"Protests greet FirstEnergy rate request hearings"
The protest took place at the HQ of PUCO, the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, in the state capital, Columbus. It marked the beginning of weeks of formal hearings, where PUCO will consider FirstEnergy's requested ratepayer bailout.
The article quotes Harvey Wasserman, senior advisor to Greenpeace U.S.A. as well as NIRS, advocating the carbon-free, nuclear-free "Solartopian" energy future of efficiency and renewables.
The article also quotes Neil Waggoner, spokesman for Sierra Club's Beyond Coal Campaign, which is officially intervening against FirstEnergy's request for $3 billion of ratepayer money, to prop up its uncompetitive Davis-Besse atomic reactor, and Sammis coal burner.
Bob Fritrakis of Columbus Free Press, as well as Pat Marida of Ohio Sierra Club's Nuclear-Free Committe, also spoke. Musician Brian Clash performed. Ohio Sierra Club Nuclear-Free Committee has posted photos, including the one above (see Beyond Nuclear's pamphlet "Dirty, Dangerous, and Expensive: The Verdict is in on Nuclear Power," penned by board member Kay Drey of St. Louis, MO).
Beyond Nuclear, along with Citizen Environment Alliance of Southwestern Ontario, Don't Waste MI, and Ohio Green Party, have been intervening against Davis-Besse's 2017-2037 license extension since Dec. 27, 2010. Attorney Terry Lodge of Toledo serves as the coalition's legal counsel.
Recently, Beyond Nuclear sued the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) over its Nuclear Waste Confidence policy, alleging violations of the Atomic Energy Act, National Environmental Policy Act, and Administrative Procedures Act. The lawsuit is before the federal Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, the second highest court in the land, just under the U.S. Supreme Court. The appeal is the latest action by Beyond Nuclear to challenge Davis-Besse's 20-year license extension. Beyond Nuclear's legal counsel include Diane Curran of Washington, D.C., and Mindy Goldstein of Turner Environmental Law Clinic at Emory University in Atlanta.
September 3, 2015