Diablo Canyon, Calif., nuclear power plant may store radioactive waste
The Tribune, San Luis Obispo, Calif. --Dec. 1
The public could have significantly more access to land surrounding Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant within two years if the state Coastal Commission approves plans to build a storage facility for the plant's highly radioactive waste.
The commission will hold a hearing on the proposal when it meets Dec. 8 in
San Francisco. PG&E officials declined to comment Tuesday, saying they would
make their comments directly to the commission.
It is almost certain PG&E will oppose the new access requirements. The
utility opposed similar conditions suggested by county planners and rejected a
proposal to locate an underground neutrino research facility near the plant
because of the additional public access it would entail.
"Clearly, we've had concerns about public access from a security and
emergency planning perspective," said Jeff Lewis, plant spokesman.
PG&E needs the approval of the commission to build an above-ground
storage facility behind the plant for used reactor fuel assemblies. The facility
would consist of a thick concrete slab upon which as many as 138
steel-and-concrete storage casks would be mounted. Inside them would be placed
the highly radioactive spent-fuel rods.
The San Luis Obispo Mothers for Peace and other environmental groups appealed
the county's approval of the project for a variety of safety reasons. Their main
concern is that the dry-cask facility will become a de facto permanent nuclear
waste dump because it is unknown if a national storage facility at Yucca
Mountain in Nevada will ever be built.
Mothers for Peace spokeswoman Rochelle Becker said she is disappointed that
the commission staff did not try to limit the amount of waste that could be
stored at the site. Other states, including Connecticut, Minnesota and
Wisconsin, have successfully placed limits on the number of casks allowed,
pending the establishment of the national storage facility in Nevada.
State law requires that additional coastal access be created to offset any
loss of access caused by a development project. Commission staff is recommending
these new requirements:
--Access to three miles of bluffs from Monta–a de Oro State Park south to
Crowbar Creek, including three overlooks.
--Access to at least one beach in the 3-mile area, most likely Point Buchon
Beach near the state park's southern boundary.
--More frequent hikes on the Pecho Coast Trail on the southern portion of the
Diablo Canyon lands. The utility currently provides two popular docent-led hikes
per week, but the trail's management plan allows daily hikes.
Staff is also recommending that PG&E consider providing additional
amenities that would enhance the increased public access. Examples of this
include improvements to the historic Point San Luis Lighthouse, which is part of
the Pecho Coast Trail, and trail extensions from Monta–a de Oro.
If the commission adopts the plan, PG&E would have six months to prepare
an access plan that would have to be approved by commission executive director
Peter Douglas and two years to implement it, said Tom Luster, a commission staff
analyst. The plan would contain details about how and what type of access the
public would get.
For example, the staff recommendations do not require that people visiting
the new access corridor be accompanied by a docent as they are on the Pecho
Coast Trail. It would be up to PG&E to justify that sort of requirement,
Luster said.
Coastal Commission planners say the new access should not pose a security
risk. The proposed trail does not go near the 760-acre security area that
surrounds the plant.
"We think this access requirement will work, but we would be willing to
work with PG&E to address specific security concerns," Luster said.
The commission's approval of the storage facility is the final regulatory
hurdle PG&E must overcome. The federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission already
has approved the project.
Any access requirements or other conditions placed on the project by the
commission would be final. A lawsuit would be the only way the commission's
actions could be overturned, Luster said.
PG&E needs to build the storage facility because pools at the plant,
where the fuel is currently stored, will be full in 2006. The utility has
applied to the NRC for permission to install temporary storage racks in the
pools that would create an additional two years of storage.
The temporary racks are an option if the Coastal Commission or lawsuits delay
the dry-cask facility, Lewis said. If that project proceeds without delay, the
temporary rack option would be dropped.
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