Residents and advocacy groups are asking the federal government for a hearing to try to stop a nuclear power plant in Southwest Michigan from reopening.
The Palisades nuclear plant officially shut down in 2022. Now it’s in the process of restarting. No closed nuclear plant has ever reopened.
Kevin Kamps of the group Beyond Nuclear said that brings risks he doesn’t want to see along Lake Michigan.
“So we’re trying to establish ourselves as legal parties to this proceeding and our ultimate goal is to block this restart,” Kamps said.
Beyond Nuclear filed a petition last week asking the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a hearing to make their case against the restart of the plant.
The petition alleges a “pattern of misleads and misrepresentations” by Holtec, the company that acquired the Palisades plant initially to manage its decommissioning.
Beyond Nuclear, along with two other groups, argued Holtec always intended to reopen the plant, but hid its intentions from regulators in order to get the deal done. The petition alleges that Holtec can’t now operate the plant, because it doesn’t have an operating license from the NRC. The groups claim Holtec has a “possession only” license.
“We have completed all major licensing submittals to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in support of our proposed path to reauthorize power operations at Palisades, a path which fits within the NRC’s existing regulatory framework,” said Holtec spokesperson Nicholas Culp, in an email.
Despite the opposition from Beyond Nuclear and other local groups, the plan to restart Palisades has gotten broad support from local and national leaders. The U.S. Department of Energy has offered a $1.5 billion loan to help restore the plant, if it gets the needed licensing approvals. The state of Michigan has also promised $150 million in support. The Covert Township board, where the plant is located, has passed a resolution supporting the restart, and so has the city council in nearby South Haven.
Supporters say the restart would boost the local economy, by re-establishing 600 high-paying jobs. And they say with 800,000 megawatts of capacity, Palisades would be a source of carbon-free energy at a time when Michigan needs it.
Kamps, however, said it’s not worth the risk of reopening a shuttered nuclear plant — something that’s never been done before — on the shore of Lake Michigan. He cited past nuclear disasters as a warning.
“I would ask people to take their democracy seriously, talk to their elected officials at all levels,” Kamps said. “Because as shown at Fukishima, as shown at Chernobyl, a nuclear catastrophe can affect people hundreds and even thousands of miles away.”
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