Congress to hold hearings on Indian Point power plant

New York Newsday ^ | 2/6/3 | The Associated Press

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WASHINGTON (AP) _ Congress will hold hearings into the contentious emergency evacuation plan for Indian Point, the nuclear power plant just north of New York City.

Rep. Sue Kelly, a Republican whose district includes the Westchester County facility, had pushed for a hearing on the issue after a consultant firm found Indian Point's emergency plans rely on outdated technology and are based on unrealistic expectations.

Fears about the plant have escalated sharply since the terror attacks of Sept. 11.

A House subcommittee overseeing emergency management will conduct hearings in the near future, Washington, D.C., officials said Thursday.

Kelly said she plans to question officials at the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

An adequate emergency plan is a condition of a nuclear license, but FEMA and the NRC have many options short of forcing the plant to close.

[WaveThatFlag]

Those cynical liberal enviornmentalists have finally found an angle to the terrorist attacks that they can profit from. This isn't about terrorism. Indian Point is one of the most secure locations in the country. This is about stopping the nuclear energy program. A hundred years from now, scientists will have figured out how to recycle the byproducts, and "toxic waste" will be a valuable commodity.

[OldFriend]

LOLOL shut it down and watch the natives go beserk over the rising energy costs. Wait till we have a long hot summer and there is no air conditioning. Just wait till her colleagues have to get near that crusty ugly black pantsuit knowing there's no air conditioning

[KellyAdmirer]

Shoreham II.

[gridlock]

Keep in mind that Pataki hired James Lee Witt, notorious Clinton crony and former head of FEMA, to "independently" review the Indian Point evacuation plan.

Witt is still a Clinton crony. His current finding that the evacuation plan is inadequate is in direct contradiction to his earlier findings that they were adequate when he was at FEMA. That is why there is all of the hand-waving about "obsolete technology". He has to find some way to justify his changing position.

If the technology used five years ago worked then, it will still work today. There is nothing about radios, sirens, automobiles and telephones that have gotten any worse in the past five years. What was adequate then is adequate now.

What has changed is "His Master's Voice". Back when he was running FEMA, the Clintons wanted Indian Point and every other nuke plant in the country up and running. "It's the economy, Stupid!" Closing Indian Point would have had a devastating effect on the local economy of Downstate NY, as the cost of electricity doubled or tripled. While Bubba and Hillary! were in charge, this would not be acceptable.

Now that Bubba and Hillary! are part of the "loyal" opposition, they no longer care whether or not the Downstate NY economy hits the skids. In fact, having the price of electricity triple just works to their advantage, since the Republican Governor and President will wind up getting the blame for the economic dislocation. So now James Lee Witt finds that Indian Point has to go.

This change of heart should be surprising to nobody. As long as Indian Point was advantageous to the Clintons, it was protected. Now that it is advantageous to the Clintons to have it close, it must close. James Lee Witt is just the loyal tool.

[WaveThatFlag]

As long as Indian Point was advantageous to the Clintons, it was protected. Now that it is advantageous to the Clintons to have it close, it must close.

Sort of like doing nothing to protect this country from terrorist attacks for 8 years and now whining that this administration is doing nothing to protect this country from terrorist attacks.