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The first of a series of “Forums for a Nuclear-Free New York” was held last week following New York Governor Kathy Hochul’s proposition for an expansion of nuclear power in New York State. Earlier in the week she called in a “State of the State” address for an additional four gigawatts of nuclear power in New York, the energy generation equivalent of four large nuclear power plants.

This continued Hochul’s nuclear drive through 2025 pushing for the state to become the center of a nuclear power “revival” in the United States and then proposing one gigawatt of new nuclear power in New York.

This first forum, a webinar on January 15, was titled a “Symposium for Safe and Affordable Energy in New York.” It was organized by a coalition of safe-energy and environmental organizations and moderated by Alec Baldwin, actor and nuclear power opponent. It featured Dr. Mark Z. Jacobson, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Stanford University and director of its Atmosphere/Energy Program, and Joseph Mangano, executive director of the Radiation and Public Health Project.

“We are at a crossroads in New York,” said Baldwin. “The state is leading a multi-state consortium that seeks to rapidly expand nuclear power. In her ‘State of the State’ address this week, Governor Hochul announced plans to build another four gigawatts of new nuclear in New York, in addition to the one gigawatt of previously announced new projects plus 3.4 gigawatts of existing nuclear. That would bring total nuclear generation in New York to 8.4 gigawatts, increasing it by 2.5 times.”

Baldwin continued, “Governor Hochul also arranged a $33 billion ratepayer subsidy to keep four aging reactors in upstate New York operating for another 20 years, including the oldest and second oldest reactors in the U.S.”

Two days before the forum, in her “State of the State” address, Hochul said: “Last summer I took the bold step of greenlighting the first nuclear power project in a generation…At the time we set a goal of building one gigawatt of nuclear power. But if there’s one thing I believe, it’s this: go big or go home. So, I’ve decided to raise the bar to five gigawatts. That’s more nuclear energy then has been built anywhere in the United States in the last 30 years.”

Hochul’s nuclear push is “taking place,” Baldwin went on, “amid unprecedented dismantling of federal nuclear regulation, rubber-stamping and fast-tracking new nuclear projects and dumbing down federal radiation exposure standards.”

He said there was recently a report on the New York Daily News online with the passage: “Some have raised concerns that moving too quickly to build a new fleet of nuclear power facilities could be unsafe; the focus on quickly deploying new reactors could leave safety gaps that could result in disaster.”

“Those concerns need more attention,” said Baldwin, “And so do clean, renewable sources of energy that can meet New York power needs and climate goals without the health and safety risks of nuclear.”

“Mark Z. Jacobson, our first presenter, is a leading authority on this,” continued Baldwin. He noted Jacobson’s positions at Stanford and his having “published 190 peer-reviewed journal articles and seven books” on energy most recently 100% Clean, Renewable Energy and Storage for Everything and also No Miracles Needed: How Today’s........

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