The plant's license is scheduled to expired in March of 2012.
View full sizeIn this undated file aerial photo provided by Vermont Yankee Corporation, the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon, Vt. is shown.The Brattleboro Reformer reports this morning that the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant has passed an annual inspection.
According to The Reformer, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission found that the plant's performance indicators for 2010 were of very low safety concern. Read more »
Vermont Public Radio reports that federal regulators are "close to issuing a new 20-year license" for the plant, whose license is set to expire in March of 2012.
However, the plant needs the approval of the Legislature to continue operation — approval they lost in February of 2010 when the Vermont Senate voted overwhelmingly against the extension of the plant's license.
Critics says the NRC has never denied a license renewal application. Listen to the story »
Eight Franklin County Boards of Selectmen sent a letter of concern to the officials overseeing the plant, located just over the border from Northfield, about how closure of the plant would be handled. The Republican reported:
The boards seek assurances “that during this post-shutdown period, when the reactor’s radioactive components will be dismantled and removed or stored on site, workers remaining on the site receive the maximum protection from radiation exposure” and surrounding towns will remain safe and informed throughout the process.
“We felt there was nothing wrong with asking,” said Buckland selectmen chairman Stefan Racz. “We wanted to let Entergy (Nuclear) Corporation know there are communities that are watching what’s happening.”
Vermont Yankee spokesman Larry Smith told The Republican in February that the plant is not yet scheduled to be decommissioned, though its license is scheduled to expire on March 12, 2012.