Restarting Reactors

As representative of one of three plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the Department of Energy, we would like to rebut remarks made by Energy Secretary John Herrington in an interview with The Times (“Energy Chief Cites Pressure to Open Troubled A-Plant,” Part I, Dec. 30).

Referring to the lawsuit filed on Dec. 13 by Greenpeace, the Energy Research Foundation, and the Natural Resources Defense Council, Herrington stated, “Environment is not on their agenda. . . . The lawsuit they are coming in with is aimed at tying us up in court, to stop weapons production.” Herrington supported this assertion by claiming that with over 30 years of operating experience at Savannah River “. . . You know exactly what you’re dealing with,” and that no further studies are necessary.

Greenpeace has always focused on the protection of the human and natural environment. We filed suit after DOE officials refused to delay the restart of the Savannah River reactors until the DOE completed an environmental impact statement and essential safety, modernization, and management reforms. Serious safety and management problems (including cracking of the reactor cooling pipes) continue to threaten the health and safety of plant workers and residents in the vicinity of the plant.

In fact, our litigation is an attempt to compel the DOE to follow the mandate of the National Environmental Policy Act. NEPA calls on all federal agencies to consider the environmental effects of their actions and to evaluate less hazardous alternatives. As recent disclosures of leaks, accidents, and other safety problems at this facility have shown, the DOE’s operations over the last 30 years have been marked by shocking disregard for the protection and safety of the environment and human health. Federal law requires DOE to do so. Herrington’s comments epitomize over 40 years of government obsessiveness about nuclear weapons production, an obsession which leads him and others to conclude that the unhindered production of nuclear weapons materials must take precedence over all other national goals or policies. At Greenpeace, we believe that national security concerns must encompass our citizens and the environment, not just our nuclear weapons, and that the health and safety of our country is more important than that of our reactors.

PETER BAHOUTH

Executive Director

Nuclear Campaigns

Greenpeace

Washington, D.C.