The disturbing recent decision by the Federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission to plow ahead with relicensing Vermont’s troubled nuclear reactor turns a blind-eye to the unfolding tragedy in Japan.   Simply rubber stamping license requests for older nuclear plants is irresponsible.   The NRC should have pressed the “pause” button.  Instead, the NRC rejected requests from Vermont’s Congressional delegation, and issued a decision at odds with Vermont’s wishes.

The events in Japan highlight the problems with the older vintage nuclear plants.   Both Vermont Yankee and Pilgrim, in Plymouth, MA  are of the same vintage and have the same container systems as the reactors in Japan.  While tidal waves and earthquakes of the magnitude just suffered in Japan are unlikely in our region, our plants are vulnerable to the floods and power outages that struck Japan’s nuclear reactors, and caused the cooling systems to fail.

Showing a prescient lack of faith in the federal relicensing of nuclear plants, Vermont law requires the independent approval from the Vermont Legislature and the Vermont Public Service Board before allowing continued operation.

The events in Japan confirm the soundness of the Vermont Legislature’s decision last year to close down Vermont Yankee on schedule, at the end of its current license.   Vermont has been watching Vermont Yankee closely for years.  The Legislature’s vote last year was not a surprise.  The plant is old and has been leaking and plagued with problems.  The public has lost faith in the facility.

Hopefully the events in Japan will prompt a much, much harder look at the safety of our older nuclear fleet.   Meanwhile, Vermont sets a good example for responsible oversight and decision-making about how we meet our energy needs.

The sun is shining in Vermont–literally and figuratively–during “Sunshine Week…a national initiative to promote a dialogue about the importance of open government and freedom of information.” CLF is celebrating Sunshine Week by supporting two major government transparency reforms making their way through the Vermont legislature.

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT H.258

For more than a decade, CLF has been trying to shine a light on the behind-closed-door process for environmental enforcement in Vermont and to give affected members of the public a voice in the process.   In a 2008 case brought by CLF, the Vermont Environmental Court ruled that Vermont’s enforcement procedures were unlawfully depriving affected members of the public from notice of and an opportunity to comment on the backroom deals regulators strike with polluters before those deals get approved by the courts.  EPA subsequently agreed with this assessment.  It has provided the state with guidance on how to amend state laws to protect the public’s right to know about and participate in proceedings against polluters who damage our shared natural resources through their illegal activity.

This week, CLF’s efforts took a major step forward when the Vermont House Natural Resources and Energy Committee gave unanimous support to a bill proposed by the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources-H.258. Though not perfect, the bill goes a long way toward giving citizens who have suffered the effects of illegal pollution a role in the enforcement process.  Kudos to reporters Shay Totten at 7 Days (his stories are here and here) and Candy Page at the Burlington Free Press (her coverage here) for bringing this story the attention it deserves.  In a positive editorial today, the Free Press editorial board wrote:

An agreement between the state and polluters sealed behind closed doors might be more efficient, but that efficiency comes at the expense of transparency and true accountability.

…

The bill to open all environmental violation settlements to public scrutiny and challenge before final approval once again shows there’s much about government that can be fixed by increasing openness.

A vote by the full House is scheduled on Tuesday of this week.  Show your support for greater openness and public participation by contacting your local Vermont representative and them to vote for H.258.

STRENGTHENING VERMONT’S FREEDOM OF INFORMATION LAW H.73

CLF is also pleased to be working in a coalition of groups seeking to strengthen Vermont’s Freedom of Information laws.  CLF, along with the American Civil Liberties Union of Vermont, the Vermont State Employees Association, the Vermont Press Association, and others committed to open government testified in support of H.73.  The bill would strengthen citizen enforcement of public records laws in cases where government officials unlawfully prevent the public from seeing public documents.  The most important feature of the bill would ensure that those unlawfully denied access to records will recover their attorney’s fees when they successfully argue in court that the government was wrong to deny access.  This would be a major deterrent to government secrecy.  The bill also ensures that most private contractors performing governmental functions also have to comply with public access laws.  The ACLU has been a leader on this important effort and its full summary of the bill’s open-government reform can be found here.

We cannot solve Vermont’s environmental problems without effective enforcement of our environmental laws, and we will not have effective enforcement without greater government transparency.  Let the sun shine!

As you may know, in 2009, the Douglas Administration adopted a controversial rule allowing ATV use on state lands. ATV use damages trails, degrades fragile ecosystems like wetlands, threatens the safety of wildlife and fragments sensitive habitats. These consequences radically alter the backcountry experience – an integral part of Vermont’s culture and economy. Since the adoption of this rule, CLF and a coalition of citizens and partner organizations have been fighting to restore the protection of those lands from the environmental damage and public safety risks posed by increased ATV use.

The Good News…
Last month, Governor Shumlin’s new leadership team at Vermont’s Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) took the first steps toward repealing the 2009 rule! Their proposed new rule will repeal the 2009 one allowing ATVs on state lands.

The Not-So-Good News..
The Agency of Natural Resources has come under immense pressure from pro-ATV groups to uphold the devastating rule. The constant and relentless criticisms from these groups are raising the potential for it to stand. Vermont and ANR still need your support!

What You Can Do…
1. Submit an official comment to Vermont’s Agency of Natural Resources before May 3rd telling them to withstand the pro-ATV group criticism and follow through on the campaign-trail promise to repeal the 2009 rule. Please note that this date is a change from the original deadline of May 7th. Submit your comment now.

2. If you can, join us at a public hearing on April 26 at St. Leo’s Hall in Waterbury from 7-9 p.m., and make your voice heard. For directions, click here.

The tragedy in Japan brings some very real risks of nuclear power into focus.  The ”GE Mark I Boiling Water Reactors” in Japan are the same type as the ones used at Vermont Yankee and Pilgrim in Plymouth, MA.

Our colleagues, nuclear experts David Lochbaum and Edwin Lyman at the Union of Concerned Scientists, are providing helpful and detailed analysis and insights about the unfolding nuclear events in Japan at http://allthingsnuclear.org/

It is worth a look.

One of the easiest ways to make bad decisions is to allow ourselves to be drawn into a false choice – to see two options as an “either/or” where seeking one goal means stepping away from another. This can be a false choice because, fortunately, sometimes making the right decision will yield a double benefit.

When we have an opportunity to reduce energy use and harmful emissions while building jobs and the economy we encounter that kind of golden moment: when the right choice yields double, triple and even quadruple benefits.

There are people who will reject this formulation – who will present that most fundamental of false choices: the flawed argument that making the right choice for our environment and the public health is bad for the economic health of our communities and building jobs.

We are surrounded by proof that economic benefit flows from the same actions that reduce dirty energy use and emissions. The nation-leading energy efficiency programs funded by the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) which have created jobs while slashing the energy bills of families and businesses of the Northeast is a prime example.  A recent report issued by the states participating in RGGI (described here) provides hard numbers documenting this happy phenomena.

But we can do far better – and we need to if we are going to address the fundamental challenge of global warming and if we are going build the new economic base that can provide jobs and financial security for the future. Building that cleaner and more secure future will mean building on the successes of RGGI, making it more effective in reducing emissions and creating even more investment in energy efficiency so it slashes even more customer bills and creates even more jobs.

CLF submitted its proposal today to the Vermont Public Service Board recommending strong action in response to the ongoing leaks and contamination at the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power facility.

“Entergy VY’s actions in response to the leaks have been and continue to be irresponsible and inadequate. ”
- CLF Proposal for Decision

CLF’s filing highlights the lackluster response of Vermont Yankee’s owners to the leaks.  With new contamination revealed only two weeks ago, it is long past time for Vermont regulators to take action.

Read CLF Recommendation

Read Entergy update – 2-11-2011

Since the Douglas Administration’s controversial 2009 rule allowing ATV use on state lands, CLF and a coalition of citizens and partner organizations have been fighting to restore protection of state lands from the environmental damage and public safety risks posed by expanded ATV use.  In an exciting development last week (you can read about it here and here), Governor Shumlin’s new leadership team at Vermont’s Agency of Natural Resources took the first steps toward putting the brakes on the 2009 rule by starting a new process to repeal the ATV Rule.  CLF needs your help to ensure that Governor Shumlin and Secretary Markowitz follow through on this important campaign-trail promise and withstand the pressure from ATV clubs.

• Call the Governor and Secretary Markowitz and leave a message thanking them for starting the process to restore protections for sensitive state lands and ask them to follow through by reversing the Douglas Administration’s ATV Rule

Governor Peter Shumlin’s Office: 802-828-3333
Secretary Deb Markowitz’s Office: 802-241-3600

Just days after Vermont regulators concluded hearings on its investigation of leaks at the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power facility, there are reports of more tritium pollution in the groundwater.

The Vermont Health Department reports that contamination was found in a new well.  The location is different from the site of the pollution from the previous leak.  It also reports that contamination has been “trending upward” at this well since late December.

The new findings belie the corporate claims during the hearings that the leaks are repaired and the site is cleaned up.   Could this be a new leak and a new lie from our “trusted” friends at Vermont Yankee?

UPDATE:  Entergy denies knowing about the new problem during the hearings.  It seems they were simply not paying close attention.  Read Entergy’s letter. 

The plant is too old and its owners can’t be trusted.

MONTPELIER, VT January 24, 2010 – The Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) has issued the following statement in response to today’s decision by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to withdraw its approval of Vermont’s 2002 water quality plan for Lake Champlain. The decision comes almost two years after CLF first challenged EPA’s approval of the Plan in federal court.

“Today’s decision by the EPA to re-examine Vermont’s water quality plan for Lake Champlain is the key to bringing the Lake back to health,” said Louis Porter, CLF’s Lake Champlain Lakekeeper. “The EPA has reviewed the existing pollution budget and concluded, correctly, that there has not been enough improvement in the health of Lake Champlain under the current plan. Now, with a new administration in Vermont and a new water quality plan on the way, Vermont can begin a new, science-based approach to cleaning up Lake Champlain and making sure it remains a safe and enjoyable resource for swimmers, boaters, anglers, and the more than 200,000 people for whom it provides drinking water.” More >