Only a Chuckle Head would defend the current Non-Evacuation Plan!

Entergy is wrong about evacuation and emergency planning

10-mile zone is a one-size-fits-all guideline

 

Article | Letters to the Editor | March 6, 2015 - 10:00am

 

Editor's note: The following letter to the editor was received in response to the story, "Anti-nuclear groups ask Governor Baker to be proactive about Pilgrim", posted on Thursday, March 5.

To the Editor:

Regarding evacuation and emergency planning, Entergy employee Lauren Burm said, "Years of analysis went into the initial selection of a 10-mile zone, and additional years of study by the NRC have determined that it is the appropriate size to ensure public safety”.

This statement is factually wrong. The 10-mile zone is a one-size-fits-all guideline developed in 1980 after the partial meltdown at Three Mile Island. In 1996 the NRC and FEMA stated:

 

“The exact size and configuration of the EPZs [Emergency Planning Zones] surrounding a particular nuclear power reactor should be determined in relation to local emergency response needs and capabilities as they are affected by such conditions as demography, topography, land characteristics, access routes…”

Pilgrim Nuclear is the only nuclear plant in the U.S. where a significant population is located near the plant, separated only by a body of water, Cape Cod Bay, and with no practical way to evacuate in a timely manner.

More disconcerting is that Entergy is so quickly willing to ignore local geographical reality, and the safety concerns of over 100,000 Cape and Island adult citizens and registered voters who want to be included in an emergency plan.

Brian Boyle
Truro, MA

 

 

Related Content:

Anti-nuclear groups ask Governor Baker to be proactive about Pilgrim

 

 

 

janet azarovitz

 

POPULATION CONSIDERATIONS

As stated in 10 CFR 100.21(h), "reactors should be located away
from very densely populated centers; areas of low population density are
generally preferred. Part 100 also states that, in determining the
acceptability of a particular site located away from a very densely populated
center but not in an area of low density, consideration will be given to
safety, environmental, economic, or other factors that may result in the site
being found acceptable."

"Locating reactors away from densely populated centers (BOSTON IS 37 MILES FROM PNPS, NEW BEDFORD IS 35 MILLES FROM PNPS, PROVIDENCE IS 43 MILES FROM PNPS!!) is part of the NRC's defense-in-depth philosophy and facilitates emergency planning and preparedness as well as reducing potential doses and property damage in the event of a severe accident."

According to 10 CFR
100.21(g), "Physical characteristics unique to the proposed site that could
pose a significant impediment to the development of emergency plans must be
identified."

 

 

 

http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2015/03/06/29184-entergy-wrong-about-evacuation-and-emergency-planning