Press Release - March 24, 2021

PSR WI PETITIONS TO INTERVENE AND REQUESTS HEARING IN OPPOSITION TO NEXTERA ENERGY POINT BEACH'S 80-YEAR OPERATING LICENSE APPLICATION

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On March 23, 2021, Physicians for Social Responsibility Wisconsin, filed a legal request on behalf of its Wisconsin members and ten local intervenors for a hearing on the 20-year license extension application for the Point Beach Nuclear Reactors (PBNP) located near Two Rivers, WI on the shores of Lake Michigan.

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PSR WI opposes the pending, subsequent (2nd) operating license extensions by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for Point Beach Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2 that would allow the reactors to operate for a total of 80 years. PSR WI cited concerns including Lake Michigan water intake and thermal discharge, age and structural integrity of the reactors, the environmental and public health risks with accidents, and safer, more economical renewable energy alternatives.

 

Amy Schulz, RN, President of PSR WI, stated, “As a health care provider and member of PSR WI, I was shocked that NextEra, owners of PBNP, were attempting to extend their operating license from 60 to 80 years. These reactors are plagued with a long history of accidents and embrittlement which make the risk of a catastrophic accident untenable for the safety of Wisconsin residents and the environment. One simply needs to look at the financial, environmental and health costs paid by the people of Japan and Ukraine after the accidents at Fukushima and Chernobyl to recognize the folly of this relicensing proposal.”

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PSR WI has retained Mark Cooper, PhD; Alvin Compaan, PhD; and Arnie Gundersen, ME, Nuclear Engineering, as expert witnesses. Terry Lodge, an attorney based in Toledo, Ohio, serves as legal counsel for PSR WI in this proceeding.