The following announcement is from Sierra Club and the South Florida Wildlands Association.
What: Clean Energy Rally and Protest of the Turkey Point Nuclear Power Plant Expansion!
Florida Power and Light (FPL) is applying for an operating license to construct two new nuclear generators of over 1,000 Megawatts each on the shores of Biscayne Bay. Their application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission also includes massive high voltage powerlines through densely populated sections of Miami-Dade and the eastern border of Everglades National Park.
With two million pounds of spent nuclear fuel already piled up on the shores of Biscayne Bay and a major nuclear disaster unfolding on the other side of the planet, this is not necessarily the "safe, clean and reliable source of electricity" touted on the FPL website.
See Sun-Sentinel preview article here.
When: Saturday, April 30, 2011 – 9 to 11:30 AM – community potluck, music, and kayaking in the mangroves of Biscayne Bay to follow.
Where: Homestead Bayfront County Park., 9698 SW 328th Street (N Canal Drive) Homestead, FL 33033
The Turkey Point Plant will be visible less than 2 miles away across Biscayne Bay.
Click here for location.
Schedule:
9:00 AM to 10 AM
Mock emergency evacuation of south Florida! Kayaks and canoes will be out on the water while nuclear refugees line up on the shore. Workers in hazmat suits will be checking evacuees for radiation exposure.
10 AM to 11 AM
Rally and press conference in support of safe, clean, and renewable energy and to say NO to the proposed expansion of the Turkey Point Nuclear Power Plant.
11:30 AM to ?
Join us for a community potluck, music and an afternoon of kayaking along the beautiful flats and mangroves of Biscayne Bay!
Who: South Florida Wildlands Association will join community and environmental leaders from throughout our region. Speakers for the rally and press conference include:
Phil Stoddard – Mayor of South Miami
George Cavros – Southern Alliance for Clean Energy
Laura Reynolds – Tropical Audubon
Rhonda Roff – Save It Now Glades
Barry White – Citizens Allied for Clean Energy
And a request - South Florida Wildlands Association operates on a shoestring budget. We are a Florida registered non-profit completely dependent on donations from the public to carry out our work. If you wish to help - and even a $5 donation is helpful - please visit our donation page below and contribute online or via check.
For more information on the nuclear issue - please see our letter/essay below. Hope to see many of you this Saturday! (Please click 'read more')
Dear Friends,
April 26th, 2011 marked the 25th anniversary of the nuclear disaster at Chernobyl (Ukraine) which released highly radioactive material over a wide swath of our planet. While the initial explosion led to a small number of immediate deaths, secondary impacts due to wide-spread radiation exposure have been much harder to pin down. Numerous studies from academics, government agencies, and environmental groups have produced varying estimates - ranging as high as 985,000. This is in addition to widespread ecological impacts to plants, animals, and water; chronic medical conditions; chromosomal defects; and mental health problems (apparently due to feelings of being “tainted” or “doomed” by the exposure). A large exclusion zone – the “Zone of Alienation” – with a radius of 30 kilometers (19 miles) around the former plant remains to this day. Plans are currently underway to redesign and replace the aging concrete tomb which now encloses the still highly radioactive site, while
a strange new form of “adventure tourism” – visits to the abandoned city of Pripyat closest to the destroyed Chernobyl plant – is gaining in popularity.
See map of impacted areas near the Chernobyl site here (click to enlarge):
http://m1e.net/c?86943521-zGXfLQMgx9m8U%406395984-hG7xzkPlFoPEU
Two events make this particular anniversary special. First is the ongoing disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan. While initially portrayed as a relatively minor incident soon to be brought under control, actual events have revealed a situation far more dangerous. Numerous nuclear generators have been impacted and the amount of radioactive material on site - in the form of thousands of active, spent and new nuclear fuel rods - is enormous in comparison to the quantity of nuclear material at Chernobyl at the time of the explosion. The slow disintegration (and partial meltdown) of radioactive material inside the damaged structures, ongoing leaks (just today a new leak was found in reactor #1) and the need to dump thousands of tons of contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean have led to a nightmare with still unknown long term consequences for both humans and the planetary ecosystem. Of the dozens of accidents reported at civilian nuclear power
plants over the decades, Fukushima Daiichi is the second to be rated a “7” on the scale used by the International Atomic Energy Agency. As in Chernobyl, a no entry zone has been established around the perimeter of the plant (20 kilometers or 12 miles – 30 kilometers “recommended”) while the U.S. British and Australian governments have advised nationals living within 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the stricken plant to evacuate. The cleanup is expected to take decades and many billions of dollars.
The second reason south Floridians in particular should be aware of this day, is that our local utility company, Florida Power and Light (FPL), is currently applying to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a Combined Operating License (COL) to construct two new massive nuclear generators on the shores of Biscayne Bay (right next door to Biscayne National Park) - only 25 miles from downtown Miami and 50 miles from downtown Ft. Lauderdale. These new 1,100 MW reactors would be added to two old reactors which have already accumulated more than 2 million pounds of spent – but still highly active – radioactive fuel. No off-site storage facilities exist. See article below regarding a $70,000 fine recently levied against FPL by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for failure to fully protect this volatile component of south Florida’s environment.
http://m1e.net/c?86943521-51TcgPOWRZWG6%406395985-p6sNL8VPE.dNg
It should be noted that FPL’s license application for the new reactors also includes a new high voltage powerline through densely populated sections of Miami-Dade County, plus three massive lines across what is currently the eastern edge of Everglades National Park. Much more about that soon, when the National Park Service solicits public opinion regarding that part of the plan.
While all agree that catastrophic nuclear accidents are unlikely on a day to day basis, clearly the more generators there are, the longer they operate, and the more nuclear material which accumulates on a site, the greater the chance of a large mishap. Like all industries, accidents due to human error, equipment failure, design flaws (the new AP1000 reactors contemplated for Turkey Point have never before been built), malicious behavior, and natural disasters have all been a part of the nuclear safety record at Turkey Point and elsewhere. The effort to mine, process and refine uranium (even when pure, natural uranium contains nowhere near the concentration of the Uranium 235 isotope necessary to set off and run the nuclear chain reactions which produce power) also take their toll on human beings and the environment.
When south Floridians return home at the end of a workday, the main thing they hope and expect from their electricity supply is that it is there. If any further thought is given, it would generally be – “how much is this stuff costing me?” Asking local residents to assess the precise risks to their homes, community and surrounding ecosystem from their electricity supply is simply ridiculous. A quick scan on the internet will reveal that scientists worldwide are all over the map on the degree of danger nuclear plants pose and on how much radiation is “safe” (though the medical consensus seems to be that there is NO SAFE LEVEL of radiation exposure across a population – indicated by current concerns over even routine medical diagnostic procedures which involve radiation). For comprehensive information on radiation exposure, please see a recent article by Dr. Susan Blumenthal, former Assistant Surgeon General of the United States:
http://m1e.net/c?86943521-ErCUxx/evIyag%406395986-eJR/HZor6LOF2
FPL’s energy resources are already massive – and growing larger all the time. Among their south Florida holdings is the largest fossil fuel power plant in the U.S. – a 3,705 MW gas and oil plant in Martin County. Topping even that behemoth is the 3,750 MW gas fired plant still under construction in Palm Beach County. Located just 1000 feet from the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge – the only intact remnant of the northern Everglades – the plant will be the largest gas fired plant in the country upon completion. And this in addition to expanded capacity already approved at the company’s four existing nuclear generators at Turkey Point and St. Lucie.
Enough is enough. The Sunshine State has more solar potential by far than any state in the eastern United States. In spite of our cloud cover, major parts of south Florida rival the southwest in terms of “insolation”. Yet our use of solar and renewable energy in general (outside of significant burning of garbage to produce electricity) remains negligible.
If not now – when? It's time to turn the corner and actually begin building the “green energy economy” that creates not only electricity and jobs, but is compatible with the ecosystem which sustains south Florida. Our technology has brought clean, safe, and viable solutions within our reach (and at least part of that solution is ENERGY CONSERVATION). Let’s do it.
See also 2007 article from the Institute of Southern Studies – “Solar Power in the Sunshine State”:
http://m1e.net/c?86943521-jB5FO3QKXIGlg%406395987-1J4r17blQ4Qh6
Folks wishing to weigh in on FPL’s license application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for the two new reactors – the application has not yet been approved – can do so by sending comments to the following email address:
Hearingdocket@nrc.gov
You will be making a “Limited Appearance Statement” to the Atomic Energy Licensing Board and your comments will become a part of the docket containing the public record. Please place “Turkey Point Units 6 and 7” in the subject line as well as the body of your email as the above email address handles public comments on nuclear power plant applications nationwide.
Best regards,
Matt Schwartz
Executive Director
South Florida Wildlands Association
P.O. Box 30211
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33303
southfloridawild.org
954-634-7173
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