November 5, 2010 by Citizen Carol
NRC ANNOUNCES AVAILABILITY OF LICENSE RENEWAL APPLICATION FOR SOUTH TEXAS PROJECT NUCLEAR POWER PLANT
The 22 year old South Texas Project (STP) Units 1 and 2 are up for renewal and the Nuclear Regu
latory Commission announced today that an application for a 20-year renewal of the operating licenses is available for public review.
The plant’s current operating licenses for Units 1 and 2 will expire on Aug. 20, 2027, and Dec. 15, 2028, respectively. A 20 year license extension would have the two units in production well past their initial life expectancy, and the onsite spent fuel rod storage, well – that’s a whole other can of worms.
South Texas Project Units 1 and 2 are both pressurized-water nuclear reactors, located 12 miles southwest of Bay City, Texas. When they were built, these plants were projected to have a 30 to 40 year life expectancy and STP says it has enough underwater storage capacity on site to safely store spent fuel for the licensed life of the plant. Since it is up for a 20 year renewal, let’s hope that that means they have enough spent fuel storage capacity for at least that long. They haven’t been very forthcoming about what their hoped for expansion would mean for their spent fuel storage capacity, continuing to hold forth the promise of a long-term storage solution (Yucca Mountain being the most frequently touted option). But with the development of Yucca Mountain in limbo, and the NRC extending the period for onsite storage past the production life of a plant, it seems likely that an off site long term storage solution is unlikely anytime soon.
The licensee, STP Nuclear Operating Co., submitted the renewal application Oct. 26. The application is available on the NRC website at this address: http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/south-texas-project.html. The NRC staff is currently conducting an initial review of the application to determine whether it contains enough information for the required formal review. If the application has sufficient information, the NRC will formally “docket,” or file, the application and will announce an opportunity to request a public hearing.
For further information, contact Carmen Fells or Tam Tran at the Division of License Renewal, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Mail Stop O11-F1, Washington, D.C. 20555; telephone (301) 415-6337 for Carmen Fells and telephone (301) 415-3617 for Tam Tran.
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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas.
Posted in Energy, Global Warming, Nuclear, Toxics | Tagged Energy, Life expectancy, Nuclear Power, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, South Texas Nuclear Generating Station, Texas |
Two (possibly three) members of Congress in Texas lost their seats in the Republican (and outside money) tsunami that swept the country-Rep. Chet Edwards, Ciro Rodriguez, and Solomon Ortiz – whose race is at this point still too close to call, but he trails his opponent by several hundred votes. Many in the punditocracy have tried to come up with one common denominator to explain the Republican tidal wave, and some have settled on the vote on climate change legislation, HR 2454, the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES) or Waxman-Markey. Politico jumped (the shark?) to this conclusion: “House Democrats who voted for the 2009 bill to cap greenhouse gas emissions – dubbed cap-and-tax by GOP opponents – had a terrible night.”
But this is widely debunked, first in this piece from Think Progress’s Wonk Room blog: Continue Reading »
Posted in Campaign Finance, Global Warming | Tagged 2010 elections, ACES, Campaign Finance, chet edwards, ciro rodriguez, independent expenditures, outside money, Solomon Ortiz, stealth PACs, Texas |
November 4, 2010 by Citizen Carol
The Texas Low Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Compact Commission TLLRWDCC will meet in Midland, Texas a week from Saturday (November 13th) to reconsider adopting a rule that was withdrawn in July that would allow for export of low-level radioactive waste for management and disposal from facilities outside of the Texas Compact, this will be followed by a host of generator petitions to ship low-level radioactive waste to Texas facilities. For those that have been following our blogs on this, that means to the Waste Control Specialists (WCS) facility in Andrews County out in West Texas. The Compact Commission will receive public comment, discuss and take formal action, as appropriate, on items on the agenda below until it adjourns.
November 13, 2010 at 10:00 a.m.
University of Texas of the Permian Basin
Center for Energy and Economic Diversification
1400 Farm-To-Market Road 1788 N
Midland, Texas.
To see the proposed rule, click here.
To see the proposed additions to the draft rule from Compact Commision chair, Mike Ford, click here.
TEXAS LOW-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL COMPACT COMMISSION AGENDA Continue Reading »
Posted in Nuclear, Toxics | Tagged environment, Low level waste, Nuclear, nuclear waste, radioactive waste, Texas, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, united states department of energy, WCS |
November 3, 2010 by Citizen Carol
Texas House Speaker Joe Straus of San Antonio (District 121) has released the names of 122 lawmakers who he says have pledged him their vote for speaker, giving him enough support for another term (of that number 79 of the 99 elected Republicans are included).
Speaker Straus says he believes the race for speaker is over, but he is being challenged by Rep. Warren Chisum, a conservative Republican from Pampa, TX (District 88), who says the race is not over.
Texas Speaker races can be quite interesting. We’ll keep you updated.
Posted in Global Warming | Tagged Joe Straus, Speaker (politics), Texas, Texas Legislature, warren chisum |
November 3, 2010 by Citizen Carol
According to Bloomberg, electricity producers such as NRG Energy Inc. and Southern Co. will benefit as the new house Republican majority promotes nuclear power as part of clean-energy legislation. They go on to point out that cap-and-trade was denounced in ads by candidates of both parties, and they expect a fight over plans by the Environmental Protection Agency to impose its own restrictions on carbon emissions.
They also anticipate that renewable-energy legislation next year would encourage construction of nuclear and “clean- coal” plants.
For those close to the Barnett Shale, House Republicans will probably resist efforts to limit hydraulic fracturing, a technique used in drilling for natural gas in which chemically treated water is pumped underground to loosen rock and let gas flow, and a process that has been of significant concern to Texans in the Dallas-Fort Worth air shed. The EPA is currently conducting a study of potential environmental impacts of the practice.
The Republican takeover of the House also puts Representative Doc Hastings of Washington state, an opponent of new restrictions on offshore oil and gas drilling, in line to take over the Natural Resources Committee. Hastings denounced a measure, that would have removed a $75 million cap on liability for leaks, and would bar BP (the company responsible for the Gulf of Mexico deep water oil spill off the coast of Louisiana) from new U.S. leases.
I’m sure you can see where this could be taking U.S. energy and environmental policy. If you are concerned, consider making a donation to Public Citizen as we head into a new political era.
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By promoting cleaner energy, cleaner government, and cleaner air for all Texans, we hope to provide for a healthy place to live and prosper. We are Public Citizen Texas.
Posted in Air Quality, Energy, Global Warming, Nuclear | Tagged Barnett shale, Coal, Energy, Natural Resources Committee, Nuclear, public citizen texas, renewable, Texas, United States House Committee on Energy and Commerce, United States House Committee on Natural Resources |
November 2, 2010 by Citizen Carol
As the Tom Delay trial got underway, the State’s first two witnesses were Craig McDonald, a former Public Citizen Texas director and now the executive director for Texans for Public Justice, and Austin attorney Fred Lewis, both of whom the defense characterized as being from the left end of the political spectrum which they attempted to capitalize upon. Twice the defense moved for a mistrial, claiming there was an effort by prosecutors to push political opinions on the jury. Both motions were ignored by Judge Priest.
Craig McDonald said he focused solely on campaign donations while with Public Citizen and that there were discrepancies between what Texas Republican Majority PAC (TRMPAC) reported to the Texas Ethics Commission in terms of its income and what Republican National State Election Committee (RNSEC) reported to the IRS.
The defense, in examining McDonald, reviewed 60 candidate names on Public Citizen’s website — only one of which was a Democrat (gubernatorial candidate, Bill White, and that was from a blog on yours truly, Texas Vox, which showed up on the site through an RSS feed). DeLay, however, was mentioned 100 or more times on the site. But McDonald maintained political neutrality in his testimony, noting that DeLay’s appearance on the website did not mean he was the only subject of Public Citizen’s research. Continue Reading »
Posted in Campaign Finance, Consumers, Good Government | Tagged money laundering, Public Citizen, public citizen texas, republican, texans for public justice, Texas, Texas Ethics Commission, Tom Delay, Travis County Texas |
November 1, 2010 by Citizen Carol
Jon Stewart explains what the Rally to Restore Sanity is about in his speech at the rally in DC.
I can’t control what people think this was. I can only tell you my intentions. This was not a rally to ridicule people of faith. Or people of activism or to look down our noses at the heartland or passionate argument or to suggest that times are not difficult and that we have nothing to fear. They are and we do. But we live now in hard times, not end times. And we can have animus and not be enemies.
Continue Reading »
Posted in Good Government | Tagged jon stewart, Public Citizen, Rally to Restore Sanity, Texas, transcript |
November 1, 2010 by Citizen Carol
A jury for Tom DeLay‘s money laundering trial was selected quickly last week, but only after the prosecution challenged whether the defense was striking African American jurors without good cause.
The defense cut five African Americans from the jury because, in several instances, he said the would-be jurors appeared angry at him after he had criticized the lead prosecutor, who is black. Continue Reading »
Posted in Campaign Finance, Good Government | Tagged campaign contributions, democratic party, money laundering, republican, Texas, Tom Delay, Travis County Texas, trial |
October 31, 2010 by Citizen Carol
A new online film, the “Story of Electronics”, will be released on Tues, November 9. This is the newest in the series of the excellent, user-friendly Story of Stuff web-films about excessive consumerism and waste.
The Story of Electronics tells the story of how electronics are really “designed for the dump” and not made to last or made for recycling. View the trailer at: www.storyofelectronics.org
Posted in Consumers, Efficiency, Energy, Global Warming, green jobs, recycling, Toxics | Tagged Business, Electronic waste, Electronics, environment, recycling, Texas, The Story of Stuff, United States, Waste Management |
Come join us tomorrow, Saturday morning, for a satellite rally of John Stewart’s “Rally to Restore Sanity” which is happening in Washington D.C. The festivities start at 11am and go till 2pm (a march against the death penalty starts at 3). Continue Reading »
Posted in Global Warming, Good Government, Renewables | Tagged Austin, capitol, john stewart, Public Citizen, rally, restore, sanity, Texas |
October 29, 2010 by Citizen Carol
The No Coal Coalition brings their mascot, Pancho the Donkey, to the TCEQ hearing, but he is turned away. Photo by Susan Dancer
On Thursday, the TCEQ (Texas Commission of Environmental Quality) held a public meeting for the White Stallion Energy Center at the Bay City Civic Center to hear feedback on the plant’s application for a wastewater permit. Continue Reading »
Posted in Air Quality, Coal, Global Warming, Toxics | Tagged bay city, Coal, colorado river, Donkey, lower colorado river authority, Matagorda County Texas, Pancho the Donkey, Public Citizen, Sierra Club, TCEQ, Texas, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, waste water, water, white stallion |
October 29, 2010 by Citizen Carol
With states scrambling to align their own rules with U.S. EPA‘s new regulations, which are set to take effect on Jan. 2, 2011 and require regulators to start issuing Clean Air Act permits next year for large stationary sources of greenhouse gas emissions, Texas is now the lone holdout, according to an analysis by the National Association of Clean Air Agencies (NACAA). Click here to see a copy of the analysis. Continue Reading »
Posted in Air Quality, Coal, Energy, Global Warming, natural gas, Renewables, TCEQ | Tagged clean air act, EPA, flex permits, fort worth star telegram, George W. Bush, greenhouse gas, greenhouse gases, Major stationary source, TCEQ, Texas, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, United States Environmental Protection Agency |
Not your average swimming hole
From the New York Times:
Syncrude, the largest operator of oil sands projects in Canada, was ordered to pay $2.92 million on Friday for causing the deaths of 1,603 ducks.
The company was convicted in June by an Alberta court for failing to deploy scarecrows and loud cannons in April 2008 to prevent the migratory birds from landing on a tailings pond containing oily residue from one of its operations.
…
Mike Hudema, a climate and energy campaigner with Greenpeace, said the fine was “no more than a slap on the wrist” considering the size of Syncrude, which produces about 110 million barrels of oil a year. He acknowledged, however, that Syncrude had now been forced to improve its bird deterrence and monitoring.
This is just one of many incidents involving wildlife mistaking tar sands oil tailing ponds as safe natural places. Many of these lakes are enormous and pose great risk to wildlife as clearly shown in this massive bird kill. The most disturbing thing about this incident is Synacrude’s neglect. Tar sands operators aren’t taking care of their basic responsibilities and doubtless they are cutting corners elsewhere in order to maximize their profit at others expense. These fines will go to environmental charities, but Mike at Greenpeace has a point; $3 million doesn’t mean anything to a multi-billion dollar company and safety lapses will continue. While conditions have improved here, where else are bad deeds taking place that haven’t been corrected? Tailing ponds are one of hundred reasons why tar sands oil is the dirtiest massive energy project on the planet and why it can’t continue.
Posted in Global Warming, Tarsands, Toxics | Tagged greenpeace, Oil sands, Synacrude, tailing ponds, Texas, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality |
October 28, 2010 by Citizen Carol
Image via Wikipedia
Austin Energy hired a consultant to help determine how its rates compare to those of other utilities in preparation for its plan to substantially raise electricity rates in 2012. The work is ongoing, but an eye-opening statistic has already emerged. Estimates indicate that the average US household’s energy costs are equal to 7% of household income, but the study shows that on average, the poorest 5 percent of Travis County households spend about 45% of their incomes on electricity.
That is a staggering statistic and points out the need to provide more energy efficiency funding for low-income families. The short and long term benefits are economic relief and cost-effective home improvements. While assistance relieves pressure on individual households, the benefits also ripple into the community. With less money spent on energy, more money is available for other goods and services. If this money is spent locally, Austin captures this revenue, with further benefits rippling out from there.
Keep in mind, most low-income households are renters. There should be incentives put in place to encourage landlords to increase the energy efficiency of their properties. And don’t forget, there are environmental benefits to reducing our energy usage. This seems like a win win for our city.
Posted in Efficiency, Energy | Tagged Austin, Austin Energy, conservation, Efficient energy use, electricity, Energy, Energy Efficiency, Household, poverty, Technology, Texas |
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