Lawmakers Want Clarification on Pilgrim Decommissioning Plans

COURTESY PILGRIM NUCLEAR POWER STATION

PLYMOUTH – Following a meeting focused on the Post-Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report (PSDAR) for the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Plymouth, a bi-partisan group of state officials is requesting clarification on elements of the decommissioning process from Nuclear Regulatory Commission officials.

State officials are concerned with the funding formula of the Nuclear Decommission Trust Fund, the licensee responsibility for and regulatory oversight of the decommissioning process, and the assurance that complete site remediation is included in the decommission process.

“What the delegation, both state and federal, is looking for is what happens if the funding that’s available right now in the Decommissioning Fund is not enough to finish the total decommissioning. Who’s liable? Is it the company that owns the license or is it the taxpayer? We’re trying to get to the bottom of that,” said Plymouth/Barnstable State Senator Vinny deMacedo (R-Plymouth).

The decommissioning of Pilgrim is unique because it involves a transfer of license.

“What we’re looking for from the federal government is where the liability lies because what happens is that generally one would expect that the licensee, in this case being Entergy, would liable for that,” deMacedo explained.

“But because we are transferring the license to a new entity and they are creating a joint venture with another company, is this joint venture liable or is it Entergy that would still be liable for the full decommissioning costs?”

In a letter to the NRC, the delegation expressed concerns with the formula used to determine the funding of the NDT. The legislators say that the NDT has a balance of $1.05 billion while estimates for the decommissioning are projected to be approximately $1.134 billion.

The delegation is requesting more information from the NRC on the formula used as well as a timeline of the process and assurance that there is enough time, should the NDT need to increase to meet the funding requirements of the decommissioning process

“The legislative delegation understands the importance and immense complexity of this decommissioning process and is working to ensure it is completed in the most thorough, most efficient, and most safe way possible for the residents of the Commonwealth,“ deMacedo said in a release.

By TIM DUNN, CapeCod.com News Center