Media Advisory: Perry Nuclear Power Plant ASLB Hearing Tuesday, January 30th

MEDIA ADVISORY
January 30th 1:30pm 
 
Contacts:  Connie Kline (440) 946-9012, David Hughes (412) 421-4163
 
NRC Atomic Safety and Licensing Board to Hold Oral Argument
on Perry License Renewal 1:30pm - 3:30pm ET on Tuesday January 30, 2024
 
The public will have listen-only access to the oral argument by dialing (301)576-2978 and
entering the passcode 510 048 948, followed by the “#” sign.
 
A Nuclear Regulatory Commission Atomic Safety and Licensing Board will hold oral
argument virtually on Jan. 30 on a petition requesting a hearing on Energy Harbor Nuclear
Corp.’s application to renew the operating license of Perry Nuclear Power Plant, near Perry,
Ohio, for an additional 20 years.
 
The oral argument, scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m. Eastern time, will allow the Board to
ask questions about the admissibility of two proposed contentions from petitioners Ohio Nuclear
Free Network and Beyond Nuclear challenging safety and environmental aspects of the application.
The Board will hear argument from representatives for the petitioners, Energy Harbor Nuclear, and the NRC staff.
 
Access to the listen-only telephone connection can be obtained by dialing (301) 576-
2978 and then entering the passcode 510 048 948, followed by the “#” sign.
 
MEMORANDUM
(Information Regarding Telephone Listen-Only Access for the Public to the Initial Prehearing Conference)
 
The Ohio Nuclear Free Network and Beyond Nuclear Petition for Leave to Intervene can be viewed here:
 
Ohio Nuclear Free Network and Beyond Nuclear brought forward three Contentions.  Because Contention 1: 'The Severe Accident Mitigation Analysis Is Inadequate' is currently an issue at Perry with the existing license, Intervenors have been directed to NRC 2.206 Petition.
 
Contentions which will be heard:
 
CONTENTION 2: The power generated by Perry is redundant; the plant can be permanently shut down without consequence to regional power availability. Energy Harbor exaggerates and misrepresents the importance of Perry as part of the post-2026 energy mix by:
  • failing to provide projections, pricing information or assessment of incoming new generation resources; 
  • failing to provide statistical or factual analyses of electric overcapacity within Ohio, or from multiple neighboring states; 
  • neglecting to consider that Perry's generation is and will be too expensive; and 
  • failing to offer its customers voluntary energy efficiency programs. 
CONTENTION 3:  Perry's Tritium Problem
 
Tritium is radioactive hydrogen.  It bonds easily with oxygen to form radioactive water.  Once tritium becomes part of the water molecule, it cannot be removed. Tritium readily crosses the placental barrier, resulting in significant biological consequences, including:
  • damage to DNA; 
  • impaired physiology and development; 
  • reduced fertility and longevity; and 
  • can lead to elevated risks of diseases including cancer. 
     Yet over the proposed 20-year extension, Perry will routinely release all tritium in the primary coolant to the environs, either as water vapor or gas to the atmosphere. In addition, there have been numerous tritium spills and leaks of considerable concern over the past decade. 
 
The Contention which will not be heard and directed to NRC 2.206 Petition below.
 
CONTENTION 1: The Severe Accident Mitigation Analysis Is Inadequate. The Declaration on Perry Geological Problems by Julie Weatherington-Rice shows immediate as well as future risk due to: 
 
  • failure to undertake a thorough level of review of the structural integrity of the facility;  
  • an outdated geotechnical analysis of the Perry site that is not predictive of actual site conditions including earthquakes, lake erosion, and leaks from wet and dry storage moving to the lake; 
  • heat from the plant that could expand underlying shale and structurally undermine the facilities; 
  • solution of the underlying Salina (salt) Formation that could destabilize the entire site; on 
  • landslides developing behind the rock shield of the bluff, dumping the rocks into the lake and exposing new faces of the bluff; 
  • known and unknown oil/gas and water wells threatening the integrity of nearby rock and soils. 
The Petition for Leave to Intervene can be found here:
 
 
 
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Submitted by admin on Sun, 01/28/2024 - 10:16