I recommend a visit to both Yes Vermont Yankee and Idaho Samizdat for details, but I wanted to let you all know that the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission has voted to renew the operating license for the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant for another 20 years. The extension will last through 2032; the NRC has determined that Entergy “meets all of our requirements and standards needed to be able to operate for another 20 years.”
It would be completely illogical, but not beyond the realm of possibility, for the state of Vermont to decide that the plant has not earned a certificate of public good. How can anyone possibly state that a well-maintained, reliable, emission free electrical power station that can provide more than 80% of the electricity used by the entire state every year is not a “public good”? (I would be happy to debate, with numbers and references, anyone who disputes my characterization of the plant.)
Vermont Yankee is not a Public Good because the Vermont governor has decided that his imaginary concerns are more important than any mere evidence.
Witness, for those not following the story, the rush to shut down the Public Service Board’s ability to even address this issue last year – to get ahead of the inconvenient evidential report that was about to be delivered to the Vermont senate.
If even the NRC has given an extension for Vermont Yankee, then perhaps the governor needs impeaching…