More than 230 "experts and concerned citizens" signed a letter written by advocacy group Protect Nuclear Now begging Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) not to close the state's Palisades nuclear plant, according to a statement the group released Wednesday.
Palisades is one of three nuclear plants in Michigan and provides enough carbon-free electricity to power 800,000 homes, according to the state's energy department and Entergy, the company that operates the plant.
Protect Nuclear Now notes that although Entergy opted to stop running the plant in May as part of a larger "strategy of exiting the merchant nuclear power business," Palisades is licensed to operate until 2031.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"The 2017 business decision to close Palisades was apparently based on losses from short-term market conditions" such as the low price of oil at the time, the letter to Whitmer notes. "Since then, our climate priorities have become more urgent, and economic conditions have changed."
Whitmer's office announced in September that she had secured a $6-million infrastructure grant from the Department of Commerce that would help compensate for the closure of Palisades by "attracting high-tech" employers, including renewable energy companies, to southwestern Michigan.
Todd Allen, who signed the letter and heads the University of Michigan's pro-nuclear Fastest Path to Zero program, said Palisades' output would more likely be "replaced by … fossil fuels."
The letter to Whitmer points out that President Biden's 2021 infrastructure bill includes $6 billion to save "existing zero-carbon nuclear plants."
According to government documents, the bill included these funds because multiple U.S. nuclear plants are "at risk for early closure" or "have already closed permanently due to economic circumstances," CNBC reported.
Behind the Protect Nuclear Now initiative is an organization known as Climate Coalition, which describes itself as "a coalition of independent activists" that "does not raise funds from donors" and has "no paid employees."
-
Etsy witches and the rise of digital spell-castingUnder the Radar From fixing your love life to hexing a colleague, online sorcerers offer a wide range of services
-
Why is this government shutdown so consequential?Today's Big Question Federal employee layoffs could be in the thousands
-
Lavender marriage grows in generational appealIn the spotlight Millennials and Gen Z are embracing these unions to combat financial uncertainty and the rollback of LGBTQ+ rights
-
China vows first emissions cut, sidelining USSpeed Read The US, the world’s No. 2 emitter, did not attend the New York summit
-
How clean-air efforts may have exacerbated global warmingUnder the Radar Air pollution artificially cooled the Earth, ‘masking’ extent of temperature increase
-
Earth's seasons are out of whackUnder the radar The seasons' unfixed nature in different regions of the planet may have impacted biodiversity and evolution
-
At least 800 dead in Afghanistan earthquakespeed read A magnitude 6.0 earthquake hit a mountainous region of eastern Afghanistan
-
When does autumn begin?The Explainer The UK is experiencing a 'false autumn', as climate change shifts seasonal weather patterns
-
How 'freakosystems' are becoming the normThe explainer Ecosystems are changing permanently
-
Cloudbursts: what are the 'rain bombs' hitting India and Pakistan?The Explainer The sudden and intense weather event is almost impossible to forecast and often leads to deadly flash-flooding and landslides
-
What do heatwaves mean for Scandinavia?Under the Radar A record-breaking run of sweltering days and tropical nights is changing the way people – and animals – live in typically cool Nordic countries
