Beyond Nuclear challenges new reactor & old waste at Fermi, Michigan

Regarding the new reactor proposed at Fermi nuclear power plant, on July 31, 2009, a Nuclear Regulatory Commission Atomic Safety and Licensing Board admitted four of the fourteen contentions Beyond Nuclear and its allies submitted opposing the Fermi 3 new reactor proposal in Monroe, Michigan on the Lake Erie shoreline. Beyond Nuclear's fourteen contentions had been filed on March 9, 2009. There was extensive media coverage of Beyond Nuclear's opposition to the Fermi 3 new reactor.

Regarding "old waste" at Fermi, on August 31, 2009, Beyond Nuclear appealed to the NRC to reconsider an ASLB ruling rejecting our standing to intervene against dry cask storage of high-level radioactive waste at the 21-year-old Fermi 2 reactor. On August 21, 2009, the ASLB had rejected our standing, thus dismissing our intervention request for a hearing on the merits of our concerns. Beyond Nuclear's initial intervention, detailing security-related concerns regarding dry cask storage of high-level radioactive waste at Fermi 2 on the Lake Erie shore, was filed on May 7, 2009. See Detroit Edison's and NRC Staff's June 1st challenges to Beyond Nuclear's intervention here. Beyond Nuclear responded to those challenges on June 9th.

On Sept. 3rd, the Monroe Evening News reported on the ASLB's adverse ruling on Beyond Nuclear's intervention. But on Sept. 6th, the Monroe Evening News published an editorial supportive of Beyond Nuclear's efforts to increase security at Fermi 2's imminent dry cask storage facility.