HB710

Respectfully, the Seabrook tomb is a weighty legacy. No new SMR should be considered in NH legislation until the existing reactor is decommissioned and all the 40 years of storage casks with hot radioactive fuel are removed from the last nuclear reactor site in New England. There is no waste free fusion technology for grid use in the Department of Energy plans. However, today the NRC deems that operating an outdated 80 year old reactor in 2050 will be safe. It is not! Evacuation chaos during the false alarm, continuously crumbling degraded concrete, and the recent quake should be enough warning for this committee.

We still have no known way to safely store nuclear waste. It seems a very crazy way to produce energy when there are so many safety risks involved with nuclear power. What is the plan for all the nuclear waste we currently have produced? and you want to produce even more? Nuclear power, even the "new and improved" has no place in the state of NH and should not be considered a reasonable, or safe "alternative" energy source.

I am opposed to this bill as it is a threat to New Hampshire’s economy and future prosperity. More nuclear plants are closing than being constructed because of the availability of cheaper sources of energy. The greatest dilemma left to communities who hosted nuclear power plants is what to do with the nuclear waste. US taxpayers pay billions of dollars to private companies to store spent nuclear fuel . The Maine Yankee power plant in Wiscasset, ME remains open to store used fuel even though it hasn’t produced any energy for decades as the cost to maintain and update the plant became prohibitively expensive. Storage sites age out after 20 years further increasing costs. Wiscasset is trying to reach a new tax agreement based on Maine Yankee’s new status as a storage facility. This has of course ended up in the courts with no resolution likely for many years. There’s no question that Wiscasset had an initial windfall in tax revenues when the plant was operational and fully staffed. However, a storage facility does not employ nearly as many workers so that revenue source is gone, leaving Wiscasset a $94 Million white elephant that is not paying taxes. Do not bring this problem to the Granite State. Common sense requires opposition to this bill.