State Attorney General Letitia James has stated “grave concerns” over the current decommissioning plans for the Indian Point Nuclear Plant in Buchannan and announced the state should have full participation in the proceedings.
She and the attorneys’ general of eleven other states have threatened legal action if these concerns are not met stating, the company Holtec International of Camden, N.J. “... has no experience with such an enormous, complex and consequential undertaking.”
I was not aware that James has any technical experience or knowledge with such an enormous, complex and consequential undertaking to make this determination.
In fact, I’m not aware of any attorney general who does.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has authority and responsibility over the license transfer for a nuclear plant decommissioning.
It troubles me when politicians and bureaucrats detail engage in activities beyond their backgrounds or capabilities. As we’ve seen numerous times in the past, when these people do intrude, costs and inefficiency rise as schedules greatly expand with the taxpayer and consumer paying the unnecessary costs.
A good example is the California high-speed rail project or the federal "shovel-ready" projects of the recent past.
I’m still waiting to hear how the Albany politicians propose to compensate for the 2000 megawatt shortfall of electricity when Indian Point closes.
Prior to retirement, I’ve spent 35 years in the electric power industry, twenty-one in various engineering and management positions with the New York Power Authority and Entergy Nuclear.
Having worked on the emergency evacuation plan for Westchester and Rockland counties vis-à-vis Indian Point in the 1980s and working on occasion with the Institute for Nuclear Power Operations, I’ve never seen politicians add value to any technical enterprise with their intrusions.
William E. Lemanski
Tuxedo