Save the Turtles

Star power vs. nuclear power

Alec Baldwin at R-N to oppose Oyster Creek

By: Kristy Barry

Posted: 12/12/06

Actor Alec Baldwin came to Rutgers-Newark Dec. 8 to moderate a discussion on nuclear power.

Baldwin joined forces with the Eastern Environmental Law Center and the Rutgers Environmental Law Clinic to host a symposium at the Center for Law and Justice and make a call to action to stop the re-licensing of the Oyster Creek power plant, which expires in 2009.

The plant, which opened in 1969, is the oldest operating commercial plant in the United States and is located in Lacey Township, N.J., 74 miles from Newark.

Nuclear plants are self-policing and the research is funded by industry, said Baldwin. Nuclear industry has stacked the deck and some of the most vital issues aren't on the table when you talk about re-licensing, Baldwin said.

Among the issues addressed by the environmental clinic were safety, environmental harm, health and security risks. The groups also claim the nuclear power plant is violating the Clean Water Act.

"The Nuclear Regulatory Commission allowed money to trump safety," said Richard Webster, an attorney for the RELC and EELC.

Webster showed a video simulation of an airplane flying into the plant to express the real and present danger of terrorism to the plant.

"The reactor is not able to run another 21 years, it's going to shut down sooner or later," Webster said.

Yet unlike other plants, nuclear plants don't create air emissions and in New Jersey, Oyster Creek produces nine percent of the state's power usage, according to the fact sheets provided by the power plant.

"People who are in favor of the re-licensing are the people who are seeking to line their pockets…this is a business," Baldwin said. "I work with a group of people who don't stand to make any money…Our goal is purely public health and safety."

Oyster Creek, which is located in the Pinelands, is a preservation area and a united biosphere reserve. The area spans 1.1 million acres and represents 22 percent of the land area.

The power plant "takes in and discharges more than 1.5 billion gallons of water per day into Barnegat Bay," said Julia Huff, the executive director of the EELC.

According to Huff, Green Sea Turtles as well as Loggerhead and Kemp's Ridley Turtles are at risk for being caught and killed in in-take grates or being affected by chemicals that end up in Barnegat Bay.

The nests of Kemp's Ridley Turtles went from 40,000 in 1947 to 5,000 in 1997.

Joe Mangano, executive director for the Radiation and Public Health Project, acknowledged the need for more research. "That's like saying if you smoke fewer than four cigarettes a day, it's harmless. We must do more studies."

Mangano detailed the Tooth Fairy Project which involved testing collected teeth from Ocean and Mommoth Counties. The research showed an increase incidence of childhood cancer.

Mangano also said the NRC sets "permissible limits."

"They're not telling us the truth. NRC stands for No Regulatory Control," said Paul Gunter, who works for the Nuclear Information and Resource Service.

During the discussion forum, one audience member pointed out studies from medical journals that he claimed there is no statistical link between the Oyster Creek plant and cancer.

The panel denied the study proved that and reinforced that there have been no such medical studies to that point. "Bottom line is, radioactivity is bad for you," Webster said.

Leslie Cifelli, who has worked in the utility industry for several years, said that power demands are on the rise and asked how the state would compensate for the loss of power.

Webster's solution is that energy usage can be reduced by 20 percent by the year 2020 and energy could be cleaned up with wind and solar power. There's plenty of power available, Webster said.

"There's no silver bullet. The greenhouse project is not our salvation," said Robert Alvarez, senior policy advisor to the U.S. Secretary of Energy from 1993 to 1999.

But not everyone was convinced by the panel's presentation.

"I came here tonight because I wanted to hear an opposing view. It's interesting that they didn't want to hear an opposing view," Cifelli said.

"There's no renewable energy," Cifelli said.

"That Tooth Fairy Project, they tested only 500 teeth from that area-there's millions of teeth there," Cifelli said. "Even if the plant shuts down today, it would take more than 30 years to decommission."

In a post-presentation reception, Baldwin noted the increase of Hybrids and Priuses in California. "Let's face it, they're not the most comfortable cars, they're not E500 Mercedes but it shows that people want to be part of the solution."

"I'm not a scientist," Baldwin told the Observer. "But I do have time to sit with them periodically and read what's the update."

The call to action included signing petitions, writing to the NRC and Exelon, organizing local events, donating to the Oyster Creek litigation fund, and calling Governor Jon Corzine at 609-292-6000.

Wilfred Innocent contributed to this report.

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