There is apparently some hand-wringing in the House over the announcement that the Senate will vote on Vermont Yankee next week. Some (including some in the Senate) feel that now is not the time. Here’s why those folks are wrong – perhaps dangerously so:
- Some are arguing that the threat of a legislative vote against relicensure is leverage to be used against Entergy – but leverage for what, exactly? It’s only leverage in looking for a good deal on power. We need to be clear that the only good deal on power from this dangerous plant with its unfunded cleanup pricetag is no deal, and we don’t need any leverage for that.
- Remember: A no vote in the Senate on relicensing doesn’t change the fundamentals of the game board, but it shifts the power dynamics dramatically. Entergy will still have until 2012 to get a yes vote for relicensing, but they’ll have to get the Senate to vote to reverse themselves, while any allies they have on the House side will have become impotent. That’s a far, far bigger boulder for Entergy to push up the hill.
- Vermont Yankee is reeling, but Entergy is a massive corporation with resources above and beyond anything VY opponents will ever be able to bring to bear. All they have to do is play rope-a-dope during their public flogging until the leak is found and public opinion turns, and they will end up controlling the conversation.
- Those easily swayed swing votes in the legislature will only swing our way during a crisis. The crisis is now.
- It could be an entirely different ballgame after the Town Meeting break, as the armies of Entergy lobbyists will descend on Montpelier any day now.
- If the Senate votes no on relicensing, that in no way rules out further action or hearings.
The Senators deserve our full support on this. This is truly a no-brainer.
Odum, the Albany, NY newspaper, the Times Union, is saying there is a member of the Vermont legislature asking for a new nuclear plant to be built to replace Vermont Yankee and employ the people who work there.
What do you know about that? She’s a VT Republican, I hear, if that matters.
FYI, I read that Pres. Obama signed something very recently to approve the first nuclear plants being built since the 70’s, to reduce dependency on coal and gas.
What do you think?
I don’t want to confuse new with the old and VERY obfuscated Vermont Yankee.
Thanks for raising the issues. I really want to understand this.
Both houses of the legislature have to agree to the relicensing. If the Senate votes ‘no’, then isn’t that it, isn’t it over (as far as the legislature is concerned)?
If the house were to eventually vote ‘yes’, that wouldn’t matter, because the Senate had already (theoretically as the vote hasn’t happened yet) voted ‘no’.
Is is expected that the Senate will revote over and over again until Entergy gets their way?
I feel that the legislature should take no action at all, since that means that VT Yankee will automatically not be re-approved. But I am all for a vote in the Senate if Shumlin believes he’s got the ‘no’ votes required.
And for the record, no matter what you may personally believe about nuclear power, this particular plant has run it’s intended lifespan and needs to be shut down.
To all those who say we shouldn’t, for what ever reason, my response is this: We’ve known for 40 years this day was coming, everyone involved that is saying we shouldn’t shut it down is exposing their own incompetence. Especially those that say, ‘but where will we get that replacement power from???’