanger wildlife there with its heated discharge water.
4. Entergy is not a good corporate neighbor. Despite its assurances when it purchased the plant that it would close on time and not challenge the state's oversight authority, they have lied (under oath), gone back on their word and tangled up the state in costly, drawn out legal challenges.
4 More Good Reasons
Limited testimony ok with
PSB for Yankee critic
Feb 26, 2013, By Dave Gram
Assoc.Press/Rutland Herald, (here)
Plant owner Entergy Corp.'s lawyers objected to testimony from Raymond Shadis of the anti-nuclear group New England Coalition. In the end, the board said it would hear some of the points Shadis wanted to make, but not his testimony on the plant's effects on fish in the Connecticut River.
"In anything I've ever read about your qualifications, being a fish biologist was never one of them," board member John Burke said to Shadis during a series of questions the board used to examine his qualifications.
Vermont panel may hear
from Vt. Yankee critic
02/25/2013 11:03 AM
AP / Boston Globe, (here)
also check WPTZ-CH-5 News
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) -- A long-time critic of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant is to testify before the state Public Service Board, if plant owner Entergy Corp. doesn't succeed in blocking that testimony.
Vermont Yankee plans
to refuel in spring
Feb 23, 2012, By Bob Audette,
Brattleboro Reformer, (here)
In the past, refueling operations have taken about four weeks, but Yankee spokesman Rob Williams wouldn't comment on exactly when the process would begin or how long it would take.
(...) Williams said work planned during the outage includes replacing and refurbishing some components; general preventative maintenance; replacing a large transformer; overhauling one of the three feed-water pumps; and replacing a recirculation-pump motor.
Shut down Yankee
Feb 21, 2013, By Al Blakey, Opinion
Barre Times-Argus, (here)
I submit Entergy is not lying. Is a child lying when they tell Santa they have been good, just to get what they want? In the child's mind keeping Santa happy is all that matters.
In a corporation where saying anything to appease the public is a way of life, is it any wonder that since litigation keeps the plant running and the profits coming in Entergy will say they don't want to go to court?
That safety is the magic word needed to apply to anything that challenges their profit margins now? That past record is no indication of future actions? That trust is recognized as a place to hold money not a reliance on another person or entity to follow through on their word?
That the need to fund a trust for future decommissioning is not relevant? That they would not challenge state authority over the plant and wield a team of lawyers who are doing just that in the procedural process at hand? That they can sit on their collective butts instead of being pro-active in the certificate renewal process and then claim the Legislature is responsible for the delay, not them?
Cost to Vt. Adding up
in Yankee Fight
Feb 20, 2013 9:43 PM, By Matt Austin
Fox44-ABC22, (here)
There are several cases winding through the federal courts. Vermont Attorney General Bill Sorrell estimates the state will spend $700,000 on appeals. That's because the state has hired outside attorney's who are experienced with these big cases.
Vermont Yankee will refuel
this spring
Feb 20 2013, by Timothy McQuiston
Vermont Business Magazine, (here)
The Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon will refuel on schedule this spring. Vermont Yankee spokesman Rob Williams told Vermont Business Magazine today that the Vernon plant will be shut down for the 30th time to be refueled since it went online in 1972.
Williams said he could not say, for competitive reasons, when exactly the outage would commence or exactly how long the process would take. But he said the process would entail several weeks' work from the initial "coast-down" to back to full power. He said one-third of the fuel rods will be replaced (120 of the 368).
More nuclear follies
Feb 19, 2013, by: Sue Prent
Green Mtn Daily, (here)
As Entergy clings to ever more absurd arguments before the PSB, insisting that its pattern of misrepresentations does not constitute "unreliability," fibs and distortions are also making nuclear news in California.
Vermont Yankee
Hanging by a Thread
Feb 18, 2013, by Sandy Levine
CLF Scoop, (here)
The past few weeks have not been kind to Vermont Yankee or its owners. Investment analysts continue to raise doubts about Yankee's economic future. It is costing more to run the plant and its future looks bleak.
Public Service Board takes up Entergy relicensure case
Feb 13, 2013, By Andrew Stein
The Commons issue #190, (here)
(...) Boston-based attorney Robert Kirsch, representing the state of Vermont, asked Heaps few questions that got by the frequent objections of attorney Robert Hemley from the Burlington-based legal firm Gravel and Shea, which is representing Entergy.
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Public Service Board Chairman James Volz indicated that he is willing to make time for extra testimony.
"There's no particular rush to get this done," he said.
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Walk for the People of the Earth vigil at Vermont Yankee
Feb 12, 2013, SAGE Release
vtdigger.org (here)
Entergy cites federal laws in Vermont Yankee hearing
Feb 12, 2013, By Dave Gram,
AP / Burl Free Press, (here)
Entergy pushes pre-emption in Vt. Yankee hearings
February 11, 2013, updated 5:51 PM,
Associated Press, (here), photo (here)
BARRE, Vt. (AP) -- Lawyers for the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant's owner are trying to draw tight boundaries around the issues a state panel can consider as it weighs whether to grant the plant a new state permit.
Vermont Public Service Board to Begin Vermont Yankee Arguments
Feb 11, 2013, By Joe Gullo
Fox-44, ABC-22 News, (here)
VERNON, Vt. - The Vermont Public Service Board plans to begin hearing two weeks worth of arguments for and against Vermont Yankee's operation.
The board is still considering whether or not to relicense.
Nuclear Plant
Faces Uncertain Road
Feb 8, 2013, Power Industry News, (here)
As executive director of the Brattleboro Development Credit Corp. in Vermont, Jeff Lewis helped study the impact of the potential closing of the aging Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant.
His group's recommendation: decontaminate the plant as soon as possible.
"Decontamination could still be a four- or five-year process. But at the end, you're done," Lewis said.
Related:
Post VY Task Force
The Post-VY Task Force was organized as a subcommittee of the Southeast Vermont
Economic Development Planning Group with the directive to study the economic and
other impacts that would result from the potential closure of the Vermont Yankee nuclear
power station (VY) in Vernon, and ways in which those impacts might be mitigated.
On March 12, 2012, the SeVEDS Post VY task force released it's report: (here) (pdf)
Finance firm predicts Vt. Yankee will close
February 7, 2013 7:22 PM EST
WCAX-TV-3 News, (here)
Analysts base their conclusions on forecasts for limited profits in the coming years, the facility's age and limited output compared to other plants, as well as pending legal disputes and concerns over decommissioning funds.
Republican Representative Mike Hebert of Vernon says company officials assured him the report's conclusions are inaccurate.
Entergy's official statement is less definitive. The statement makes no specific reference to Vermont Yankee. The company says it does not comment on the financial performance of individual plants, but expects the market for nuclear power to recover in the long term.
State, Entergy agree:
no delay to hearings
Feb 07, 2013, By Susan Smallheer
Rutland Herald Staff Writer, (here)
MONTPELIER -- Both the Shumlin administration and Entergy Nuclear have finally agreed on something -- next week's hearings on the re-licensing of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant should go ahead as planned.
In comments filed Wednesday with the Public Service Board, both the Department of Public Service and Entergy Nuclear said the postponement -- suggested by the New England Coalition last week -- would cause "enormous inconvenience on the Board, the parties and the witnesses," in the words of Entergy attorney John H. Marshall, of the law firm of Downs Rachlin Martin, one of three law firms representing Entergy in the case.
Marshall wrote that Entergy and other parties to the Public Service Board case had been "engaged in substantial preparation for the technical hearing. These efforts will have been wasted if NEC now succeeds in having the technical hearing stayed."
The state agreed.
Anti-nuclear group asks PSB to postpone upcoming Yankee hearings
Feb 06, 2013, By Susan Smallheer
Rutland Herald Staff Writer, (here)
BRATTLEBORO -- Less than a week before the high-stakes Public Service Board hearings on the future of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant, an anti-nuclear group has asked the board to postpone the hearings.
"We're not looking to delay the proceedings," said coalition attorney Jared Margolis on Tuesday. But Margolis said to spend enormous amounts of time and money holding the hearings while the issue over Yankee's future was pending before the state's highest court was "a huge waste."
Margolis said he didn't believe the appeal filed by Entergy Nuclear on Jan. 25 was "supportable," but that he also didn't want to go through the hearings only to have the Supreme Court "negate the Public Service Board's orders."
Super Bowl Outage
and Vermont Yankee
Feb 5, 2013 by Sandy Levine
CLF Scoop, (here)
Keeping the lights on shouldn't be this difficult. The response by Entergy to the outage at the Super Bowl is very reminiscent of the responses by Entergy to the many problems at its Vermont Yankee nuclear plant. It boils down to a piece of equipment failed and the power went out. A repeated problem at Vermont Yankee has been equipment failures -- from cooling tower collapses to leaking pipes.
Entergy again!
Super Bowl Power Outage: Lights Go Out At Superdome, (HuffingtonPost)
(FastCompany)
Entergy has blamed a failure of equipment at the Superdome for the outage, and insists power was flowing to the stadium at the time the lights blinked out. (Green Mtn Daily)
Next year's Super Bowl will be played at Motel 6 - They leave the lights on for you.
02-04-2013
VY and The Ghost
of Promises Past
Sun Feb 03, 2013, by: Sue Prent
Green Mountain Daily, (here)
Entergy might ask
court to order CPG
February 1, 2013, By Bob Audette
Brattleboro Reformer Staff, (here)
BRATTLEBORO -- In a statement submitted to the Vermont Supreme Court, Entergy said it might ask the court to consider ordering the Vermont Public Service Board to issue a certificate of public good for the continued operation of Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon.
Entergy, which owns and operates the plant, submitted its docketing statement, detailing the issues it reserves the right to "add to, subtract from, or modify ... in the course of preparing its opening brief" in hearings that might transpire before the Supreme Court. Entergy had no comment on its filing.
Pat Parenteau, senior counsel to the Environmental and Natural Resources Law Clinic and professor of law at Vermont Law School, said the statement is Entergy's opening salvo in response to a motion filed by the New England Coalition requesting the forced closure of Yankee.
Letter to Shumlin: Don't sign evacuation plan
January 31, 2013,
Opinion/Commentary, Rutland Herald
The following letter was sent to Gov. Peter Shumlin and signed by 83 residents of the Brattleboro region on behalf of the Safe and Green Campaign. It was provided to the Herald by Leslie Sullivan Sachs of Brattleboro:
(here)
Shut It Down group pays fines, then protests
January 31, 2013, By Mike Faher,
Brattleboro Reformer, (here)
BRATTLEBORO -- When Hattie Nestel's cell phone rang Wednesday afternoon, she told the caller she was busy at the moment.
"I'm sorry," she said. "We're being arrested now at Vermont Yankee."
In fact, she and other protesters from the Shut It Down Affinity Group weren't at the Vernon nuclear plant. Instead, they had blocked the entrance to plant owner Entergy's Brattleboro office.
And they were not arrested by Brattleboro police, though they still could face charges.
Entergy appeals PSB decision
January 30,2013, By Susan Smallheer
Rutland Herald Staff Writer, (here)
MONTPELIER -- Entergy Nuclear is appealing to the Vermont Supreme Court the Public Service Board's decision earlier this month dismissing the company's original 2008 re-licensing case.
In a so-called docketing statement filed with the high court on Friday, Entergy took issue with the recent PSB decision that said Entergy was operating without a valid state permit, and had been since March 21, 2012.
"This is an appeal from a contested case before the PSB that involves complicated and novel legal issues under Vermont law and will impact whether the VY Station, which employs more than 600 people and which provides an important source of electrical power to the New England region, should be shut down immediately even though its petition for a new or amended CPG remains pending before the PSB," Entergy's attorneys said in a summary filed Friday with the Vermont Supreme Court.
Entergy Nuclear spokesman James Sinclair declined comment. Entergy has long claimed that as long as it had applied - in 2008 - for a new certificate of public good in a timely manner, until it had a decision from the PSB it could operate Vermont Yankee.
CEO leaving
Vermont Yankee owner
January 27, 2013 8:59 AM, (here)
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) -- The head of the company that owns the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant is stepping down this week.
In honor of (J. Wayne) Leonard's tenure, Entergy is creating a $5 million endowment that it says is to address issues of climate change, poverty and social justice.
State Says Finding Future Yankee Leaks May Be Compromised
01/21/13, 5:44pm, John Dillon
VT Public Radio News, (here)
Vermont Supreme Court hears arguments on VY
Jan 17, 2013, Dave Gram, Associated
Press / Brattleboro Reformer, (here)
Vt. Supreme Court to hear arguments on Vt. Yankee
Jan 16, 2013, updated 6:19 PM
WCAX-TV-3, (here)
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) - In a rare legal proceeding, the state Supreme Court is to hear arguments that the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant is continuing to run in violation of a 2002 order by the Public Service Board.
Vermont Yankee case argued in federal appeals court
Jan 14, 2013 6:38 PM, Associated Press / Burlington Free Press, >(here)
NEW YORK -- A New York federal appeals court has heard arguments but given no indication which way it's leaning in a court case involving Vermont's only nuclear power plant.
... Vermont Law School professor Cheryl Hanna, who was in the courtroom for Monday's hearing, said the state's attorney, prominent constitutional lawyer David Frederick, did the best job Hanna has seen so far of articulating why the state should be able to shut down Vermont Yankee, contending that if Entergy defaults, the state will be stuck with an economic burden.
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Hearings:
Vermont Yankee Certificate of Public Good #7862
Technical Hearings (Rebuttal Case)
In Re: Amended Petition of Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee, LLC, and Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc., for amendment of their Certificate of Public Good and other approvals required under 30 V.SA. § 231(a) for authority to continue after March 21, 2012, operation of the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station, including the storage of spent nuclear fuel
Before the Public Service Board: Location: Public Service Board Hearing Room, Third Floor, People's United Bank Building, 112 State Street, Montpelier, Vermont
Hearings begin at 9:00 am on Monday, 6/17 thru Friday 6/21
and Monday, 6/24 thru Friday 6/28
06-14-2013
Sunset on the nuclear empire?
June 10, 2013 at 23:41:28 PM EDT, by: Sue Prent, Green Mountain Daily
The good news is that four U.S. nuclear reactors have retired so far in 2013. The latest is at San Onofre, California.
The bad news is that even after permanent shutdown, retired nukes leave a very long and dirty trail.
PSB grants Vermont Yankee permit for backup generator
June 6, 2013, by Andrew Stein, vtdigger.org - Vt Journalism Trust
Other views:
Nuclear waste: Trying to move the mountain
June 10, 2013, Editorial, The Boston Globe
... Nationally, the amount of nuclear waste sitting in temporary storage has grown to 70,000 tons, prompting Coakley to join with colleagues from Connecticut, New York, and Vermont to ask the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to come up with fresh ideas for handling the temporary storage problem...
Yucca Mountain still haunts nuclear waste issue
June 7, 2013, By Darius Dixon, Politico.com
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee received more than 2,000 comments on the draft nuclear waste legislation it released in April, and many conveyed a common message: How can we trust the government to handle this issue after the failure of Yucca Mountain?
The comments -- from state governments, environmental organizations, industry groups, attorneys and private citizens -- repeatedly pointed to the Nevada site that Congress selected in 1987 as the nation's sole nuclear repository, only to watch the project run aground amid opposition from the Obama administration and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
Some commenters weren't yet willing to give up on Yucca, while others asked the obvious question: How do we know your new legislation won't be undercut the same way?
What Won't Fix Our Nuclear Waste Issue - Another Government Agency
June 5th 2013, By Hank Campbell, Science 2.0 , Join the revolution
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has been stacked to make sure that nuclear power in America is hindered as much as possible. Without a proper storage policy, nuclear power is barely a blip on America's radar as a solution to creating clean energy.
And the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is being run, for the second time, by a non-physicist who got the job because they were opposed to the solution that decades of scientists agreed was the best method for storage of nuclear waste.
In arguably the biggest bit of politicization of science in modern memory, President Obama replaced Harry Reid's former assistant - who knew nothing about nuclear physics - as head of the NRC with another non-physicist, this one whose claim to fame was writing a book arguing against the Yucca Mountain plan.
Back In Court, Yankee Again Argues Federal Law Trumps State's Authority
June 4, 2013 5:53 pm, By John Dillon, Vermont Public Radio News
Vermont Yankee -- Another Day Another Court Hearing
June 3, 2013, by Sandy Levine, CLF SCOOP, Conservation Law Foundation
On June 4, Judge Reiss of the Federal District Court in Burlington, Vermont will take up the latest lawsuit from Vermont Yankee's owners. Once again, Entergy, the owner and operator of Vermont's tired old nuclear plant, is asking a federal court to give it a free pass.
This latest skirmish involves the building of a back-up diesel generator. Entergy claims the Nuclear Regulatory Commission requires the generator and that Vermont is getting in its way. It needs the Federal Court to stop any Vermont review of the proposal.
Draft Legislation Fails to Provide
Solution for U.S. Stockpile of Nuclear Radioactive Waste
May 26, 2013, by Michael Mariotte, NIRS, in EcoWatch
One hundred national, regional and local environmental and clean energy organizations today submitted comments in stark opposition to drafted legislation on high-level radioactive waste put forth by four members of the Senate Energy Committee.
"This draft legislation is extremely disappointing," said Michael Mariotte, executive director of Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS), which coordinated the comment submission. "It simply attempts to revive rejected policies of the past while moving our nation no closer to a permanent solution for radioactive waste disposal than we are today."
Groups ask Vt. court to affirm PSB rulings on VY
May 25, 2013, By Bob Audette, Brattleboro Reformer Staff
Three organizations fighting for the closure of Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon are asking the Vermont Supreme Court to deny an appeal, filed by the plant's owner, of a pair of decisions rendered by the state's Public Service Board.
"One PSB order confirmed that conditions in prior orders mean what they say and do not provide authority to continue plant operation after March 2012," said Sandy Levine, senior attorney for the Conservation Law Foundation. "In the second order, the PSB denied an Entergy request to change its prior orders. Entergy is now asking the Supreme Court to reverse those orders."
CLF was joined by the New England Coalition and the Vermont Public Interest Research Group in the filing, which was submitted May 20.
Sorrell, attorney generals from New York, Connecticut,
Massachusetts petition Nuclear Regulatory Commission
May 24, 2013 5:45 a.m., by Anne Galloway, vtdigger.org
States say NRC needs to improve
environmental review of radioactive waste storage
May 24, 2013, By Susan Smallheer, in Barre Montpelier Times-Argus
MONTPELIER -- The state of Vermont, along with Massachusetts, New York and Connecticut, wants the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to do more about evaluating the environmental hazards of storing high-level radioactive waste.
Vermont Attorney General Press Release on
Petition to NRC Regarding the Storage of Spent Nuclear Fuel
May 23, 2013, Attorney General William H. Sorrell and the Vermont Department of Public Service, joined by the Attorneys General of Connecticut, New York, and Massachusetts, filed a Petition with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) yesterday calling for a more expansive environmental review of the impacts of storing spent nuclear fuel onsite at nuclear power plants. "Federal law requires that the NRC analyze the environmental dangers of storing spent nuclear fuel at reactors that were not designed for long-term storage," said Attorney General Sorrell.
States to NRC: Better nuclear waste rules needed
May 23, 2013 3:10 PM, Associated Press in Rutland Herald / Businessweek
MONTPELIER -- Vermont, New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut are petitioning the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a more thorough review of issues connected with storage of highly radioactive nuclear waste at plant sites.
Thousands of tons of spent nuclear fuel are piling up at reactors like New York's Indian Point, the Vermont Yankee plant and the Pilgrim nuclear station in Massachusetts, as the federal government's 30-year-old promise to find a permanent waste site remains unfilled.
'Up in the air' Vernon extends Vermont Yankee tax deal
May 23, 2013, By Mike Faher, Brattleboro Reformer Staff
VERNON -- The future of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant remains uncertain, as does Vernon's long-term tax revenue from the facility off Governor Hunt Road.
That's why the Vernon Selectboard has approved yet another one-year extension of an expired tax-stabilization agreement with plant owner Entergy.
The deal keeps the plant's value steady at $300 million. Town officials say there is no chance for reassessment or negotiation of a long-term tax deal until a legal dispute between Entergy and state officials is resolved.
"Who knows right now while everything's still up in the air? There really is no value to the plant when they're fighting to stay open," Selectboard Chairwoman Patty O'Donnell said. "So I think it was really pretty big of (Entergy) to come to us and offer us what last year's assessment was."
Public Service Board officer recommends backup generator permit for Vt Yankee
May 20, 2013, by Andrew Stein, vtdigger.org - Vt Journalism Trust
Almost two weeks before Entergy Corp. and the state of Vermont are set to meet in federal court, a Public Service Board officer recommended giving the owner of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant what it wants: a permit for a backup generator.
On June 4, Entergy is set to argue in U.S. District Court that the state of Vermont is federally preempted from barring the company's application to construct a backup diesel generator at Vermont Yankee.
But, in a turn of events, the hearing officer overseeing the application proposed to the board on Monday that it provide the state permit, known as a certificate of public good.
Parenteau: Don't gut environmental review
May 16, 2013, by Patrick Parenteau, professor of law, Vermont Law School. vtdigger.org / Opinion
Tucked away in the massive Water Resources Development Act of 2013 (S.601) now being considered by the U.S. Senate are provisions that would short-circuit the environmental review and public participation requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act better known as NEPA.
 
Perry nuclear power plant's goldfish owners still unidentified
May 15, 2013, By John Funk, The Cleveland Plain Dealer
In nuke fish mystery, there's only 1,700 suspects -- expired link
May 14, 2013, By Rachel Morgan, rmorgan@timesonline.com
There could be as many as 1,700 suspects -- some wearing yellow protective radiological suits with hoods -- as the investigation continues on who left a pair of goldfish in an underground steam tunnel at an Ohio nuclear power plant.
The goldfish were left swimming in a lemonade pitcher of radioactive water in the tunnel at FirstEnergy's Perry Nuclear Power Plant in Perry, Ohio, about two weeks ago. The fish were found in the plant's protected area, the second-most secure zone of the plant.
Link updated:
Entergy Can't Block Vt.'s $13M Plant Levy, 2nd Circ. Hears
May 08, 2013, 3:23 PM ET, By Daniel Wilson, Law360.com , New York
The state of Vermont on Tuesday hit back at Entergy Corp.'s attempt to block a $13 million annual levy imposed on its Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant, telling the Second Circuit that the levy was a tax the state was allowed to impose without federal interference.
According to the state's brief, the $0.0025-per-kilowatt-hour levy, imposed on all post-July 1965 power plants in the state generating at least 200 megawatts -- which currently only includes the 620-megawatt Vermont Yankee plant -- is a legitimate state tax
with a clear state dispute process available, meaning that under the federal Tax Injunction Act there is no federal jurisdiction to challenge the levy.
"Federal courts long have held that they lack jurisdiction over such challenges to state taxes, and Congress explicitly codified this principle in the TIA," Vermont's brief said.
www.atg.state.vt.us/issues/generating-tax-entergy-litigation/states-second-circuit-brief.php
What happens when VY's cupboard is bare?
Sun May 05, 2013 at 13:30:36 PM EDT, by: Sue Prent, Green Mountain Daily
In the category of "How naive can you get?" Vermont Yankee supporter, Howard Shaffer certainly wins the prize.
Many in the Vermont legislature would like to see imposition of a $40-million reserve fund to restore the Vermont Yankee site to a "greenfield" condition, post-decommissioning, as was promised to the state by Entergy when it purchased the aging facility. But Mr. Shaffer sees absolutely no problem in getting Entergy to pay-up:
Audience members chastise NRC officials at Vermont Yankee hearing
May 1, 2013 12:00 pm, By Kyle Jarvis, Keene Sentinel Staff
NRC hears concerns about Yankee
May 01, 2013, By Susan Smallheer, Staff Writer The Rutland Herald
 The meeting almost didn't happen when it was disrupted by anti-nuclear protesters, members of the Shut It Down Affinity Group. (photo)
Yankee had its supporters and its detractors at the meeting. Many questions focused on the number of spent-fuel assemblies still in Yankee's spent-fuel pool, and why they hadn't been moved to dry-cask storage facilities.
The public turnout was much smaller than in years past, and anti-nuclear activists said it was a result of being stonewalled by federal regulators.
Nina Swaim, an anti-nuclear activist from Sharon, told the NRC that many people were discouraged from attending NRC meetings because they never got answers to their questions.
In fact, NRC staff from both the regional headquarters outside Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., appeared to outnumber members of the public at the meeting, which was also marked by a large police presence.
Raymond Shadis, senior technical advisor for the New England Coalition, said the NRC had "dropped the ball" in following up on the issue of flooded electrical cables at Yankee. He said recent documents from Entergy disclosed in the relicensing case pending before the Public Service Board showed the issue was continuing.
NRC holds Yankee open house in Brattleboro
April 29, 2013 7:35pm, By Adam Sullivan, WCAX-TV-3, Burlington Vermont
Brattleboro Vt -- If you talk to the residents of Brattleboro about Vermont Yankee, you are likely to get a wide range of opinions -- some who want it shut down immediately and others who would like to see Yankee continue to operate for years into the future. Jeffery Dejardins offers a little bit of both. "I feel like it should be kept open but with some stipulations. They should get the dry cask storage off the property. I think that is a pretty risky problem. I don't think it is very safe, " he said.
Entergy asks court to remove Vermont from generator approval process
April 27, 2013, By Bob Audette / Brattleboro Reformer Staff
BRATTLEBORO -- In a filing to the U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont, Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee asked the court to declare the state has no say in whether an emergency generator is installed at the power plant in Vernon.
Engineer Says State Could Face Expensive Clean-up If Vermont Yankee Closes
April 26, 2013, by John Dillon, Vermont Public Radio
A nuclear engineer is warning the Legislature that Vermont Yankee could close before its federal license expires and leave the state with a huge clean-up bill.
But that testimony was disputed by another nuclear expert who said the federal government would step in to help the state.
The House Natural Resources and Energy Committee is considering a bill to require Vermont Yankee to reserve $40 million to restore the Vernon site to its pre-industrial condition.
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NRC to webcast May 2nd public call to close U.S. Fukushima-style reactors
April 25, 2013, Announcement by Beyond Nuclear
On Thursday, May 2, 2013 from 1:00 to 3:00 pm Eastern Time, the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will webcast and telephone conference link its meeting with representatives from communities challenging the continued operation of thirty-one Fukushima-style reactors here in the United States. The groups along with now more than 2,250 co-signers have petitioned the federal agency for the closure of the GE Mark I and Mark II boiling water reactors because of the unreliable containment structures that are vulnerable to catastrophic failure during a serious nuclear accident.
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State not satisfied with NRC's response on VY mishap
April 25, 2013, By Susan Smallheer Staff Writer, The Rutland Herald
MONTPELIER -- Public Service Commissioner Chris Recchia said he received "a nice letter" from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission about concerns he raised last month about incidents at Vermont Yankee during its recent refueling outage, but the letter didn't answer his concerns.
"It's a nice letter, but I guess we'll have to wait for the root cause analysis," said Recchia Wednesday.
Nobel Physicist: Society Should Convert To Natural Gas
April 22, 2013, Jeff McMahon, Contributor, Forbes Magazine
Of all the energy sources in play, natural gas offers the most immediate promise as a clean, abundant fuel that can meet society's needs, including the need to mitigate global warming, Nobel prize winning physicist Carlo Rubbia said in Chicago Friday.
Eight Women Arrested at Valley Nuke Protest
April 20, 2013, by Eesha Williams, The Valley Post
Eight women were arrested for non-violent civil disobedience at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant. Vermont Yankee is three miles from Massachusetts and a stone's throw from New Hampshire. The women who were arrested are all from Massachusetts. Their names, and the dates they were arrested, are: April 15, Priscilla Lynch of Conway and Hattie Nestel of Athol; April 16, Judy Wolters of Northfield and Connie Harvard of Northampton; April 17, Marcia Gagliardi of Athol and Anneke Corbett of Northampton; April 18, Frances Crowe of Northampton and Ellen Graves of West Springfield.
4-18-13actionrelease.doc, 4-17-13actionrelease.doc, 4-16-13actionrelease.doc, 4-15-13actionrelease.doc
Vt. lawmakers hear from nuclear waste critic
April 18, 2013 Updated 5:57 pm, By DAVE GRAM, Associated Press in Ct Post
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) -- A former U.S. Department of Energy official says nuclear plants like Vermont Yankee pose big risks in the operation of their spent fuel pools.
The testimony before a House committee from Robert Alvarez, a senior scholar at the Washington-based Institute for Policy Studies, comes as some lawmakers are urging that Vermont consider a new tax on the highly radioactive nuclear waste being stored at Vermont Yankee.
The NRC is coming to town on April 30th, for their dog and pony show
April 13, 2013, by the Safe and Green Campaign
You can go and ask why VT Yankee got ALL GREEN LIGHTS for their Annual Safety Assessment for the calendar year 2012.
To see a list of 2012 "events" at VT Yankee the NRC may have paid attention to, click here: NRC Open House
SCOV Law: The Nuclear Option
April 11, 2013, By Daniel Richardson, The Supreme Court of Vermont Law Blog:
"An on-going conversation about the practice of law in Vermont, featuring summaries of Vermont Supreme Court decisions, a dollop of lampooning, legal analysis, and a charming aggregation of creative thought."
(....) As you may have heard, Vermont Yankee and its owner, Entergy, are not exactly getting along with the State of Vermont. Last year, Entergy sued the State in federal court and won an injunction that prevented the State or anyone else from shutting down the plant based on the Vermont legislature's vote to shut it down. That decision is on appeal, but the district court's broadly worded injunction remains in place.
This ruling, though, did not relieve Entergy from the obligation to seek a new Certificate of Public Good from the Public Service Board, and Entergy has dutifully applied for the renewal, or as the State calls it, Round 2.
So here is the issue in today's case .....
Alert to Congress: Nuclear evacuation may bog down
April 10, 2013, By JEFF DONN, Associated Press National Writer
A new government report challenges a pillar of planning for disasters at American nuclear power plants, finding that people living beyond the official 10-mile evacuation zone might be so frightened by the prospect of spreading radiation that they would flee of their own accord, clog roads, and delay the escape of others.
For more than 30 years, community readiness has been based on the belief that evacuation planning isn't needed beyond 10 miles from nuclear sites. But the Government Accountability Office report - to be released later Wednesday but obtained in advance by The Associated Press - found that regulators have never properly studied how many people beyond 10 miles would make their own decisions to take flight, prompting what is called a "shadow evacuation."
Northeast Power Output Snaps Longest Winning Streak Since Dec.
April 09, 2013, By Christine Harvey, Bloomberg Business Week
Northeastern nuclear-power generation declined, snapping the longest string of gains since December, after Entergy Corp. cut output to the 651-megawatt Vermont Yankee 1 reactor.
(...) Entergy reduced output to 55 percent of capacity at Vermont Yankee 1, situated about 80 miles (129 kilometers) northwest of Boston, from 98 percent yesterday. Rob Williams, a plant spokesman based in Brattleboro, Vermont, did not immediately respond to a phone call or e-mail.
Gov. Shumlin recommends $770K for Red Cross emergency planning
Money would come from VY's owner
Friday April 05, 2013, By Bob Audette / Brattleboro Reformer Staff
BRATTLEBORO -- On Sept. 10, 2012, Larry Crist, the regional executive of the American Red Cross, Vermont & the New Hampshire Upper Valley, went before the Vermont State Nuclear Advisory Panel during a meeting in Vernon to voice his concerns over what he saw were the shortcomings in the state's radiological emergency response plan.
He told the members of VSNAP more than $727,000 was needed to fund the Red Cross' role in the plan, which includes finding shelter for up to 6,000 people who live in the emergency preparedness zone around Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant, which is located in Vernon.
"Current funding priorities do not adequately address the RERP's largest component with the longest duration -- sheltering and feeding," Crist said at the meeting.
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a little history:
State's nuclear response plan flawed
By Kathryn Casa | © Vermont Guardian, Posted May 17, 2007, (here)
This article was first posted on December 22, 2004, along with a companion piece that outlined much of the internal debate in state government about the lack of ability to respond to an emergency at Vermont Yankee. More than two years later, and the state recently cut funding to the program for the region.
BRATTLEBORO - Vermont's radiological emergency planning has for years been in such disarray that state officials would be unable to monitor radiation fallout resulting from an emergency at Vermont Yankee. Nor could the decontamination center in Bellows Falls adequately protect thousands of southern Vermont residents evacuated there, according to internal state memos and copies of e-mails obtained by the Vermont Guardian.
The 32-year-old reactor "poses the single greatest 'event' threat to Vermont," according to a May 2004 e-mail from Larry Crist, director of the Health Department's Health Protection Division, to Albie Lewis, head of Vermont Emergency Management - a threat that is heightened by a proposed power increase at the plant, he wrote.
"To be inadequately prepared because we did not have sufficient resources is going to be considered a crime should an event actually occur," Crist wrote. (more)
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* * * UPDATE AT 2000 EDT ON 03/28/13 FROM BOB VITA TO S. SANDIN * * *
"This is an update to NRC Event No. 48847 reported on 3/24/13 at 1316 [EDT].
"On 3/27/2013 the extent of condition review identified two additional possible water intrusion paths from the outside to the switchgear rooms.
"Compensatory measures were implemented for these paths in accordance with plant procedures. Efforts to seal these paths are in progress."
This is an on-going extent of condition assessment. The licensee will inform the NRC Resident Inspector and the Vermont State Liaison. Notified R1DO (Krohn).
10 months earlier,
VERMONT YANKEE - MISSING FLOODING BARRIER
INSIDE EAST SWITCHGEAR ROOM
Submitted by NUCBIZ on May 25, 2012 - 15:32 -- Professional Reactor Operators Society
On 5/24/12, it was identified that a conduit flood seal was missing between an outside manhole and the interior of the switchgear rooms. The missing flood seal compromised the interior flooding design for both East and West Switchgear Rooms. Repairs were made by procuring and installing a 4" flood seal so that the flood path has been plugged. The conduit plug seal is now functional.
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The event is being reported under 10CFR 50.72(b)(3)(v) as internal flooding of both Switchgear Rooms could possibly affect (a.)safe shutdown, (b.)removal of decay heat, (c.)control of release of radioactive material and (d.)mitigating an accident.
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NRC Notified By: THOMAS ROBERTS
Emergency Class: NON EMERGENCY
10 CFR Section:
50.72(b)(3)(v)(A) - POT UNABLE TO SAFE SD
50.72(b)(3)(v)(B) - POT RHR INOP
50.72(b)(3)(v)(C) - POT UNCNTRL RAD REL
50.72(b)(3)(v)(D) - ACCIDENT MITIGATION
VT Supreme Court denies New England Coalition's petition to close VY
March 28, 2013, by Andrew Stein, vtdigger.org - Vt Journalism Trust
The Vermont Supreme Court on Monday dismissed the New England Coalition's request to shut down the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.
The anti-nuclear coalition took advantage of a rarely used statute in early December, in its petition asking the Supreme Court to enforce a Public Service Board (PSB) order against Vermont Yankee operator Entergy Corp.
Vermont Supreme Court dismisses Yankee suit
March 27, 2013, By Susan Smallheer, Staff Writer, The Rutland Herald
MONTPELIER - The Vermont Supreme Court has dismissed a petition by the New England Coalition to shut down the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant.
The high court, in a decision dated Monday, said the anti-nuclear group hadn't exhausted its administrative options, and also said the issue raised by the coalition was better addressed in a parallel case filed by Entergy Nuclear in January. That case is pending before the Vermont Supreme Court.
VT Supreme Court shoots down request to close Yankee
March 26, 2013, By Bob Audette, The Brattleboro Reformer
BRATTLEBORO - Late Monday, the Vermont Supreme Court denied a petition to shut down Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.
The petition was submitted by the New England Coalition, which contended Entergy, the owner of Yankee, had violated the sales order authorizing Entergy to buy the plant in 2002. NEC filed the petition in December, contending a condition of the sales order stipulates Entergy have a new certificate of public good to continue operating the plant past March 21, 2012.
Entergy has an application before the Public Service Board for a new CPG, but the process was delayed due to a legislative action that resulted in a lawsuit filed by Entergy against the state. In January 2012, a federal judge ruled the state Legislature had trespassed into federal jurisdiction when it created legislation giving itself the power to forbid the PSB from issuing a certificate of public good.
The Public Service Board is taking testimony and evidence and is expected to make its decision sometime in August. In the meantime, the PSB said even though Entergy is in violation of the sales order, it can continue to operate the plant under the expired certificate.
In its decision, the Vermont Supreme Court ruled that NEC had failed to prove it had exhausted its administrative remedies and had not other legal remedy to call for the closure of Yankee.
Link restored
Vermont Yankee's NRC Event Notification Report for March 24, 2013
SWITCHGEAR ROOM DEGRADED FLOOD SEALS
"On 3/23/13 it was identified that a conduit flood seal between an outside manhole and the switchgear rooms is displaced. This degraded flood seal compromises the flooding design of both the East and West Switchgear Rooms.
"Compensatory measures were implemented for the flood seal in accordance with the plants barrier control process. Repairs of the seal are in progress."
Per the licensee these switchgear rooms contain both normal and safety related 4kV and 480 V electrical boards. Compensatory measures implemented include: Plant Maintenance personnel will take actions to seal any leak within 24 hours of a flooding event and also provide sump pumps to remove any water that has leaked in.
The licensee notified the NRC Resident Inspector and the Vermont State Liaison."
NRC postpones safety improvement at Mark 1 reactors, like VY
March 23, 2013, By Susan Smallheer, Staff Writer, The Rutland Herald
BRATTLEBORO - The Nuclear Regulatory Commission voted earlier this week to push back safety improvements for the General Electric-designed Mark 1 and 2 nuclear reactors, recommendations made by their own staff after the nuclear disaster in Fukushima, Japan, two years ago.
The five-member commission was heavily lobbied by the nuclear industry to not adopt the recommendation for filters on reactor vents on the Mark 1 and 2 boiling water reactors, saying they were an expensive response that wouldn't guarantee additional protection in the event of a nuclear emergency. The filters were estimated to cost between $15 to $60 million per reactor.
Watchdogs say Entergy not qualified to operate reactors
March 21, 2013, NEWS RELEASE, Deb Katz, Citizens Awareness Network, Tim Judson, Citizens Awareness Network,
Jessica Azulay, Alliance for a Green Economy, Mary Lampert, Pilgrim Watch
It's not often that anti-nuclear activists concern themselves with a nuclear company's financial troubles. But in the case of Entergy Nuclear Operations, which has seen consecutive negative financial reports that some of its reactors are losing money, activists are getting involved, pointing to a dangerous conflict between financial
viability and nuclear safety. Groups in three states are calling on the Nuclear Regulator Commission (NRC) to enforce its regulations, which require nuclear companies to be "financially qualified" to operate and maintain nuclear reactors safely. The groups filed a petition with the NRC this morning (March.18.2013) calling on the agency to shut down two Entergy-owned atomic reactors in the Northeast, and investigate a third, because the company's financial troubles compromise nuclear safety.
Full text of the 2.206 Petition to NRC:,
http://allianceforagreeneconomy.org/sites/default/files/2206_FitzPatrick-Pilgrim-VY.pdf, 15pp
Vermont Yankee exhaust fans fail during ventilation test
March 21, 2013, By Bob Audette, Brattleboro Reformer
During testing of a ventilation system at Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon exhaust fans failed to come on, resulting in an overpressure of the reactor building.
Rob Williams, spokesman for Yankee, said technicians had started up the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system in the reactor building, which normally is negatively pressured. When the exhaust fans failed to kick on, a six-by-ten-foot aluminum "blowout" panel detached from the reactor building and landed on the roof of the plant's turbine building.
Memo from Uldis Vanags State Nuclear Engineer, to the Vt. State Nuclear Advisory Panel:
VSNAP on Reactor Building Blowout Panel Dislodge 3202013.pdf
Request for Additional Information for NRC Staff Evaluation of Licensee's
Financial Qualification in accordance with 10 CFR 50.33 Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
Vermont Yankee N.P.S. Docket No. 50-271
March 20, 2013, NRC request for additional information, No. ml13077a206.pdf
p-2- Vermont Yankee Impairment
Vermont Yankee's quarterly 10-Q filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on November 6, 2012, which was posted on the SEC's Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval (EDGAR) system (and captured in the ADAMS at Accession no. ML 13072A156) stated the following:
Impairment
Because of the uncertainty regarding the continued operation of Vermont Yankee, Entergy has tested the recoverability of the plant and related assets each quarter since the first quarter 2010. The determination of recoverability is based on the probability-weighted undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated by the plant and related assets. Projected net cash flows primarily depend on the status of the pending legal and state regulatory matters, as well as projections of future revenues and expenses over the remaining life of the plant.
Prior to the first quarter 2012, the probability-weighted undiscounted net cash flows exceeded the carrying value of the Vermont Yankee plant and related assets. The decline, however, in the overall energy market and the projected forward prices of
power as of March 31, 2012, which are significant inputs in the determination of net cash flows, resulted in the probability-weighted undiscounted future cash flows being less than the asset group's carrying value. Entergy
performed a fair value analysis based on the income approach, a discounted cash flow method, to determine the amount of impairment. The estimated fair value of the plant and related assets at March 31,2012 was $162.0 million,
while the carrying value was $517.5 million. Therefore, the assets were written down to their fair value and an impairment charge of $355.5 million ($223.5 million after-tax) was recognized.
Because an impairment is an indication that there has been a change in the cashflow and/or revenues generated by Vermont Yankee as determined by the company through periodic
assessments, the NRC staff requires further information to insure that the licensee is meeting NRC requirements for financial qualifications.
RAl-1
Please provide updated proformas for the operations and maintenance and cashflow for Vermont Yankee for the period of 2013-2018.
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Board grants NEC's request to intervene in VY diesel case
March 18, 2013, by Bob Audette, The Brattleboro Reformer
BRATTLEBORO -- The New England Coalition and the Vermont Public Interest Research Group were granted intervener status in Entergy's petition to install a new diesel generator at its Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon.
The permission was granted by Lars Bang-Jensen, the hearing officer appointed by the Vermont Public Service Board to oversee the process.
Entergy is requesting a certificate of public good to install the generator because it is losing its ability to use the Vernon Dam as a backup source of power.
An inside view :
State wraps up hearings for Vermont Yankee
Shadis permitted to testify after challenge from Entergy lawyers
Wednesday, March 13, 2013, By Olga Peters, The Commons issue #194
BRATTLEBORO -- Ten days of technical hearings before the Public Service Board on the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant wrapped up the final week of February.
A slightly road-weary Raymond Shadis, consulting advisor and expert witness for the anti-nuclear New England Coalition, provided his views on the the fight over Vermont Yankee's state-awarded Certificate of Public Good.
Fukushima vigil held at Yankee as plant shuts down for refueling
March 11, 2013, By Susan Smallheer Staff Writer, The Rutland Herald
VERNON - A group of more than 40 anti-nuclear activists held a quiet vigil outside the gates of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant Sunday morning, in remembrance of the Fukushima nuclear disaster two years ago.
About 12 hours earlier, the reactor had shut down for its regular refueling and maintenance outage, but from the outside, there were few clues that an extra workforce Entergy Nuclear says is in the hundreds were at work. In 2011, the company said it spent $65 million on new nuclear fuel alone for Yankee as part of a $100 million outage.
Entergy Nuclear spokesman Robert Williams sent out a press release early Sunday afternoon announcing the shutdown, saying the plant left the New England power grid at about 10 p.m. Saturday. The plant has been at reduced power for a couple of weeks, preparing for the shutdown.
NRC coloring book :
NRC deems Vermont Yankee 'green'
March 7, 2013, By Susan Smallheer Staff Writer, The Rutland Herald
BRATTLEBORO - Apologies to Kermit the Frog, but it's easy being green at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.
For the sixth or seventh year in a row, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued its annual assessment of Vermont's only nuclear power plant, and it was green. In NRC parlance, green is good.
In 2011, the NRC gave Entergy Nuclear a green finding for the 2010 year, the year that the plant coped with extensive leaks of radioactive tritium into the groundwater at the plant.
As you read 'Namie,' think 'Brattleboro'
We could well be allowing a future Fukushima to unfold right here.
March 6, 2013, By Ann Darling, The Commons issue #193
This unit was refueling at the time of the earthquake - just as Vermont Yankee is about to do - and so the spent fuel in the pool was extremely "hot." If it "goes," it could unleash high levels of radioactive isotopes worldwide.
NRC approves inspection changes at Yankee
March 05, 2013, By Susan Smallheer, Staff Writer, The Rutland Herald
BRATTLEBORO -- Federal regulators have approved yet another change in Entergy Nuclear's inspections of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant.
In the most recent change approved by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Entergy was given permission to change the way it performs tests of the reactor head for seal leaks during its upcoming refueling outage.
.... Yankee is already starting the "coasting down" process of reducing power output in preparation for shutting down for its regularly scheduled refueling outage. The plant was listed at 91 percent power Monday morning with the NRC.
Vermont Yankee Thermal Pollution
State Uses CRWC Reports in VT Yankee Case
March 1, 2013, from the Connecticut River Watershed Council
For over a year CRWC has been working with expert scientists to debunk Entergy's case for dumping hot water into the CT River. Now, we're gaining steam.
CRWC's expert reports have been presented to all the decision makers in Vermont, including the Agency of Natural Resources and the Public Service Board, who will decide later this year whether Entergy should get a new license to operate. Meanwhile, Entergy is fighting tooth and nail to get these reports thrown out.
Thanks to the terrific legal support provided by the Vermont Natural Resources Council & VT Law School, the reports have been admitted into the Public Service Board proceeding as sound scientific evidence.
Vermont To Hire For Clean Water Act Analysis at Vermont Yankee
February 28, 2013, posted by cgrotke, iBrattleboro.com , Details: vermontbidsystem
Public Service Board tries to wrap up Vt.Yankee hearings
February 26, 2013 5:03 PM EST, By Alexei Rubenstein, WCAX-TV-3 News
MONTPELIER, Vt. - The Vermont Public Service Board is trying to wrap up more than two weeks of hearings on whether to grant Vermont Yankee a permit to continue operating.
The Montpelier hearings are identical to ones that started four years ago but were scuttled after the Legislature voted to shut the plant down and triggered an avalanche of litigation.
Vt. panel rejects some of VY critic's evidence
02/25/2013 4:56 PM, Associated Press / Boston Globe
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) -- The Vermont Public Service Board says it will consider some, but not all, of a prominent nuclear critic's testimony as it weighs whether to give the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant a new state permit.
Plant owner Entergy Corp.'s lawyers objected to any testimony from Raymond Shadis of the anti-nuclear group New England Coalition. In the end, the board said it would hear some of the points Shadis wanted to make, but not his testimony on the plant's effects on fish in the Connecticut River.
VY reactor report Feb.16 @ 98%, Feb.17 @ 97%,
Feb.20 @ 96%, Feb.23 @ 95%,
Feb.26 @ 94%,
Mar.01 @ 93%, Mar.04 @ 91%
Vermont Yankee plans refueling with eye on 20 more years
Nuke plant spokesman: 'Our assumption is we're operating until 2032'
Feb 20, 2013, Terri Hallenbeck, Free Press Staff Writer
UBS downgrades Entergy Corporation stock, urges investors to sell
February 20, 2013, by Andrew Stein, vtdigger.org and Vt Journalism Trust
Swiss financial services firm UBS Securities downgraded Entergy Corporation's stock from "neutral" to "sell."
Black is white, bad is good,
and a lousy maintenance record is "not relevant"
February 16, 2013, by: jvwalt, Green Mountain Daily, (here)
Entergy argues Vt. Yankee mishaps don't count
February 16, 2013, By Susan Smallheer, Rutland Herald Staff writer
MONTPELIER -- A top executive with Entergy Nuclear tried to convince a skeptical Public Service Board on Friday that problems at the Vermont Yankee plant during the 10 years of Entergy ownership were not relevant to whether the state should allow the plant to run for another 20 years.
T. Michael Twomey, vice president for external affairs for Entergy Wholesale Corp. of White Plains, N.Y., testified for much of the day Friday, the fifth day of hearings on Entergy's request for a new state certificate of public good to operate Vermont Yankee for 20 more years.
Twomey and his attorney Robert Juman, of the New York law firm of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, tried to deflect a long list of problems at the Vernon reactor in the 10 years Entergy has owned the plant. Juman raised objection after objection, claiming information about the 2007 and 2008 partial collapse of Yankee's cooling towers was not relevant, and that neither were other issues at the plant, including the company's response to the tritium leak there in 2010.
But James Volz, chairman of the Public Service Board, allowed the questions from Robert C. Kirsch, an attorney with the Boston law firm of Wilmer Hale, hired by the state to help it with the case and to cope with Entergy's four law firms. Volz said he was taking Entergy's objections under advisement.
AP/Toby Talbot
posted 2-12-13 @ 10:05 PM
From VYDA: IMPORTANT PSB hearing TODAY, Feb 13.
As a result of the great public interest we stirred for the last hearings when the public could testify, the PSB moved the technical hearings to Barre with the assumption that folks would show up in droves. Well, I just got a call from Clay Turnbull of the New England Coalition that the hearing was empty except for Entergy and those testifying on our behalf. Apparently, the PSB was a bit disappointed and is talking about moving the hearings back to their TINY room in Montpelier if the public does not show up tomorrow.
SOOOOO --- if you can, get to the hearing tomorrow please do. It starts at 9:30 am and is on the 2nd Floor of Alumni Hall, Barre Municipal Auditorium, 20 Auditorium Hill, Barre, Vermont. Look below for the rest of the hearing times and dates. -- Thanks, Debra Stoleroff
In Re: Amended Petition of Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee, LLC, and Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc., for amendment of their Certificate of Public Good and other approvals required under 30 V.SA. § 231(a) for authority to continue after March 21, 2012, operation of the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station, including the storage of spent nuclear fuel
Public Service Board, Location: 2nd Floor of Alumni Hall, Barre Municipal Auditorium,
20 Auditorium Hill, Barre, Vermont
Monday, Feb. 11 - 9:30 am Tuesday, Feb 12 - 9:30 am Wednesday, Feb. 13 - 9:30 am
Public Service Board moved hearings back to Montpelier, Hearing Room,
3rd Floor, People's United Bank Building, 112 State Street, Montpelier, VT
Thursday, Feb. 14 - 1:00 pm Friday, Feb. 15 - 9:30 am Tuesday, Feb. 19 - 9:30 am
Wednesday, Feb 20 - 9:30 am Thursday, Feb. 21 - 1:00 pm Friday, Feb. 22 - 9:30 am
Public Service Board begins Vt Yankee hearings
February 12, 2013, By Dave Gram, The Associated Press, Rutland Herald
The Public Service Board routinely considers the economic impact of Vermont's utilities, but lawyers for the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant argued Monday that federal laws that bar the board from considering safety issues would also apply to any economic issues that might arise if there were an accident at the Vernon reactor.
Entergy responds to DPS filing
February 11, 2013 7:33 AM, By Bob Audette, Brattleboro Reformer Staff
BRATTLEBORO -- In its response to a filing by the Department of Public Service -- in which the department called statements made by Entergy "demonstrably false" -- Entergy claims DPS itself is making inconsistent statements.
"DPS' response sets forth a position ... that directly contradicts its earlier position without acknowledging or explaining its inconsistency," wrote attorneys for Entergy, which owns and operates Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon.
In particular, noted Entergy, in previous filings to the Vermont Public Service Board, both DPS and the Vermont Attorney General's Office have stated that absent a current certificate of public good, Entergy can continue to operate Yankee under the certificate that expired on March 21, 2012.
In a filing submitted on Jan. 25, DPS "now asserts the opposite position," wrote Entergy's attorneys.
Vermont bill would hold nuke to shutdown promise
Feb 07, 2013 6:40 PM update by Dave Gram, Associated Press, Boston Globe
MONTPELIER -- Vermont lawmakers are looking to firm up a promise made by the owner of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant that it would take extra steps to clean up the plant's Vernon site after it shuts down.
Entergy Corp. promised when it bought Vermont Yankee in 2002 that it would take steps beyond the minimum required by the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission to restore the Vermont Yankee site to a green field after electricity is no longer being made there.
DPS says Entergy is not to be trusted
February 7, 2013, By Bob Audette, Brattleboro Reformer Staff
BRATTLEBORO -- Entergy is not to be trusted and should not be given permission to continue its operation of Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon.
That's the gist of a document submitted by the Vermont Department of Public Service to the Vermont Public Service Board, which is considering whether Entergy should receive a certificate of public good that would allow it to run Yankee for another 20 years.
"One of the criteria the board has traditionally applied to a business that wants a certificate of public good has been, is this company a fair business partner for the state and the customers to be dealing with?" Geoffrey Commons, the director of public advocacy for DPS, told the Reformer. "The department's position is Entergy has not demonstrated that they should be issued a certificate of public good. They don't meet the criteria."
Entergy wants Vermont Supreme Court to decide fate of Vermont Yankee
February 5, 2013, by Andrew Stein, vtdigger.org and Vt Journalism Trust
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" We see Vermont Yankee as the most tenuously positioned plant "
February 4, 2013, UBS Investment Research, 14 pages also (here)
(p.2) , We continue to believe Entergy is likely to decommission at least one of its units, such as Vermont Yankee, in 2013.
We anticipate the process of decommissioning will become of greater importance to Entergy shareholders, as concerns around shareholder-financed contributions to decommissioning funds
continue to garner concern. Mgmt attempted to allay these concerns, citing the ability to use SAFSTOR configurations at its plants to allow funds to accrue for
up to 50 years in order build adequate funds, .....
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NEC Moves PSB to Halt Entergy Vermont Yankee Proceedings
posted February 2, 2013 1:33 PM, by New England Coalition
New England Coalition (NEC) today filed an extraordinary motion 2013-1-31_NEC_Motion_to_Halt(7862) asking the Vermont Public Service Board (Board) to stay proceedings on Entergy Corporation's renewed application for a 20-year extension of state permission to operate its Vermont Yankee Nuclear Station in Vernon.
NEC says the Board should take no further action and receive no further evidence on the renewed application until the state's Supreme Court rules on an appeal being filed by Entergy that could potentially render moot or cancel out current proceedings.
Entergy's appeal would have the Supreme Court negate Board orders that voided nearly identical proceedings (which were suspended in 2009 pending a legislative vote on the matter) and require the Board to issue a Certificate of Public Good (CPG) (permission to operate for 20 additional years) without further proceedings.
Safe and Green letter asking Gov. Shumlin not to approve state evacuation plan
Wednesday January 30, 2013, from the Safe and Green Campaign
People's Payment rally and gate-blocking at Entergy HQ
January 30, 2013, News Release from Shut It Down Affinity Group, at vtdigger.org
BRATTLEBORO, Vermont -- Rain, fog, and ice did not hamper the enthusiasm of the Shut It Down Affinity group and their supporters Tuesday as they celebrated The People's Payment addressing more than $3,000 in fines and fees assessed for a November 2012 conviction of trespass at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon.
More than 50 people congregated at foggy, icy Wells Fountain with signs, banners, and noisemakers to celebrate the widespread community in four states that spontaneously contributed sufficient funds to address the fines of six women convicted in November for blocking the power plant gate in August 2011.
Donors pay court-ordered fines for Vermont Yankee protesters
January 23, 2013, By Mike Faher, Brattleboro Reformer Staff
BRATTLEBORO -- When six Vermont Yankee nuclear plant protesters were convicted of trespassing in November, they vowed that they would not pay a combined $3,264 in fines and court costs.
As it turns out, the court will get its money anyway.
The Shut It Down Affinity Group has announced that "spontaneous" donations from supporters will cover the full amount. The group plans to deliver the cash to the court clerk Jan. 30 during a rally - planned for noon - in Brattleboro.
The event will happen at Wells Fountain near the courthouse and is expected to include speakers, a brass band and a singing group called "The Raging Grannies." The gathering is billed as "a celebration and rally highlighting the community that wants to shut down Vermont Yankee."
Anti-nuclear group petitions the Vermont Supreme Court
to shut down Vermont Yankee
Thursday, January 17, 2013, by Andrew Stein, vtdigger.org and Vt Journalism Trust
Vermont Yankee's continued operation was the focus of yet another court hearing this week. On Wednesday, the Brattleboro-based New England Coalition petitioned the Vermont Supreme Court to shut down the nuclear power plant. The anti-nuclear group argued that Entergy Corp. has operated the plant illegally, i.e. without a license, since March, and under an arcane legal precedent the coalition says the Vermont Supreme Court can order an injunction to shut down the plant.
Entergy Asks Court To Dismiss Attempt To Shut Down Yankee
Wednesday, 01/16/13, 5:50pm, by John Dillon, VT Public Radio News
(....) Retired Justice Denise Johnson, who was hearing this case, interrupted Simon at that point.
"But they didn't order them to shutdown, and that sort of concerns me," she said.
Johnson peppered both sides with questions. She asked Simon why the coalition brought this case to the Supreme Court, and not the Public Service Board, which covers utility issues.
"Are you saying the Public Service Board doesn't have authority to issue this order?" she asked.
Simon said the coalition went to the Supreme Court to get a definitive answer on whether Yankee can operate.
It's likely the high court will rule fairly quickly on Entergy's motion to dismiss.
The Dicey Economics of Hosting a Nuclear Plant
Jan 16, 2013 by Sandy Levine, CLF SCOOP, Conservation Law Foundation
This past week has shown Vermont first-hand the high cost of nuclear power. Hosting a plant in your state is clearly a high-stakes bargain.
Appellate judges hear Vermont Yankee case
January 15, 2013, By Andrew Stein, vtdigger.org and Vt Journalism Trust
Vermont Yankee closure centers on financial concerns not safety, state argues
Jan 14, 2013 02:49:51 PM, By ADRIENNE LAFRANCE / Digital First Media / Brattleboro Reformer
NEW YORK CITY -- A lawyer for the Vermont Attorney General argued in a Manhattan federal appeals court Monday that financial concerns were the driving force in the state Legislature's closure of Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant.
Federal Court Rebuffs Entergy's Request to Muzzle Opponents
Jan. 9, 2013 6:08 p.m., New England Coalition, Brattleboro, VT
Vermont Federal District Court Judge Murtha denied Entergy's motion for an injunction that would have barred New England Coalition from bringing an enforcement request to the Vermont Supreme Court. NEC is requesting VT Supreme Court enforcement of a condition in a 2002 Vermont Public Service Board Order requiring Entergy Vermont Yankee to have a new Certificate of Public Good before operating beyond 2012. Please see the following ORDER which nicely lays out an abbreviated history of New England Coalition's request for enforcement and the Coalition's successful arguments fending off Entergy's attempt to block bringing the matter to Vermont's highest court.
"We are pleased that the District Court has ruled that NEC may continue to seek enforcement of the Public Service Board's Orders in the Vermont Supreme Court" said Jared Margolis, NEC's attorney in these proceedings. This latest attempt by Entergy to deny the ability of the State to enforce its orders is indicative of the lengths Entergy will go to avoid having to comply with the commitments it has made to Vermont, and NEC is optimistic that the Vermont Supreme Court will take appropriate action and enjoin further operation of the plant pending the Board's review of Entergy's CPG application."
"Federal courts may enjoin state courts from acting only in the most extreme and rare circumstances" said NEC advisor, Raymond Shadis " but attempting to stop citizen's from asking for a court's consideration of an issue is an almost unheard of insult to citizens and state's rights. We hope this federal rebuff will serve Entergy as an innnoculation of anti-arrogance serum, but we suspect that booster shots will be needed before Vermont Yankee is history and we can move to the details of decommissioning."
--- END ---
Yankee's financial prospects seen grim
January 06, 2013, By Susan Smallheer, Rutland Herald Staff Writer
BRATTLEBORO -- A financial analyst who follows the nuclear industry said that while financial information on the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant indicates it is not making money for owner Entergy Nuclear, the company may be leery of shutting the 41-year-old reactor down because it would set a dangerous political precedent.
Julien Dumoulin-Smith of UBS Securities LLC said likewise that Entergy may have calculated that shutting it down would cost more than keeping it running.
The battle over the fate of Vermont Yankee
January 5, 2013, By Bob Audette, Brattleboro Reformer Staff
PSB reaffirms Vermont Yankee operating in violation of state orders
January 3, 2013, By Bob Audette, Brattleboro Reformer Staff
BRATTLEBORO -- In an order filed on Dec. 27, the Vermont Public Service Board reaffirmed its conclusion that Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant is operating in violation of requirements in existing orders and certificates of public good.
"Condition 8, of the Docket 6545 Order, which prohibits operation of the VY Station after March 21, 2012, absent Board approval, remains in effect," wrote the board. "The same is true of the Board's Order and CPG in Docket 7082 (in which the Board approved construction of a dry fuel storage facility), both of which contain a similar prohibition against operation."
Vermont Yankee -- Worth More Dead than Alive
Jan 2, 2013 by Sandy Levine, CLF SCOOP, Conservation Law Foundation
The financial world is waking up to what a drag Vermont Yankee really is. The tired, old and leaking nuclear plant in Vermont is not carrying its weight. Financial analysts report that Vermont Yankee is economically vulnerable and a retirement announcement would boost stock prices for its parent, Entergy.
Green Mtn Daily's 2013
"... mostly optimistic if highly unlikely look forward to the New Year:"
by: GMD, Tue Jan 01, 2013 at 00:00:00 AM EST
"The Supreme Court of Vermont and the Public Service Board simultaneously, and for different reasons, issue rulings declaring that Entergy Louisiana's Yankee nuclear power plant's violations of contracts and permits require its immediate shutdown. State fire marshals, HazMat teams and the Vermont Guard surround the plant, letting through only employees needed to shut down operations."
Vermont Yankee N.P.S. - Request for Additional Information Regarding Review of Physical Security Plan, Training and Qualification Plan, and Safeguards Contingency Plan, Revision 12
ADAMS Accession No.: ML1235200448.pdf , Dec 31, 2012
Vermont Yankee N.P.S. - Issuance of Amendment to Renewed Facility Operating License
Re: Change to Inspection Frequency for Steam Dryer (TAC NO. ME7733)
ADAMS Accession No.: ML12338A236.pdf , Dec 20, 2012
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http://www.leg.state.vt.us/jfo/envy/6545 MOU.pdf, Mar.04.2002
12. Board Approval of Operating License Renewal: The signatories to this MOU agree
that any order issued by the Board granting approval of the sale of VYNPS to ENVY and
any Certificate of Public Good ("CPG") issued by the Board to ENVY and ENO will
authorize operation of the VYNPS only until March 21, 2012 and thereafter will
authorize ENVY and ENO only to decommission the VYNPS. Any such Board order
approving the sale shall be so conditioned, and any Board order issuing a CPG to ENVY
and ENO shall provide that operation of VYNPS beyond March 21, 2012 shall be
allowed only if application for renewal of authority under the CPG to operate the VYNPS
is made and granted. Each of VYNPC, CVPS, GMP, ENVY and ENO expressly and
irrevocably agrees: (a) that the Board has jurisdiction under current law to grant or deny
approval of operation of the VYNPS beyond March 21, 2012 and (b) to waive any claim
each may have that federal law preempts the jurisdiction of the Board to take the actions
and impose the conditions agreed upon in this paragraph to renew, amend or extend the
ENVY CPG and ENO CPG to allow operation of the VYNPS after March 21, 2012, or to
decline to so renew, amend or extend.
16. Additional Provisions: 8. The parties agree that this Memorandum of Understanding shall not be construed
by any party or tribunal as having precedential impact on any future proceeding
involving the parties, except as necessary to implement this Memorandum of
Understanding or to enforce an order of the Board resulting from this
Memorandum of Understanding.
12-18-2012
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UPDATED: Entergy files motion against New England Coalition in state lawsuit
December 12, 2012 9:45 pm, by Andrew Stein, vtdigger.org and Vt Journalism Trust
The Public Service Department asked the Vermont Supreme Court on Monday to deny the New England Coalition's request to halt Vermont Yankee nuclear plant's continued operation until the plant has a new or amended certificate of public good.
The department's request comes on the same day that Vermont Yankee's operator, Entergy, filed a motion against the state in federal district court. The motion calls for a mandated withdrawal of the coalition's complaint.
What's interesting about the motion is that it's not filed against the anti-nuclear coalition; it's filed against Gov. Peter Shumlin, Attorney General Bill Sorrell and the Public Service Board.
( Clarification: The Entergy motion was filed under the same docket number as the federal court decision made against the state last March. It was not a new case as the original headline suggested.)
forensic oratory in Feb.
Public Service Department asks court to deny
New England Coalition's complaint against Vermont Yankee
December 11, 2012, By VermontBiz.com - Vermont Business Magazine
... Acting PSD Commissioner Christopher Recchia said "While the Public Service Department appreciates NEC's committed advocacy in deciding to file a complaint with the Vermont Supreme Court seeking to force Entergy to shut down Vermont Yankee immediately, the Department is focused on the pending Public Service Board proceeding set for hearings in February."
The Department, along with NEC and other parties, has filed testimony with the Public Service Board opposing Entergy's request for a new Certificate of Public Good. "The Department has asked the Supreme Court to deny NEC's request for relief because we believe the question of continued operation of Vermont Yankee is squarely before the Board and should be decided through the ongoing proceedings," Recchia added.
New England grid can function without Vermont Yankee reactor
December 10, 2012, By Scott DiSavino, Reuters / utilities-energy
Entergy Corp's Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant is no longer needed to maintain power reliability in New England because local electric companies have bolstered the region's transmission infrastructure, the region's power grid said.
ISO New England, which operates the power grid for the six New England states, told Reuters it has determined the capacity from Vermont Yankee is not needed to support grid reliability in the 2013-2016 timeframe.
Administration reviews complaint against Entergy
December 06, 2012, by Andrew Stein, vtdigger.org and Vt Journalism Trust
The Shumlin administration said on Thursday that it is reviewing what role, if any, it might play in a complaint filed in Vermont Supreme Court against Entergy, the Louisiana-based owner of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.
On Tuesday, the Brattleboro-based New England Coalition requested that the state's highest court issue an injunction prohibiting Vermont Yankee from continuing to operate until it is issued a new certificate of public good or an amended permit by the state's Public Service Board, a quasi judicial body that regulates utilities.
(.......) the governor and his staff made it clear at a Thursday press conference that they support the Public Service Board's decision last week.
Entergy says response coming
December 06, 2012, The Rutland Herald
BRATTLEBORO -- Entergy Nuclear said Wednesday it was evaluating the latest filing by the New England Coalition to the Vermont Supreme Court, seeking to shut down the Vernon reactor until it has a state certificate of public good from the Public Service Board.
"Vermont Yankee is evaluating the NEC filing and will be responding in accordance with legal rules and procedures," said Entergy Nuclear spokesman James Sinclair.
... Entergy's argument - that it was entitled to operate while a new permit was considered - was rejected earlier this year by the PSB.
2012-12-04-NEC-FILING-VT-SUPREME-COURT-COMPLAINT-FOR-INJUNCTIVE-RELIEF.pdf
10 Pages 489 KB (496,891 bytes)
New England Coalition asks state's high court to shut down Yankee
December 05, 2012, By Susan Smallheer, The Rutland Herald
MONTPELIER -- Armed with a ruling last week from the Public Service Board that was sharply critical of Entergy Nuclear and its ongoing decision to keep Vermont Yankee running without a new state permit, an anti-nuclear group has petitioned the Vermont Supreme Court to shut the plant down.
NEC asks Vt. Supreme Court to shutdown VY
Wednesday December 5, 2012, By Bob Audette, Brattleboro Reformer Staff
BRATTLEBORO -- Because of Entergy's "disobedience and noncompliance," the Vermont Supreme Court should order an immediate shutdown of Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon.
Thus states a motion filed by the New England Coalition late Tuesday afternoon, which claims because Entergy doesn't have a current certificate of public good for its power plant, it shouldn't be allowed to continue operating it for the time being.
Until the Vermont Public Service Board has rendered a decision on whether to issue a new CPG, states the motion, Entergy should be ordered to "cease and desist."
Because Entergy is currently in violation of agreements made when it purchased the plant, said Jared Margolis, NEC's legal counsel, it is disregarding the board's authority over the plant's continued operation.
"Right now Entergy is operating in violation of the board," said Margolis. "If we went to the board and asked it to issue an injunction, why would Entergy listen to the board? Entergy has shown it is not willing to abide by the board's orders."
The board would have to go to the Supreme Court to enforce its order anyway, he said, so it only makes sense that NEC appeal to the court, rather to the board, for the injunction.
Yankee discharge permit coming, state says
"THISJUSTIN" December 4, 2012, Times Argus, Montpelier Vt.
BRATTLEBORO - The state permit that allows Entergy Nuclear to dump 543 million gallons of hot water into the Connecticut River every day expired six years ago in 2006, but there's a good reason for that.
Catherine Gjessing, associate general counsel of the Department of Environment Conservation, said the permit itself is 11 years old, and is based in some instances on much older science and technology, in one case 34 years old.
Gjessing updated the status of the permit to members of the Vermont State Nuclear Advisory Panel and about two dozen area residents at a meeting held at Brattleboro Union High School on Thursday.
Gjessing said the federal Environmental Protection Agency was rewriting the regulations that deal with the discharges, and the underlying science, and the state was forced to wait for its federal counterparts. The new regulations call for "best available technology."
Gjessing said that the "protracted federal litigation" was supposed to result in draft rules by 2011, but by August 2012, they still weren't released, so the state is pushing ahead.
Board slaps down Vermont Yankee
Regulators say that by breaking its promises to the state, the plant risks permit rejection
Sunday, December 2, 2012, Maine Sunday Telegram
Board rejects Entergy's Vermont Yankee requests
November 30, 2012, AP / Bloomberg-Businessweek
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) - The Vermont Public Service Board is rejecting requests by Entergy Corp. that it's Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant be allowed to continue operating without the approval of the board.
In an order dated Thursday, the board also rejected a request by the plant's owner, Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee, that it modify conditions of its order limiting the amount of spent nuclear fuel that could be stored on the grounds of the Vernon reactor.
Entergy says ruling will not affect Vermont Yankee nuclear plant
Fri Nov 30, 2012 6:29pm EST, REUTERS
Nov 30 (Reuters) - Entergy Corp officials said an unfavorable ruling issued on Friday by the Vermont Public Service Board will have no immediate impact on operation of the 620-megawatt Vermont Yankee nuclear plant.
In a long-running dispute between Entergy and Vermont officials over the future of the 40-year-old reactor, the board rejected Entergy's request to amend previous orders that prohibited operation of the plant after March 2012 without state approval.
"The Vermont Public Service Board denied a request by Entergy to amend two orders issued by the board in 2002 and 2006," said James Sinclair, communications director for Vermont Yankee. "We had asked for amendments so that our operation would conform to these orders."
Who can you trust on Vermont Yankee?
November 29, 2012, Opinion / Letters, Times Argus, Montpelier VT
The Public Service Board is holding hearings around Vermont seeking input for its docket on whether to grant Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant a new certificate of public good to continue operating. The PSB should deny VY a new certificate for the following reasons.
We cannot count on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to look out for our public good. Historically it has proven to be (1) OF the nuclear industry; (2) BY the nuclear industry; and (3) FOR the nuclear industry.
Nor can we count on VY's parent, Louisiana-based Entergy, to look out for our public good. Entergy's "fiduciary responsibility" is to make decisions that benefit its shareholders. This has meant deferring maintenance, postponing major equipment replacements, and ignoring the rising but impending costs of decommissioning. Entergy subsequently filed suits against the state of Vermont and the Public Service Board to try to reverse a decision they had previously agreed to and demanding that Vermont taxpayers cover their legal fees.
Nuke plant makes top-polluters list
Nov 28 2012 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Kyle Jarvis The Keene Sentinel, N.H.
The Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant received a dubious distinction this week when an environmental watchdog organization again included it on its annual list of the worst polluters in New England.
The Toxics Action Center, which works throughout New England to promote clean air and water and sound environmental practices, released the report, "25 Years of the Dirty Dozen: Past and Current Pollution Threats in New England," profiling what it says are "egregious polluters." (Report)
6 Yankee protesters convicted of trespassing
November 27, 2012 4:48pm , Associated Press / Boston Globe
BRATTLEBORO, Vt. (AP) -- A jury has found six Massachusetts women guilty of trespassing at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant last year to protest the continued operation of the reactor.
Vt Yankee protesters trial under way
11/27/2012 01:57:01 PM EST, By MIKE FAHER / Brattleboro Reformer Staff
BRATTLEBORO -- A trial for six women accused of chaining themselves to a gate at the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant got under way this morning, with the defendants arguing that they had a right and duty to trespass at the Vernon facility.
The women - all Massachusetts residents and members of the Shut It Down Affinity Group - cited the ongoing court battle between Vermont officials lobbying for the plant's closure and federal regulators who have granted a license renewal to plant operator Entergy.
They also raised concerns about the ecological and health effects of the facility. "Entergy is trespassing on my welfare and all of yours," said Mary Kehler of Colrain.
6 elderly Mass. women face nuke protest charges
November 22, 2012, DAVE GRAM, Associated Press / Boston Globe
Neither Windham County State's Attorney Tracy Kelly Shriver, nor her deputy, Steven Brown, who is handling the case, would say why that particular protest was selected from nearly two dozen similar events in recent years as the one that would produce charges.
"Historically the Windham County state's attorney's office has not filed charges against Vermont Yankee protesters," Shriver said.
How the Feds view --
Quick-reads+events
NRC Finds Medical and Reporting Violations at Pilgrim
May 28, 2013, By Casey Meserve, Plymouth Patch, (here)
14 towns call for Pilgrim's closure
May 23, 2013, By Christine Legere, Cape Cod Times, (here)
Fire at Pilgrim Nuke During Start-Up
May 21, 2013, By Casey Meserve, Plymouth Patch, (here)
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Safe and Green Campaign and 22 other groups organizing in Mark 1 and Mark 2 reactor communities submitted a petition to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, demanding that they immediately close the reactors. The GE Mark 1 and Mark 2 reactors have significant flaws in the container design, which were confirmed by the on-going catastrophe in Fukushima, Japan.
On Thursday, May 2 from 1:00-3:00pm, Safe and Green Campaign and co-petitioners will give our statements to the NRC's petition review board. (more)
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Tracking the Source: Pilgrim's Tritium Link
April 29, 2013, Neil Sheehan, NRC Public Blog, (here
PILGRIM STATION: Tritium source accidentally discovered
April 20, 2013, By Frank Mand, Wicked Local Plymouth
Plymouth native and Entergy critic Meg Sheehan put it this way:
"If this was a leaking pipe at a gas station, the authorities would be all over them,
issuing fines, threatening to shut them down. But this is a nuclear plant,
so it's no big problem."
Several Cape towns will vote on Pilgrim Nuclear shutdown
Towns already have the petition on their ballots
March 15, 2013 - 10:22am, Cape Cod Today, (here)
Sebastopol makes Smart Meter installations illegal- $500 fine
February 22, 2013 by admin, EMF Safety Network, (here)
Obama neglects nuclear in state of the union
Feb 13, 2013, World Nuclear News, ... not a single mention. (here)
NRC: Pilgrim in Cold Shutdown Due to Nemo-the-Nor'easter
February 11, 2013 at 12:23 pm, NRC Blog , (here)
Entergy's Pilgrim nuclear plant loses power, again
Sunday, February 10, 2013, AP, (here)
Shortly after off-site power had been restored, Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station
lost power again, two days after being knocked out by the blizzard.
02/10/13 Power restored at blizzard-hit Pilgrim in Plymouth MA.
02/9/13 Storm packing hurricane-force winds shut Entergy's Pilgrim automatically
after losing offsite power at 9:17 p.m. on Friday.
Entergy admits its faulty equipment
caused 35 minute Super Bowl "lights out"
Feb 8, 2013, Beyond Nuclear, (here)
and GarySachs.com, (here)
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GOP bill would feed
new funding to stalled Yucca Mountain project
June 17, 2013, By Karoun Demirjian,
Las Vegas Sun, (here)
The annual federal fiscal fight over Yucca Mountain is on once again, now that House Republicans have released their annual appropriations proposal for fiscal 2014.
..... Many in Congress represent nuclear-dependent districts that have been paying toward a national waste depository fund for years, and are eager to see Yucca come back online.
Nuclear Decommissioning Surge Is Investor Guessing Game
Jun 17, 2013, By Stefan Nicola & Julie Johnsson, Bloomberg, (here)
Nuclear utilities thrust into the spotlight after the Fukushima meltdowns have ordered 20 reactors shut, the most in a three-year span since Chernobyl's aftermath, saddling the industry with a possible $26 billion in costs.
The global utility industry faces its biggest test to prove enough money was saved for shutdowns, having undergone numerous cost-overruns building atomic plants.
Where the Golden State Leads, Another Will Follow
June 16, 2013, by Martin Harris,
True North Reports, (here)
The headline reads "Troubled Nuclear Plant to be Closed". But the dateline reads San Clemente, CA (the nearest city) not Brattleboro, VT.
Within the newspiece is this quote: "Edison International decided to permanently close the $2 billion San Onofre nuclear plant on the Pacific Ocean between Los Angeles and San Diego when it became clear that it faced a long political fight to re-open..." and so on, including mention of "..expensive repairs.." and but not including mention of location, near the Christianitos branch of the San Andreas fault line which is overdue to shake the Pacific Coast once again.
Clearwater Festival draws
10,000 to Croton Point Park on opening day
June 15, 2013 8:11 PM.
By Estelle Lander, Newsday, (here)
www.clearwater.org
NRC Considers Voiding Key Ruling On San Onofre
Friday, June 14, 2013,
By Alison St John, KPBS, (here)
Federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff want to void a ruling that played a significant role in Southern California Edison's decision to shut down the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station.
Edison decided shut the nuclear power plant down for good partially because the Atomic Safety Licensing Board ruled there should be public hearings before any restart plan would have been approved by the Federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
The ASLB is a panel of judges, an arm of the NRC. The group Friends of the Earth pushed for those public hearings.
Now, Kendra Ulrich of FOE said NRC staff are preparing to wipe the judges' ruling from the record. Ulrich said the regulatory agency is too closely allied with the companies they are regulating.
Overlooked:
EPA Dramatically Weakens Radiation Protection
02 June 13, By Committee
to Bridge the Gap, (here)
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is publishing in the Federal Register today controversial new Protective Action Guides (PAGs) for responding to radioactive releases. EPA says it solicits public comment but is nonetheless making the PAGs immediately effective.
Updates to Protective Action Guides
NRC, FEMA pleased with VY emergency drill
June 8, 2013, By Bob Audette
Brattleboro Reformer Staff, (here)
VERNON -- Though they acknowledged there are some communications issues to be addressed, representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency said the emergency response drill that was held at Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant on June 5 were satisfied with the results.
San Onofre Power Plant Closing After Epic 16-Month Battle
June 7, 2013, By Michael R. Blood,
Huffington Post, (here)
In a jolt to the nation's nuclear power industry, Southern California's San Onofre plant was shut down Friday for good after its owners surrendered in a costly and drawn-out fight over whether it was too damaged to operate safely.
Federal agencies to conduct drill at Vermont Yankee
June 5, 2013, Reformer Staff, (here)
VERNON -- The Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Federal Emergency Management Agency will be conducting an emergency drill at Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant today from 9 a.m. into the afternoon.
On Friday, June 7, at 4 p.m., at the Vernon Elementary School, FEMA and the NRC will give a public presentation on the results of the drill.
News Release - Vermont Yankee Decommissioning Alliance
May 31, 2013
On March 11, 2011, Chikako Nishiyama, of Kawauchi, Japan, was a village councilor of Kawauchi, a village of 3,000 people, located 15 miles from the Fukushima reactors. Ms. Nishiyama was preparing to run for a second term when the Great East Japan Earthquake occurred with its resulting tsunami and the devastating meltdowns of the nearby Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactors. Kawauchi was a shelter town for refugees from the tsunami refugees, until a hydrogen explosion sent a plume of radiation over the community and resulting in a complete evacuation. Residents were not allowed to return to their village until April 2012.
On Tuesday, June 4 at 6:30 pm in the East Montpelier Room of the Kellogg-Hubbard Library, Ms. Nishiyama will give a presentation with photographs on her experiences during the evacuation and post-evacuation of her town, and on what is happening in Japan today "We believe there are lessons to be learned about emergency response to nuclear disaster from Ms. Nishiyama's experiences and insights", said Chris Williams of the Vermont Yankee Decommissioning Alliance and Vermont Citizen's Action Network. (more)
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Safe and Green Campaign
Chikako Nishiyama, from Kawauchi, Japan will speak about her Fukushima evacuation experience in 2011. Ms. Nishiyama was on the town's city council during the disaster, and is now actively working to shut down Japan's nukes. Chiho Kaneko will translate and is hosting her trip. They will give presentations in:
Brattleboro on May 28, 7pm Centre Congregational Church, 122 Main Street,
Greenfield on May 29, 7:30pm Second Congregational Church, 16 Court Square,
Montpelier on June 4 (TBA).
05-17-2013
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San Onofre at No Nukes Brink
May 17, 2013, by Harvey Wasserman, Common Dreams, (here)
NRC: Lapdog or Watchdog?
May 17, 2013, Fairewinds, (here)
Kevin Hurley talks with Arnie and Maggie Gundersen about the NRC's Atomic Safety and Licensing Board's (ASLB) decision to hold public hearings about restarting the San Onofre Nuclear Plant.
ENVY
Love Feast Under The
Golden Dome
May 15, 2013, By Howard Shaffer
ansnuclearcafe.org (here)
Vermont's Capitol building has a gold-painted domed roof. The media reports legislative activity somewhat derisively as taking place "under the golden dome."
On April 25, Arnie Gundersen (of Fairewinds Associates, of Vermont), a well-known nuclear opponent, spoke before Vermont's House Natural Resources and Energy Committee. He was welcomed with open arms to testify on House bill H-139, regarding post-closure activities at nuclear power plant sites.
Busting the pro-nuclear propaganda
May 14, 2013, Beyond Nuclear, (here)
In response to some of the myths about nuclear energy advanced in the documentary, Pandora's Promise - but in larger part in response to the pro-nuclear propaganda in circulation generally - Beyond Nuclear is today releasing:
Pandora's False Promises: Busting the pro-nuclear propaganda.
This report, in the form of handy bullet points but fully referenced throughout, is designed to serve as a central source for many of the facts about nuclear power that are either ignored, obscured or mis-represented by the nuclear deniers.
Commentary: Time to reconsider 'baseload' power
05/10/2013, Michael Vickerman
Midwest Energy News. (here)
Water Regulations to Spur to Plant Closures, says Oskvig
May 10, 2013, By Conway Irwin,
Breaking Energy, (here)
Impending Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations governing utilities' cooling water intake and discharge could force some power plants to close, according to Black & Veatch Energy Chief Executive Dean Oskvig.
Electricity production accounts for 38% of US water usage. In many cases, cooling water is drawn directly from a source such as a river or lake.
Usage is distinct from consumption -- used water is returned directly to the source, while consumed water is not -- mitigated water scarcity concerns. But the process, specifically the intake of water, has generated environmental concerns of a different sort. New EPA regulations seeking to limit damage to fish and other aquatic wildlife caused by water intake mechanisms is scheduled to be finalized this June. And the agency has proposed new rules governing the discharge of cooling water from power plants last month.
"There are more and more regulations coming on now about the discharge of water, having to do with temperature, and intake -- protection of fish -- which is going to burden once-through cooling plants," Oskvig told Breaking Energy. A once-cooling plant -- in contrast to a closed-loop plant -- uses open sources of water to condense steam, rather than specialized water-cooling facilities.
"It will put some plants out of the economic viability area," Oskvig said.
Utilities Shed Merchant Assets
May 09, 2013, By Conway Irwin,
Breaking Energy, (here)
Mergers and acquisitions in the utilities sector picked up in the first quarter as companies have begun to jettison merchant plants, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers US power and utilities deals leader Jeremy Fago.
PwC reported that first-quarter deal value in the utilities sector rose by 33% over the same period a year ago. This was driven in part by company efforts to sell off unregulated assets, according to Fago.
Regulated power plants are built and operated by regulated utilities, with rates negotiated between the utility and relevant State Utility Commission, and set at levels designed to fund the plant's maintenance and operating costs, plus a return. Unregulated -- or merchant -- power plants, on the other hand, sell power into the competitive market, with no guaranteed return.
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Nuclear Regulators Stick Their Heads In The Sand
May 9, 2013, Fairewinds, (here)
Bad things happen when regulators do not enforce nuclear power plant regulations. This week's podcast discusses secret, closed-door meetings between top regulators in Japan, as well as the failure of regulation much closer to home: in Michigan. Kevin and Arnie are joined by Kevin Kamps, a radioactive waste specialist with Beyond Nuclear.
Entergy again:
Palisades nuke power plant shuts after water leak
May 05, 2013 11:48 AM
www.abc12.com , (here)
BeyondNuclear.org , (here)
The plant is owned by New Orleans-based Entergy Corp. has been under extra scrutiny by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission after numerous safety issues and shutdowns. The plant shut for several days in February for work on its cooling water heat exchanger system.
Congress needs to focus on how nuclear waste is stored now
05/01/13, By Dave Lochbaum and Robert Cowin, Union of Concerned Scientists - (here)
U.S. nuclear power plants have been generating electricity for more than 50 years, but the nuclear industry and the federal government have yet to figure out what to do with nuclear waste, which remains dangerously radioactive for thousands of years. On April 25, a bipartisan group of senators - Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) - released draft legislation addressing this intractable problem.
Too Dumb to Meter, Part 11
May 1, 2013, By Kennedy Maize,
Power Magazine, (here)
... Some nuclear engineers like to dismiss the waste controversy as merely a "political" issue, as if that somehow meant it isn't significant and not worth puzzling over. First, that's not entirely true. There are plenty of technical and engineering issues that stand in the way of resolving the problem of what to do with what's left when the atoms have been split or fused, the lights lit up, and the Leaf's batteries run down. More to the point, the somehow unworthy "political" issue has helped erect a so-far insurmountable hurdle to an atomic future. No political resolution has come into view.
Entergy sues Vermont over diesel generator
April 30,2013, By Susan Smallheer
Staff Writer, Rutland Herald, (here)
The Public Service Board has refused to authorize construction of the so-called station blackout diesel generator, and has treated Entergy's petition in "an unusual manner," Entergy claimed in its 27-page lawsuit.
Entergy Nuclear filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court, saying the Vermont Public Service Board had dragged its feet on its application, which was filed in September 2012. Without a certificate of public good for the generator, Vermont Yankee might be forced to shut down on Sept. 1, according to the lawsuit.
Tracking the Source:
Pilgrim's Tritium Link
April 29, 2013, Neil Sheehan,
NRC Public Blog, (here
Nuke waste indecision
April 28, 2013, Editorial,
New London Day, (here)
Entergy claims 'surprise' over Red Cross funding request
April 27, 2013, By Bob Audette,
Brattleboro Reformer Staff, (here)
BRATTLEBORO -- The Senate Government Operations Committee on Wednesday voted to recommend Entergy be required to pay more than $770,000 to fund an updated evacuation plan as presented by the Red Cross. The Senate Appropriations Committee then approved the plan, but instead of asking for the full payment over two years as recommended by Department of Public Safety staffers, it changed it to a four-year plan.
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Nuclear Plants Next to Go in the Northeast
April 25, 2013, By Conway Irwin, energy.aol.com , (here), or,
(here)
An impending wave of nuclear plant retirements in the Northeast on the heels of coal plant retirements in 2012, raises the question of whether policies should be formulated to maintain existing capacity and protect fuel source diversity in the region's power sector, according to UBS' Director of US Electric Utilities Julien Dumoulin-Smith.
"The Northeast is the next major market to see material capacity retirements in this country," said Dumoulin-Smith at the Platts Northeast Energy Markets conference in New York on Wednesday. "We're talking about a big purge," he said. UBS is
estimating that the region will lose about 6 gigawatts of capacity.
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Getting the area to prepare for long-term storage
Nuclear expert says VY's nuclear waste isn't going anywhere soon
April 24, 2013, By Olga Peters, The Commons issue #200, (here)
Vermont Yankee
Decommissioning Funds
As of March 31, 2013, the market value of the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station's decommissioning trust fund accounts was $569,597,091. To put this number into context, the value of the fund for the past six months is as follows:
March 31, 2013 $569,597,091
February 28, 2013 $559,295,101
January 31, 2013 $554,000,964
December 31, 2012 $543,260,693
November 30, 2012 $542,693,141
October 31, 2012 $538,969,562
Aaron Kisicki Special Counsel
Vermont Public Service Department
112 State Street, Montpelier, VT
05629-2601, 802.828.3785
Aaron.Kisicki@state.vt.us
04-22-2013
PILGRIM STATION:
Tritium source accidentally discovered
April 20, 2013, By Frank Mand,
Wicked Local Plymouth
Plymouth native and Entergy critic Meg Sheehan put it this way: "If this was a leaking pipe at a gas station, the authorities would be all over them,
issuing fines, threatening to shut them down. But this is a nuclear plant, so it's no big problem."
Safe energy organizations heed former NRC chairman's call to revoke operating licenses of nuclear reactors
April 17, 2013, Enformable, (here)
At the 2013 Carnegie International Nuclear Policy Conference in Washington, DC on April 8th and 9th, former Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Gregory Jaczko called for the phase out of all 103 operating reactors in the United States. He argued that all nuclear power plants in the United States have a "fundamental design problem", which cannot be fixed by the continual band-aids applied by the nuclear industry.
Nuclear disaster continues,
Plutonium found outside of containment in marine soil at Fukushima Daiichi
15 Apr 2013 06:50 AM PDT,
Enformable, (here)
TEPCO has been forced to take drastic measures to deal with the continual contamination of the Pacific Ocean from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. To quell the transfer of contaminated marine soil, the utility worked to cover the ocean floor in the port with concrete. They later discovered that the fish life in the port was highly radioactive, which forced them to seal the entrance of the port to prevent as much fish from escaping as possible.
Ex-Regulator Says Reactors Are Flawed
April 8, 2013, By Matthew L. Wald,
New York Times, (here)
WASHINGTON -- All 104 nuclear power reactors now in operation in the United States have a safety problem that cannot be fixed and they should be replaced with newer technology, the former chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said on Monday. Shutting them all down at once is not practical, he said, but he supports phasing them out rather than trying to extend their lives.
Provincetown votes to close Entergy's Pilgrim Nuclear
Town Meeting article passes by a vote of 197 to 2
April 8, 2013 - 1:30pm, By Diane Turco, CapeCodToday.com (here)
Plymouth selectman asks NRC to organize meeting of 104 nuke towns
April 06, 2013, By Frank Mand,
Wicked Local Plymouth, (here)
That's what the chairman of Plymouth's Board of Selectmen did Tuesday night. Unsatisfied with the answers the town has been getting from Entergy, the owner of the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Plant, and the response from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Chairman Matt Muratore asked to speak to the boss -- the president of the United States.
The NRC was in town to report on and answer questions about Pilgrim's performance in 2012. At the request of the town manager representatives also agreed to follow that meeting with a public forum on Entergy's plans to add dry cask storage units at the Pilgrim facility.
But as soon as the meeting began, it was apparent the open house, at least, would not be a gathering of old friends.
On one side of the Mayflower Room in Town Hall was the NRC, standing like Christians in the coliseum. On the other side were the lions, represented by a wide assortment of nuclear power critics from Plymouth and Cape Cod.
More coverage
from Plymouth NRC Meeting.
Nuclear Energy Activist Toolkit #3: Licensee Event Report (LER) Searches
April 2, 2013, Dave Lochbaum,
UCS - All Things Nuclear, (here)
On the News With Thom Hartmann: Weekend Anti-Nuclear Protest in Vermont Draws 500, and More
Monday, 01 April 2013 15:55
News With Thom Hartmann, (here)
You need to know this. People around the world are recognizing the danger of nuclear energy. Over the weekend, 500 protesters marched down Main Street in Brattleboro, Vermont to rally against the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.
Entergy VY Spinoff to Seek EB-5 investors
Mon Apr 01, 2013, by: BP, Green Mountain Daily, (here)
In a surprise announcement late this past Friday Entergy of Louisiana released a statement announcing that ownership of Vermont Yankee would be transferred to a newly created entity. In an unusual move Entergy has resurrected a previous plan that had been abandoned years ago. The new version is still to shift Vermont Yankee's ownership to a small shell corporation, but now it has an innovative funding twist.
Leaks, Lies & Lawyers
Parade & Rally
Saturday March 30
Entergy document cites drastic fall in value of Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant, raising questions about its viability
March 21, 2013, by Andrew Stein,
vtdigger.org - Vt Journalism Trust (here)
Thursday marked the one-year anniversary that Vermont Yankee's initial 40-year operating license expired, and the aging nuclear plant finds itself on rough financial footing.
In a November 2012 filing with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Entergy Corp. informed investors that in March of last year the company estimated that the fair value of its Vermont Yankee plant had dropped to $162 million - three times less than the carrying value of $517.5 million.
Bill imposes tax, trust fund for spent nuclear fuel
March 21, 2013, By Mike Faher,
Brattleboro Reformer Staff, (here)
BRATTLEBORO -- Spent nuclear fuel stored at Vermont Yankee should be taxed, and a trust fund should be established to manage that material, a local lawmaker says.
The trust fund, according to a new bill introduced by state Sen. Jeanette White, is designed to "reduce the risk that taxpayers, ratepayers or retail electric utilities will experience adverse claims or costs resulting from a shortage of available funds for the management of spent fuel."
And the Putney-based Democrat said the tax, which varies depending on how the fuel is stored, is justified.
"We tax all kinds of waste and storage," she said. "It made sense to tax this." A spokesman for Entergy, which operates the Vernon plant, said the company "already pays a significant amount of taxes to the state of Vermont and opposes any additional taxes."
Entergy Tells New York to
Butt out of Nuke Plant
March 21, 2013, Marlene Kennedy,
Courthouse News Service, (here)
ALBANY, N.Y. (CN) - Entergy, which runs two nuclear power plants that supply nearly a quarter of metropolitan New York's electricity, asked a judge to tell the state to butt out of the plants' relicensing process.
Entergy Nuclear Operations sued the New York Department of State in Albany County Supreme Court.
Entergy claims its request to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to extend the operating licenses of the Indian Point 2 and 3 plants is exempt from state review.
Entergy is embroiled in similar lawsuits for its Vermont Yankee nuclear plant in southern Vermont.
In both states, Entergy claims only the NRC, a federal agency, not a state, may regulate safety concerns of the nuclear power industry.
In its new complaint in Albany, Entergy claims New York State "threatens imminent harm to Entergy by subjecting it to a burdensome and time-consuming regulatory process with an uncertain outcome."
NRC Commissioners vote down their staff recommendation for filtered vent on unreliable Mark I and II containment
March 19, 2013, Beyond Nuclear, (here)
Takoma Park, MD - The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has voted to disregard a recommendation from its own Japan Lessons Learned Task Force and professional staff that nuclear reactor operators should be ordered to install high-capacity radiation filters at 23 Mark I and 8 Mark II nuclear power reactors in the United States.
N.R.C. Votes for Upgrades
to Fukushima Like Reactors
March 19, 2013, By Matthew Wald
New York Times, (here)
WASHINGTON - The Nuclear Regulatory Commission voted 3 to 2 on Tuesday to require improvements to the emergency vents at 31 American reactors that share design similarities with the Japanese reactors that melted down two years ago. The agency stopped short, however, of requiring filters to scrub out radioactive particles coming through those vents.
See also: NRC Blog
Entergy Corporation Issues Statement on Palisades Nuclear Power Plant
NEW ORLEANS, March 18, 2013
PRNewswire, EnergyCentral, (here)
"The Palisades nuclear plant is a safe and secure facility, and we have an NRC license to operate this facility through 2031."
3/18/13 - NRC to hold public meeting on Pilgrim Nuclear April 2, here
3/15/13 - Several Cape towns will vote on Pilgrim Nuclear shutdown, here
Vermont Yankee
Decommissioning Funds
As of February 28, 2013, the market value of the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station's decommissioning trust fund accounts was $559,295,101. To put this number into context, the value of the fund for the past six months is as follows:
February 28, 2013 $559,295,101
January 31, 2013 $554,000,964
December 31, 2012 $543,260,693
November 30, 2012 $542,693,141
October 31, 2012 $538,969,562
September 30, 2012 $541,978,251
Aaron Kisicki Special Counsel
Vermont Public Service Department
112 State Street
Montpelier, VT 05629-2601
802.828.3785
Aaron.Kisicki@state.vt.us
03-14-2013
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Sorry, UCS is more convincing
Two years after Fukushima: Enhancements to U.S. Nuclear Plants Continue
Mar 11, 2013, NRC, David Skeen Director, Japan Lessons-Learned, (here),
(here)
VOICES OF FUKUSHIMA
Towns in Solidarity with Japan's Nuclear Refugees
March 9 Saturday
Brattleboro, VT: 11 am-1 pm Pliny Park
Putney, VT: 1-3pm Tavern Green
Greenfield, MA: 2-4pm Town Common
Amherst, MA: 10 am-2 pm Farmers Mkt
March 10 Sunday
Vernon, VT: 11am-Noon VIGIL at VY
Wendall, MA: 12-2pm Town Common
March 11 Monday
Hanover, NH: 4-6pm Hanover Town Hall
Hanover = Nihonmatsu (its sister city)
Montpelier, VT: 4-5pm VIGIL at State & Main Streets
Vigil-Flyer History: You Tube video
We too live in the shadow of a nuclear reactor that is a twin to Fukushima's.
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Safety breaches seen at U.S. reactors
Mar 9, 2013, By Brian Wingfield
Brattleboro Reformer, (here)
WASHINGTON -- Nearly one in six U.S. nuclear reactors experienced safety breaches last year due in part to poor oversight by federal regulators, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists.
Incidents including a cooling water leak and unusual wear on steam generator tubes were reported at 16 units owned by companies including Entergy and Edison International, the Cambridge, Mass.-based environmental group said in its third annual report on reactor safety released Thursday.
Tolerating the Intolerable
UCS 3rd Annual NRC Review
Mar 7, 2013, Dave Lochbaum, Union of Concerned Scientists, (here)
Tolerating the intolerable reflects a poor safety culture. Last November, the NRC met to discuss the results of the latest in a series of triennial surveys
conducted by a consultant of its safety culture and climate. The NRC's discussion of the 2012 survey was held behind closed doors - about as plain an indicator
of a poor safety culture as the sordid results themselves. A poor safety culture and unwillingness to openly discuss working conditions go hand in hand.
General Electric, Toshiba & Hitachi hide from their responsibilities in Fukushima
March 5, 2013, by Hisayo Takada - Greenpeace, (here)
Sunset of U.S. energy nukes?
Mar 04, 2013 at 13:36,
by Sue Prent, Green Mtn Daily, (here)
In an interesting blog-post on the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, it's deputy editor, John Mecklin lays out the case against any long term expectations for energy nukes in the U.S.
Book in Support of
Vermont Yankee published
Feb 27, 2013, vtdigger.org (here)
A new book, Voices for Vermont Yankee, has been written in support of continued operation of the nuclear power plant. Many local people testified in favor of the plant at recent Public Service Board hearings. The book contains 21 statements in favor of the plant, as well as many pictures of the people and the hearing..
Senators tell NRC to implement Post Fukushima safety fixes
Feb 21, 2013, by E&E News, (pdf)
A group of 12 U.S. Senators including, Patrick Leahy, Bernie Sanders, and Eliz. Warren, called on federal regulators today to order operators of reactors similar to those damaged by Japan's 2011 tsunami and earthquake to install venting systems to curb radioactive releases during emergencies.
Entergy, it's not just in Vermont
Shut Pilgrim nuke? Perhaps a Bourne spring ballot question
Feb 20, 2013, Bourne Courier, (here)
How the NRC is Responding
at Palisades Nuclear Plant
Feb 20, 2013, NRC Region III
Public Affairs Officer, (here)
NRC will step up level of
oversight at FitzPatrick
Feb 19, 2013, NRC, 13-004.i.pdf, 2pp
Scriba N.Y., James A. FitzPatrick nuclear power plant is owned & operated by Entergy Nuclear Northeast.
NRC reviewing leak
at Palisades power plant
Feb 19, 2013, By Don Wagner
WSBT-TV, (here)
Palisades nuclear power plant was leaking 35 gallons of non-radioactive water an hour before Friday shutdown
Feb 19, 2013, By Fritz Klug, MLive & Kalamazoo Gazette, (here)
Palisades Nuclear Plant
remains out of service
Feb 18, 2013, By Jim Hayden
The Holland Sentinel, (here)
Pilgrim plant back
Feb 17, 2013, By Patrick Cassidy
Cape Cod Times, (here)
Indian Point evacuation
would take 5+ hours
Feb 16, 2013, By Michael Risinit
LoHud , (here) ,
(evac-consult)
Feb 21, 2012, recordonline.com
Entergy evacuation study way off mark
mishap?
Indian Point staff caused
shutdown by mistake
Feb 15, 2013, By Michael Risinit
LowHud , (here)
Workers at the Indian Point nuclear complex mistakenly opened three valves that drained water from part of the steam-generator system at the plant, leading to this week's shutdown of the Indian Point 2 reactor, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said Friday.
Entergy Watch: Vermont Yankee argues it is simply "above the law" in the State of Vermont
Feb 11, 2013, Beyond Nuclear, (here)
Entergy Nuclear's latest argument before the State of Vermont Public Service Board -- regarding Vermont Yankee atomic reactor's ongoing operation -- beggars belief. Entergy argues it is above State of Vermont law, even though it agreed to abide by State of Vermont law a decade ago.
Retired Duke reactor may signal more U.S. nuclear shutdowns
Feb 6, 2013 4:45pm EST, By Scott DiSavino and Eileen O'Grady, Reuters, (here)
(Reuters) - A decision by Duke Energy Corp to retire rather than repair its damaged Crystal River reactor in Florida may signal the shutdown of other older U.S. nuclear plants as weak natural gas prices make significant investment in them uneconomical.
GAS IS CHEAP
... UBS's Dumoulin-Smith has identified other reactors in danger of shutting, including Entergy Corp's Vermont Yankee in Vermont and FitzPatrick in New York, Exelon Corp's Clinton in Illinois and Constellation Energy Nuclear Group LLC's Ginna in New York.
These older reactors operating in deregulated states will find it harder to compete, Dumoulin-Smith said, due to high fixed costs compared with gas plants, expensive safety upgrades needed to implement lessons learned from the Fukushima accident in Japan, and stricter cooling water rules, among other things.
Group Seeks Delay In Yankee Hearings For Supreme Court Appeals
02/05/13 7:34am, John Dillon
Vt Public Radio News, (here)
As the legal uncertainty surrounding the Vermont Yankee plant continues, an anti-nuclear group wants utility regulators to take a time out in order to let the state Supreme Court resolve some of the issues.
The Public Service Board was supposed to start hearings next week on Yankee's future. The board will decide whether the nuclear plant deserves a new, 20-year state license.
But now the New England Coalition, an anti-nuclear group, wants the board to delay the proceedings.
Coalition lawyer Jared Margolis said a time-out makes sense because Entergy Vermont Yankee has filed an appeal with the state Supreme Court. Entergy has appealed a PSB decision to close one Yankee docket and open another. Margolis said the coalition does not want a delay for delays sake. But he said the board should wait until the Supreme Court appeal is resolved.
Vt. report finds no smart meter radiation danger
January 23, 2013, By Wilson Ring
AP in Business Week, (here)
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) - A report commissioned by the Vermont Legislature on the potential threat to human health posed by smart meters, the devices used by electric utilities to measure power consumption and ultimately save energy, found the devices emit only a small fraction of the maximum exposure levels set by the Federal Communications Commission, said the report.
The maximum peak radiofrequency level measured one foot from a meter was 3.9 percent of the FCC's top exposure limit, said the Department of Public Service, which hired the Washington state company that prepared the report.
An Evaluation of Radio Frequency Fields Produced by Smart Meters Deployed in Vermont
Vermont Yankee
Decommissioning Funds
As of December 31, 2012, the market value of the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station's decommissioning- trust- fund accounts was $543,260,693. To put that into some context, the value of the fund on the last day of the last six months is as follows:
July 31, 2012 - $530,765,894
August 31, 2012 - $536,158,463
September 30, 2012 - $541,978,251
October 31, 2012 - $538,969,562
November 30, 2012 - $542,693,141
December 31, 2012 - $543,260,693
Aaron Kisicki Special Counsel
Vermont Public Service Department
112 State Street
Montpelier, VT 05629-2601
802.828.3785
Aaron.Kisicki@state.vt.us
01-15-2013
State Regulators Demand
Answers From Entergy
01/09/13 7:32am, by John Dillon
VT Public Radio News, (here)
State regulators are demanding answers from Entergy, the owner of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant.
Entergy has won federal approval to run the plant until 2032. But it still needs a state permit, called a certificate of public good.
But Entergy wants to limit the scope of the state review. Now the Public Service Board has pushed back. It says Entergy agreed to substantial state oversight when it bought the plant in 2002.
A recent PSB order asks Entergy to explain the "seeming inconsistencies" between what it said 11 years ago and what it's saying now.
Indian Point Decision
January 7, 2013, By Adam Klasfeld, Courthouse News Service, (here)
Federal regulators must explain why they secretly exempted the Indian Point nuclear reactor from fire-safety rules, the 2nd Circuit ruled Monday.
VT, other states criticize NRC handling of waste storage
January 04, 2013, By Susan Smallheer
Rutland Herald Staff Writer, (here)
MONTPELIER -- The federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission isn't doing enough to assess the environmental and safety concerns of storing high-level radioactive waste at nuclear power plants across the country, the state of Vermont said Thursday.
Vermont, joined by New York and Massachusetts, again have formally criticized the way the NRC is handling the issue of high-level radioactive waste. Filing the comments were Attorney General William Sorrell and the Shumlin administration, in the form of the Department of Public Service and the Agency of Natural Resources.
Vermont, New York regulators urge review of spent nuclear fuel storage
January 3, 2013, by Andrew Stein
vtdigger.org / Vt Journalism Trust, (here)
Leading Vermont and New York regulators on Tuesday called on the Nuclear Regulator Commission to conduct a comprehensive environmental review of spent nuclear fuel storage.
Vermont Attorney General Bill Sorrell, the Vermont Department of Public Service and the New York Attorney General's office issued a formal letter to the federal commission on Tuesday regarding the "scope of consideration of environmental impacts of temporary spent fuel after cessation of reactor operation."
The states' plea comes roughly eight months after the U.S. Appellate Court struck down the commission's so-called "waste confidence rule," which authorized the storage of spent fuel at a reactor. The court called for more extensive environmental assessments of this practice, and in August 2012, the NRC suspended
all licensing decisions for nuclear power plants until it can address concerns regarding long-term storage of nuclear waste.
State to study
'smart meter' concerns
Jan 02, 2013, By Peter Hirschfeld
Vermont Press Bureau / Rutland Herald, (here)
MONTPELIER -- State officials will hire an expert early this year to help determine whether Vermonters have any reason to fear the wireless "smart meters" being affixed to homes across the state.
A request for proposals issued last month by the Department of Public Service seeks a qualified professional "to conduct a report on health effects related to smart meter radio-frequency emissions."
James Porter, director of the department's telecommunications division, said the state has no reason to believe that the emissions pose any danger.
"Based upon earlier testing that was done by the Vermont Department of Health of our wireless smart meters, and the fact that I believe both of the wireless meters selected by our utilities are (Underwriters Laboratories) listed, we certainly believe the emissions are well within federal safety standards," Porter said.
But those federal safety standards, according to opponents of the smart meter technology, are flawed and outdated. And a small but spirited coalition of concerned citizens convinced lawmakers last session to pass legislation calling for the health study.
"The reason behind having this study is that what's been done so far is inadequate," said Sen. Robert Hartwell, a Bennington County Democrat. "We need someone who's independent of state government, and independent of the special interests, who will do an honest assessment of what the impacts are."
Portions of the research called for in Act 170 have already been conducted, including independent measurements of smart meter emissions.
Yankee's steam dryer
set for fewer inspections
Dec 22, 2012, By Susan Smallheer
Rutland Herald Staff Writer, (here)
Under the change, Entergy Nuclear will inspect the steam dryer - every three outages, or once every 4½ years. Currently, Entergy Nuclear has been checking the steam dryer during every outage, which occurs every 18 months.
NRC Will Consider Long-Term Power Backups for Spent Fuel Pools in Case of Solar Storms
Dec 20 2012, Nuclear Street, (here)
The agency will begin a formal rulemaking process to address a 2011 petition submitted by Thomas Popik of the New Hampshire-based Foundation for Resilient Societies, according to a notice in the Federal Register Tuesday.
NRC to examine solar flare issues raised in rulemaking petition
Dec 19, 2012, By PennEnergy, (here)
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has determined its rulemaking process can appropriately consider a petition on maintaining the safety of used nuclear fuel at U.S. reactors if an extreme solar flare disables the electrical grid.
The petition, filed by Thomas Popik on March 14, 2011, suggests a massive solar flare could potentially disable large portions of the U.S. electrical grid for an extended period of time. The petition further suggests that nuclear power plants would then run out of fuel to power the emergency systems that maintain pools of water where used nuclear fuel is kept safe. Popik's petition asked the NRC to amend its regulations so that U.S. reactors would have backup spent fuel pool systems capable of operating automatically for two years without fuel resupply.
Up $3 Million from Oct.
Vermont Yankee
Decommissioning Funds
As of November 30, 2012, the market value of the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station's decommissioning- trust- fund accounts was $542,693,141. To put that into some context, the value of the fund on the last day of the last six months is as follows:
June 30, 2012 - $523,481,058
July 31, 2012 - $530,765,894
August 31, 2012 - $536,158,463
September 30, 2012 - $541,978,251
October 31, 2012 - $538,969,562
November 30, 2012 - $542,693,141
Aaron Kisicki Special Counsel
Vermont Public Service Department
112 State Street
Montpelier, VT 05629-2601
802.828.3785
Aaron.Kisicki@state.vt.us
12-12-2012
Nuclear Power Whistleblowers Charge Federal Regulators With Favoring Secrecy Over Safety
12/05/2012 8:57 am, Tom Zeller Jr.
HUFF POST Green, (here)
PSB says Entergy's past
record will be a factor
Dec 01, 2012, By Susan Smallheer
Rutland Herald, (here)
MONTPELIER - The Public Service Board has put Entergy on notice that its past failure to follow board orders would be a factor in relicensing of Vermont Yankee.
In a ruling made public Friday, the Public Service Board said while Vermont Yankee continued to generate 620 megawatts of electricity, state regulators remember the reason it didn't have its timely state permit was largely its own fault.
The Public Service Board denied Entergy's request that the board rewrite conditions of its 2002 certificate of public good, which would have given Entergy the formal imprimatur to allow it to keep operating beyond its original shutdown date of March 21, 2012, and to store additional high-level nuclear waste at the Vernon plant.
Vermont Nuke Case Cites Risks
Nov. 30, 2012, By William Boardman, Consortium News, (here)
The Vermont justice system may have wanted just another routine jury trial on charges of criminal trespass, but for the accused six grandmothers the day-long trial was also an opportunity to bear witness, each in her own polite way, that they had acted out of conscience to protect themselves and others against the dangers of an aging nuclear power plant in particular and against the general danger of nuclear power to the planet.
Read the Introduction on Amazon,
it's mostly about Entergy.
A few good
Bookmarks
Virtual Nuclear
Tourist
Joseph Gonyeau's
in-depth resource on nuclear power.
Vermont Emergency
Management
Windham Regional Planning
Comm.
Local Emergency Planning Committee,
Windham Region
Vermont Dept. of Public
Service
Vermont State Nuclear Advisory Panel (VSNAP)
Vermont Public Service
Board
Conservation Law
Foundation/Vermont
Nuclear Control Institute, Washington
D.C.
Nuclear Information & Resource
Service
Institute for Energy and Environmental Research
Safe & Green Campaign
Sage Alliance
Radiation.Org
Beyond Nuclear
Public Citizen
Fake Rob Williams
Vermont Citizens Action Network
Fair Game / Seven Days
Green Mountain Daily
Vermont Law School Blog
Vermont Daily Briefing
New England Coalition
Sage Alliance
GarySachs,com
George Harvey's Blog
Wake-the-hell-up
Nuclear Free Vermont
The Valley Post
Traprock Peace Center
Citizens Awareness Network
Union of
Concerned Scientists
Nuclear Regulatory Commission
not so far-fetched anymore
ARCHIVES HERE
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