Date: 9/27/2011
Looks like Gov. Cuomo didn’t take the hint from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which last spring said that safety at Indian Point in the wake of Japan’s nuclear crisis “is really not a serious concern.”
The governor, in his first-ever online town meeting over the weekend, said he has no doubts replacement power can be found if Indian Point is shut down.
“There is no doubt we need replacement power if we are to close Indian Point,” wrote Cuomo. “There is also no doubt that we can find it.”
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Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant
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From where exactly, Governor? And when will it be ready? At what cost? Cuomo wasn’t saying -- beyond suggesting that the state build power plants and retrofit old ones. Ha. Lawyers yet unborn will litigate NIMBY issues arising from those proposals -- but Indian Point faces license renewals for its two reactors in 2013 and 2015. None of that replacement power will be ready anytime close to that. Or paid for, given that Albany is scraping for every penny these days. In fact, even with Indian Point in full operation, New York barely has enough juice. And Indian Point provides 12 percent of the Empire State’s power -- 30 percent to New York City and Westchester. |
But Cuomo won’t be deterred from his enviro-zany stance, dating back to his term as attorney general, when he waged a non-stop legal battle to shut down Indian Point.
“The replacement power issue is not a justification to keep Indian Point operating,” Cuomo wrote in his online chat. “And my point has always been safety first, and the reward doesn’t justify the risk.”
Safety first, of course.
As for the reward-to-risk ratio, the NRC deems Indian Point safe. And again, there is no way to replace its 2,000 megawatts of electricity soon and affordably.
Case closed.
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Editor's Note: Map of Indian Point appears below.
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