Bid to Delay Dismantling of A-Plant Fails
A federal appeals court refused Friday to interfere with the decommissioning of the Shoreham nuclear power plant, paving the way for the New York reactor to be transferred to the state and dismantled.
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia denied a request to order the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to review the environmental consequences of demolishing the plant.
Specifically, the court was asked by the Bush Administration and others to block the implementation at midnight Friday of a downgraded “possession-only” license for the plant. It refused.
“The possession-only license will become effective at midnight” said Joseph McDonnell, a spokesman for the Long Island Lighting Co., which owns the plant. “The (possession-only license) is a big decision, because it changes the status from a plant with an operating license to a facility that just stores fuel.”
New York Gov. Mario M. Cuomo hailed the court’s decision and said he hopes that the Bush Administration will cease efforts to delay Shoreham’s decommissioning.
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