Germany and Switzerland have now both announced they will phase out their nuclear reactors, heeding the demands of their citizens and recognizing the inherent dangers of nuclear power. Unfortunately our regulators and decision-makers haven’t learned the lessons of the Fukushima disaster. Just ten days after the meltdowns in Japan began, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) granted a 20-year license extension to Vermont Yankee, a reactor with a long list of problems in a state that has voted overwhelmingly to close it.
The NRC has never denied a license renewal for a nuclear reactor – their rubber-stamp process puts tens of millions in danger of a nuclear disaster. Right now, they are reviewing the Indian Point reactors in New York, which put 17 million people at risk within a 50-mile radius. The plant sits on two active seismic zones and is only 35 miles north of New York City.
Tomorrow, June 2, the NRC will be holding a meeting near Indian Point to discuss the safety of the reactors. Greenpeace and local allies will be there in full force to demand that Indian Point be shut down. We don’t need a Chernobyl or Fukushima on American soil to convince us that nuclear power is dangerous.
