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Mothers for Peace seeking to speed up Diablo Canyon closure

September 16, 2016

Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power PlantIn a bid to force the closure of Diablo Canyon power plant prior to the planned shutdown dates of 2024 and 2025, San Luis Obispo Mothers for Peace is attempting to intervene in California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) hearings. Mothers for Peace argues PG&E is using the imminent closure of the nuclear plant to evade regulatory requirements and necessary safety upgrades.

Ojai-based attorney Sabrina Venskus filed a motion to allow Mother’s for Peace to participate in PUC hearings on the plan to close Diablo Canyon. The filing lists several power plant upgrades PG&E is allegedly neglecting and argues an earlier closure would be economically beneficial to California residents.

If PG&E were to go ahead with the plant upgrades, the utility would pass on unreasonable costs to ratepayers, Mothers for Peace argues.

Mothers for Peace reports that the stator, or stationary portion of the Unit 2 steam generator at Diablo Canyon, is in need of major repairs. However, PG&E does not plan to replace the stator before the planned 2025 shutdown, Mothers for Peace states. A new stator is estimated to cost between $84 million to $151 million.

Additionally,the NRC rates the Unit 1 pressure vessel to be among the five most brittle reactors in the United States, according to Mothers for Peace. PG&E applied for and was granted an exemption to the mandated 10-year inspection of the vessel, delaying the inspection until 2025.

Mothers for Peace argues an extraordinarily dangerous threat would be posed to California if a cold shutdown caused the pressure vessel to crack. Also, if the vessel were to fail, the financial burden would be more than ratepayers could withstand, Mothers for Peace states.

The anti-Diablo Canyon organization also argues the nuclear plant can be closed sooner as a result of the rapid rise in the availability of solar, wind and geothermal energy, as well as rapid innovation in energy storage capacity.

In a separate development on Thursday, a group of mayors from six San Luis Obispo cities filed a request with the PUC to reject the current Diablo Canyon closure plan. The mayors argue the current plan does not adequately mitigate the economic impact of the nuclear plant closing. [Business Times]

The cities of Arroyo Grande, Atascadero, Morro Bay, Paso Robles, Pismo Beach and San Luis Obispo do not oppose the closure of Diablo Canyon. However, the mayors argue PG&E has not adequately involved their cities in the closure process and the utility is not planning on compensating local agencies enough for lost tax revenue.

In the filing, the mayors state the amount of money PG&E has proposed paying to local governments to mitigate the loss of income and tax revenue is inadequate because local property taxes alone during that period are estimated to total $200 million. PG&E has proposed paying $49.5 million in compensation to San Luis Obispo County over a nine-year period.


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Mother’s For Peace, you have done a dis-service to our community. Shame on you.


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It’s interesting…


Closing Diablo WILL increase pollution in CA. The 11% loss of generating power when Diablo goes off-line isn’t going to be replaced by “clean” energy. The phrase “natural gas-fired” comes to mind.


On the other hand, we certainly can’t say that Diablo will become a victim of seismic activity. In fact the plant’s track record suggests it will not.


Thanks MFP you worthless band of Cs…


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MFP and half SLO’s population say shut er down. Then the masses whine cause of monetary losses. Now several local cities what “part” of the shut down process. Why? to bilk money from PG&E?

Dear PG&E, please tell slo county’s whiners and supporters of destroying of millions of acres with solar panels to go to hell and use candles if they need light. Oh wait those produce pollution when they burn.


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Wonderful green jobs won’t pay employees what PG&E does. There won’t be enough green jobs anyway. That’s the rumor.


This environmental group needs to understand that closing a huge plant that generates power for many takes time. If they have better ideas, then perhaps this group should start opening up solar farms and the like to be ready to help absorb some of the need that will happen when we no longer have nuclear power.


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well, one must be suspect of the MFP claims since the “stator” is a stationary piece of the Main Generator (electrical) not the STEAM generator.


hard to feel sorry for the towns, so they want to shutdown the plant but not suffer consequences? If you want the money you should be fighting to keep the plant open.


finally, i know someone is going to post about all the wonderful green jobs, care to compare the revenue generated for those compared to Diablo? from great head of household jobs to a solid tax base to reliable 24/7 electric generation, sorry but Diablo is by far the best choice.


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In one corner we have MFP wanting to close Diablo sooner, because it’s dangerous and whatever, in the opposite corner we have several cities wanting to stop it from closing because they don’t want to lose the tax dollars and economic stimulus and certainly don’t want to do what is needed and cut salaries and personnel and live within their budgets instead of just wanting to grow and feed on more and more tax dollars.


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MF Pee-ers… begone! Go away. Shut up. Stop. You have no idea what you’re talking about and are just making things worse for everyone around you.


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Since the Mother’s for Peace will stop getting that Intervener’s Compensation money funded by PG&E to protest the plant’s operation, I guess they not have to aggressively support the closure time table to get that money while they can?


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I say we teach the left a lesson by giving them what they want.

Shut the plant down NOW and end the Tax money it gives to the local Economy and Governments NOW.


Then let them suffer the consequences for their stupidity.


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Rich, Rich, Rich. Have you not learned anything from Prop 13? State & Municipal Govts will not cut expenses to compensate for loss tax revenue. They will just be more creative to come up with new tax revenue streams. Who ever heard of a “User Fees” before Prop 13? Cal State Fire charges if you live in an area with them as primary protection? In fact, you (we) would end up paying extra to send all of these bureaucrats to seminars on “Creative Revenue Procurement”.


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