In Plymouth, at Town Hall on Friday the 6th, federal, state and town officials heard testimony from Dr. Kris Singh, CEO of Holtec, the company overseeing the decommissioning of the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station.
Singh, who testified virtually, said that he would not discharge up to a million gallons of waste water from the defunct spent fuel pool into Cape Cod Bay, until the company had consent from the stakeholders. Singh’s statement may have been a surprising commitment to some and it caught the attention of many, including U.S. Senator Edward Markey, who hosted the hearing that lasted for more than 3 hours.
Bobbi Clark, has more…
Senator Markey told officials that the people of Plymouth do not trust the experts anymore:
“The experts have been making promises to the people of Plymouth for a generation, and many of them did not come true.”
Holtec’s Dr. Singh stated that once treated, the waste water would meet existing standards and not be contaminated. So, does Markey trust what appears to be a commitment from Holtec not to discharge that waste water into Cape Cod Bay unless he has stakeholder consent?
Dr. Khris Singh, Holtec CEO testifying virtually Photo Credit: Bobbi Clark
“He said that that was the case, and then he clarified it from his perspective to say that he wants to condition it. So I think that we’re going to have to continue to press to make sure that the water that goes into Cape Cod Bay is, in fact, safe. So I think that this hearing has advanced that goal, but we have a lot more work to do.”
State Senator Susan Moran agrees there’s more work to do, but calls Singh’s statement tremendous progress…
“…but, trust and verify. And, so who are the stakeholders? My job going forward is going to be to make sure that Plymouth has a voice, but we’ve got to make sure that Holtec follows through, because their track record is not pristine.”
And U.S. Representative William Keating has this to say:
“…we want to see action rather than words.”
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will hold a public meeting in town at 6 PM on Monday, May 9th at the 1620 Hotel.
