The Time Clock Is Ticking On Indian Point Relicensing

Feeling here like someone has just sucker punched me in the gut...despite serious lies and problems in Entergy's license renewal application, the NRC will be announcing in the Federal Registry next week that they are ACCEPTING said license renewal application for review and action. As much as I and others who have been and will continue working to stop said relicensing would like to get sick about now, we do not have the time. We now have basically 60 days from early next week in which to have our Petition To Intervene filed, and our request for a hearing submitted to the NRC.

Fighting a license renewal application is going to take money, and not talking here about a few thousand dollars...conservatively, win, lose or draw, myself and others within our coalition need to raise between $150,000-$200,000 to have any chance at all in this fight. Expert fees and assistance alone are going to be very expensive. Attorney fees in this area can range from $250-$500 per hour if this case has to go to the Second District court, which it will. Just look at Andrew Spano's case...the bill so far is $80,000 and growing with each and every passing day.

As of tomorrow, we will be retaining our own expert for this fight...somehow, we will figure out a way to cover the retainer, but we need the help of the grassroots Anti-Nuclear movement. The Greenpeace and Green Party message boards on Care2 combined have over 50,000 members on them. There is the IPSEC list serve, and other areas where this post can be shared. If each person reading this article were to make a small contribution to the cause, and then forward the article to their friends, we can raise the money needed to fight this fight.

For the cost of a Starbuck's coffee and a danish, you could make a $5 or $10 donation, and if enough of us toss in a sawbuck or two, raising the needed funds is an attainable goal. Ask yourselves, is closing a plant that is leaking tritium and strontium into the Hudson River worth a small donation of $10? Is closing a nuclear reactor sitting atop and earthquake fault worth a donation of $10? If you answered yes, please help us in our cause, in our hour of need by taking the following actions:

1. Copy and paste this article into as many message boards, list serves, and emails as you can to help us spread the word.

2. Send your donation to:

FUSE USA

c/o Sherwood Martinelli
351 Dyckman Street
Peekskill, New York 10566

NRC's Official Letter Making The Announcement

No. 07-091 July 25, 2007

NRC ANNOUNCES OPPORTUNITY TO REQUEST HEARING ON APPLICATION TO
RENEW OPERATING LICENSE FOR INDIAN POINT NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission today announced the opportunity to request a hearing on an application to renew the operating licenses for the Indian Point nuclear power plant, Units 2 and 3, for an additional 20 years.

The Indian Point plant has two pressurized water reactors located in the town of Buchanan, N.Y., about 24 miles north of New York City. The plant owner, Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc., submitted the renewal application April 30. The current operating licenses for Indian Point expire on Sept. 28, 2013, for Unit 2 and Dec. 12, 2015, for Unit 3. Indian Point Unit 1 was shut down in 1974.

The NRC staff has determined that the application contains sufficient information for the agency to formally "docket," or file, the application and begin its technical review. Docketing the application does not preclude requesting additional information as the review proceeds; nor does it indicate whether the Commission will renew the licenses.

During the docketing review, NRC staff informed Entergy that the current licensing basis for Unit 2 was not fully represented and that the application did not include information on the gas turbines currently credited as an alternative power supply in case of "station blackout," or loss of all alternating current (AC) power. Entergy subsequently committed to installing a diesel generator for Unit 2 and having it operational by April 30, 2008.

The NRC also received letters from the New York State Attorney General, Riverkeeper, and Friends United for Sustainable Energy (FUSE), asserting that Entergy’s license renewal application was incomplete or inaccurate. Although the NRC has determined that the application contains sufficient information to docket the application, the staff will consider these comments as appropriate during the technical review process.

The Indian Point application for license renewal is posted at

http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/indian-point.html

An NRC review schedule for Indian Point will also be posted soon. Because of the pending installation of the diesel generator for Unit 2, the NRC staff anticipates the review will take 27 months if no hearing is granted, and 35 months with a hearing. Meeting this schedule will depend on Entergy’s

prompt submission of all requested and necessary information. License renewal reviews typically take 22 months with no hearing, or 30 months with a hearing.

A notice of opportunity to request a hearing will be published soon in the

Federal Register

. The deadline for requesting a hearing is 60 days after publication of the notice. Petitions may be filed by anyone whose interest may be affected by the license renewal and who wishes to participate as a party in the proceeding. Background information regarding the hearing process was disseminated by NRC staff to members of the public during a public information session conducted near Indian Point on June 27.

A request for hearing and a petition for leave to intervene must be filed with the Secretary of the Commission, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C. 20555-0001, Attention:

Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff. Requests may also be submitted by facsimile to (301) 415-1101 or e-mail to

HEARINGDOCKET@nrc.gov. A copy should also be submitted to the NRC Office of General Counsel, by facsimile to (301) 415-3725 or e-mail to OGCMailCenter@nrc.gov

Information about the license renewal process can be found on the NRC Web site at:

http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal.html