A coalition of environmental groups has taken legal action against the proposed construction of the Fermi 3 nuclear reactor in Newport, Michigan.
The coalition–which includes Beyond Nuclear, Citizens for Alternatives to Chemical Contamination, Citizens Environment Alliance of Southwestern Ontario, Don’t Waste Michigan, and the Sierra Club–filed fourteen legal contentions with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission earlier this week. It argues that Detroit Edison’s proposed plant would have devastating impacts on Lake Eerie’s western basin. There are already 33 atomic reactors operating in the region.
The coalition cited past problems with Detroit Edison in particular:
“The track record of the Detroit Edison Company is abysmal. The partial
core-melt accident at Fermi 1 in October, 1966 and the 1993-94 Holiday
dumping of millions of gallons of radioactively contaminated water into Lake
Erie by Fermi 2 speaks to this record,” said Michael Keegan of Don’t Waste
Michigan. “The proposed Fermi 3 would represent another half-century of
safety and security risks for the Great Lakes shoreline. Many concerned
local residents don’t want to play yet another round of radioactive Russian
roulette,” Keegan added. Michael Keegan resides in Monroe and has been
following the Fermi reactors for three decades.”
The coalition further argues that the electricity needs could be met by alternative, cleaner renewable power sources such as solar and wind.
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