CLOSE PILGRIM NOW!                                        September 2, 2015

CONGRATULATIONS to Boston Downwinders, led by Guntram Mueller and Susan Mirsky, for their successful effort placing a ballot question in the city of Newton calling for the closing of Pilgrim.

Guntram reports: The question of whether to close the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station is now showing up in Newton, MA. On November's ballot, Newton voters will find a non-binding ballot question, as to whether Gov. Baker should instruct the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to withdraw its operating permit, because the safety of the public cannot be assured. This is preceded by a series of "whereases" that Pilgrim has a risky design, has frequent emergency shutdowns because of equipment malfunctions, is vulnerable to catastrophic attack due to an unprotected cooling water intake, and ultimately is not needed since its 2% capacity contribution is dwarfed by ISO New England's projected 12% to 20% reserve capacity over the next 10 years.

 MOVING FORWARD!  As Cape Downwinders' work expands across the state, more in-depth decisions and plans are in the making.  To be most efficient and effective, CDW established a Steering Committee from active member volunteers.The second Wednesday of the month is the Steering Committee meeting and the fourth Wednesday is the General Meeting. Please send any agenda items for the General Meeting to tturco@comcast.net by the previous Monday. 

Cape Downwinders Steering Committee
Margaret Stevens, Bourne/ cybermaga@gmail.com
Arlene Williamson, Mashpee/ a.williamson99@comcast.net
Maxine Wolfset, Mashpee/ maxwolfset@comcast.net
Don Barton, Mashpee/  dbarton357@gmail.com
Susan Carpenter, Dennis/ scarpenter1103@gmail.com
Bonnie Brydges, Harwich/ bonbry@verizon.net
Diane Turco, Harwich/ tturco@comcast.net
Arthur Dickinson, Harwich/ edickinson1149@gmail.com
Elaine Dickinson, Harwich/ edickinson1149@gmail.com
Mary Conathan, Chatham/ marathan@verizon.net

Join/like us at the Cape Downwinders Facebook page for news and articles. Join the conversation!
Legislation
Lobby Days in Boston
CDW and a coalition of Boston area groups will be at the State House 9.3 to meet with members/staff of the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy to support Senator Wolf's bills.  The teams will then be scheduling follow up of our spring meetings with the Joint Committee on Public Safety in support of Rep. Peake's bill, H 2167. 
To join a lobby team, contact Diane at tturco@comcast.net or  Susan at scarpenter1103@gmail.com 

CALL TO ACTION:
Contact the House and Senate Chairs of the Joint Committee on Public Health and request they release these bills with a favorable recommendation:

H 2030 An Act Relative to Radiological Monitoring
H 2031 An Act Increasing Nuclear Power Protections to a Fifty Mile Radius  

Senate Chair 
Senator Jason Lewis (D-Winchester) 
617-722-1206 jason.lewis@masenate.gov

House Chair 
Representative Kate Hogan (D-Stow) 
617-722-2130 kate.hogan@mahouse.gov
See bills here:
H 2030
H 2031
CDW testimony
Check out the nonsense testimony from Entergy:
Entergy testimony opposing bills
Doug Long's summary of hearings on H 2030/H2031
summary
Actions:
GET OFF THE FENCE AND GET ON  A BRIDGE!
LABOR DAY ACTIONS
Download  Labor Day poster
Lower Cape Bridgilantes  9.7 11-5:00 PM
Banners on Bridges over Route 6 for  CLOSE PILGRIM/Stop Roundup/NSTARICIDES/NO GMO  and  on the Bicycle Bridge in Orleans  a positive call for TOXIC FREE LIVING  and a spontaneous celebration of MANY MONARCHS.
To volunteer time on a bridge call:   Elaine Baskin at 413-535-6084
For banner making and info:   Femke Rosenbaum at 617-676-5500
Femke has kindly offered off-Cape folks space for camping at her property in Wellfleet.
Table at Democrat Convention 9.16 Springfield

Cape Downwinders has reserved a table to leaflet, hang banners, and engage delegates to the Issues Convention in Springfield.  John Nichols and Robin Hubbard of Orleans DTC have submitted a petition to support the Pilgrim legislation at the State House.
If you would like to join in, contact Elaine:  edickinson1149@gmail.com. 
NIRS: NRC attempts to weaken radiation standards: Take Action- SAY NO!  
"In February, a group of pro-nuclear fanatics-there is really no other way to describe them-submitted three petitions for rulemaking to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). These three petitions would turn the entire basis for radiation protection standards on its head: they argue that the "Linear No-Threshold" (LNT) radiation model used by the NRC, EPA, and most modern societies should be replaced by a "hormesis" model."
Read more here/take action>>>

Reports
Trailer for Dan Brielmann's Documentary
'March For Our Children'
Dan has produced a two minute trailer for the documentary to share:       Trailer
Sen. Markey: "Filtered Vent Vote Adds to Litany of NRC Post-Fukushima Safety Failures"
Boston (August 21, 2015) - The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) yesterday announced by a vote of 3-1 that it will not even put out for public comment the question of whether to upgrade America's Fukushima-style reactors with a commonsense safety measure to prevent radiation exposure when vents are used to prevent hydrogen explosions during a meltdown.   Senator Markey press release
Fukushima Today:  A First Person Account by Subrata Ghushroy/Bulletin of Atomic Scientists

 "It has been more than four years since the east coast of Japan was hit with a trifecta: an earthquake of Magnitude 9 on the Richter scale, followed by a massive tsunami triggered by the quake's tremors, and then the meltdown of three nuclear reactors in the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear generating complex . Design mistakes, a poor safety culture, and human error exacerbated the situation."  

NOTE: Mr. Ghushroy was an honored guest speaker at the June 16 March For Our Children Rally at the State House.
Power Magazine:
Pilgrim's Struggle with Unplanned Shutdowns Continue
by Thomas Overton

"Entergy's Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station outside Boston just can't seem to shake its problems with unplanned shutdowns. The most recent one occurred on Aug. 22, when a broken air-nitrogen line caused a main steam isolation valve to close, trigging a reactor scram."
Calendar
September Events

9.3 Lobby at the State House

9.7 No Escape From The Cape/Sagamore Bridge

Lower Cape Bridgilantes Action

9.9 Cape Downwinders Steering Committee Meeting, 5-7:00 PM Hyannis Public Library

9.19 Democrat State Convention, Springfield 

9.23 Cape Downwinders General Meeting, 5-7:00

Hyannis Public Library/Legislative meeting begins at 4:00

East Meets West follow-up meeting TBA
Antigone Rosenkranz at the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Fair CLOSE PILGRIM Standout 8.20

Guest Commentary
Posted Aug. 4, 2015 at 2:01 AM Cape Cod Times
PAY ATTENTION GOVERNOR BAKER

     In 2012 the cruise liner Costa Corcordia sank off the coast of Italy, taking 32 lives. The captain was charged with manslaughter and dereliction of duty and was sentenced to 16 years in prison. At trial, it emerged that the captain knew exactly where the rocks were, but was not paying attention.
     Today, many citizens are cognizant of the accumulated risks posed by the Pilgrim Nuclear Plant, among them obsolescence, an abysmal safety record, overcrowded nuclear storage pools and a broken electric switchyard, to name only a few. The unprecedented proliferation of emergency shutdowns at Pilgrim is a real harbinger of danger. These perils are well-documented and self-evident. None of them could have been envisioned at the 1967 groundbreaking of the plant, yet they refuse to go away.
     We are not paying attention to the enormous and unthinkable implications that threaten the commonwealth. Fukushima reminds us.
The governor must call upon the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for the plant's immediate shutdown and decommissioning. There is no rationale to wait; the governors of New York and Vermont have called for old nuclear plants to be shut down in their states. With the call for decommissioning, Gov. Baker will be judged to be on the right side of history. 
Don Barton
Mashpee

Those pesky teenagers are at it again! Have they no respect for the Entergy Corporation and their good friends the NRC?   Apparently not. These signs appeared early Saturday, Aug. 8th,  just in time for the traffic to the Cape and into Boston.  ..............Robert Miles, Rockland

Submissions to CDW Newsletter
Please send submissions to the newsletter to tturco@comcast.net by the 28th of the month. Thank you!
Cape Downwinders | tturco@comcast.net | www.madownwinders.org  



Copyright © 2014. All Rights Reserved.