10.22.09
San Antonio Nuclear Energy Awareness Rally in Georgetown today
Press release from the Students for Environmental Activism and Knowledge (SEAK) about the event is below:
Today at noon, Georgetown and Austin area students and community members, in partnership with SEAK (Students for Environmental Activism and Knowledge) at Southwestern University, held a press conference and awareness rally at the Williamson County Courthouse in regards to the proposed nuclear reactors by the South Texas Expansion Project and CPS Energy of San Antonio.
Three speakers presented arguments against the proposal and Georgetown’s support of it. Connor Hanrahan, SU Senior and president of SEAK, spoke about the lack of transparency in the Georgetown City Council’s energy policy process and the inappropriateness of the City’s support of a plan that has public opposition in San Antonio. Matthew Johnson of Public Citizen’s Texas Office spoke about the unnecessary financial risk associated with the plan.
“Given that the estimated cost of the nuclear expansion at the South Texas Project has doubled since Georgetown’s city council approved a 25 year power generation plan,” Johnson said, “there’s a strong case to be made that rethinking that plan with new assumptions would be appropriate to protect ratepayers.”
Noting that LCRA has requested the current drought be classified as worse than the 1950s era “drought of record,” Trevor Lovell of ReEnergize Texas expressed concern about the impact the new nuclear reactors would have on water flowing in the Colorado River.
“In a drought year the 2 reactors currently at STP consume half the flow of the river. Adding two new reactors will put wetland wildlife at substantial risk and may wipe local rice farmers out completely.”
The coalition plans to speak at the Georgetown City Council meeting next week and deliver a letter to each Council member asking them to rescind their support of the project and reconsider their commitment to 30% nuclear in their current 2035 energy plan.
Here’s an article from last month on the subject, Heated nuclear debate continues
Both sides in the contentious nuclear debate made one last attempt to sway CPS Energy’s board in the face of the upcoming decision to spend another $400 million on the project.
Opponents of the plan to add two more reactors to the South Texas Project outside Bay City continued to hit on the themes of unknown and potentially skyrocketing costs and the lack of a long-term solution to nuclear waste.
Several called for a voter referendum. Supporters for the first time at a public meeting included leaders from three electric cooperatives around the state that want to buy electricity from the expanded facility. These were the Kerrville Public Utility Board, Central Texas Electric Cooperative and the city of Georgetown.
More at cleanwateraction.org.