TESTIMONY FROM CAPE DOWNWINDERS AND MA DOWNWINDERS - SUPPORT FOR S. 1797 AND S. 1798

CAPE DOWNWINDERS TESTIMONY STATEMENT

S. 1797/1798 - State Authority

Federal law limits the extent to which states can regulate nuclear power.  It preempts state and local laws that seek to regulate radiological health & safety aspects, except where Congress has granted states authority to perform environmental assessments and set standards under the Clean Air and Clean Water Act, or when state law is based on economics.  The rationale for these bills is economic. These bills are not preempted, as explained in the Attachment. 

The purpose of this Act is to protect economic interests of the Commonwealth by giving nuclear power plant owners a strong incentive to reduce the spent nuclear fuel assemblies in their spent fuel pool(s), and thus concomitantly reduce the economic consequences if there were a spent fuel pool fire at Pilgrim. 

S. 1797/1798 - State Authority

Federal law limits the extent to which states can regulate nuclear power.  It preempts state and local laws that seek to regulate radiological health & safety aspects, except where Congress has granted states authority to perform environmental assessments and set standards under the Clean Air and Clean Water Act, or when state law is based on economics.  The rationale for these bills is economic. These bills are not preempted, as explained in the Attachment. 

The purpose of this Act is to insure that Pilgrim or any commercial nuclear power reactor in the Commonwealth will be properly decommissioned, in a timely manner, and that money deposited by the owner into the Commonwealth’s trust fund - not Massachusetts tax-payers - will pay for the decommissioning that the Act requires.

ECONOMIC IMPACT ON MASSACHUSETTS OF A NUCLEAR ACCIDENT

By Brian E. Boyle, Ph.D.

ROBIN L. HUBBARD, CHAIR - ORLEANS DEMOCRATIC TOWN COMMITTEE - TESTIMONY IN FAVOR OF S. 1797 AND S.1798

CAPE COD NATIONAL SEASHORE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TESTIMONY S. 1797 and S.1798