Pa. activists try to head off nuclear restart at Three Mile Island

Rachel McDevitt

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I report on energy and the environment for StateImpact Pennsylvania at WITF.

My work focuses on responses and solutions to climate change in the state legislature and communities around the state. I trace my interest in these issues back to my time as a Girl Scout and this episode of Rocko’s Modern Life.

I look forward to winter just for the chance to ski a few times each season. I try to keep myself from doom-scrolling on my phone by keeping my hands busy knitting and learning to play the piano.

I grew up in Cambria County, Pa. and graduated from Temple University. I started at WITF just after Christmas in 2014.

Rachel McDevitt / StateImpact Pennsylvania

Eric Epstein of Three Mile Island Alert speaks at an event to oppose reopening Three Mile Island at the state capitol on Sept. 3, 2024.

September 4, 2024 | 3:24 PM

Federal incentives for emissions-free energy have owners of recently shuttered nuclear plants exploring restarts.

Now some activists are calling on Pennsylvania’s government to prevent the reopening of Three Mile Island.

TMI Unit 1 owner Constellation said this summer it would be technically possible to repower the plant, but it does not have concrete plans to restart it.

Demand for electricity is growing again with the rise of data centers and new technology. The regional electric grid that covers Pennsylvania, PJM, has warned that plant retirements could outpace new energy coming online, leaving insufficient power. PJM has a large backlog of mostly renewable energy projects waiting for approval to connect so construction can begin.

Palisades Power Plant in Michigan is attempting to be the first shuttered nuclear plant to restart. That state gave the plant $150 million to fuel the effort and the plant’s owner has applied to the federal Department of Energy for a $1.52 billion loan.

With these changes in the market, Pennsylvania lawmakers have reformed a caucus focused on supporting nuclear power, while watchdog groups are sounding the alarm about the use of tax- and rate-payer money to prop up aging plants. Those opposed to nuclear power say it’s too expensive and risky. They point to the fact that there is no solution for a permanent disposal of a plant’s nuclear waste, leaving it to sit on site indefinitely.

Three Mile Island pictured on June 3, 2024. (Jeremy Long – WITF)

TMI’s Unit 2 reactor suffered a partial meltdown in 1979. The incident effectively stopped nuclear power’s growth in the U.S. for decades. TMI-2 never restarted and is undergoing cleanup.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission said radioactive releases during the accident were low enough that they would not be expected to negatively impact health, though some people in the area have contested that.

Joyce Corradi of the group Concerned Mothers and Women, says the idea of a restart on the island is unacceptable.

“This is not a pro- or anti-nuclear issue to us. This is a health and safety issue,” Corradi said.

State Rep. Tom Mehaffie (R-Dauphin) co-chairs the bipartisan nuclear caucus, and said Pennsylvania should follow Michigan’s lead. He said many forms of energy get government subsidies.

“We’ve put incentives in place to make sure that those things continue to operate for the people of Pennsylvania. That’s what they pay their taxes for,” Mehaffie said.

He said restarting TMI-1 would add 900 megawatts back to the grid and restore jobs in the area. Plus, he said it would bring the benefit of oversight from the NRC.

“Why wouldn’t we want an operating plant so the NRC is there? Because once you have a non-operational plant, the NRC walks away from that,” Mehaffie said.

Once a nuclear plant shuts down, the owner has 60 years to decommission the site. During that time, it is subject to regular inspections by the NRC to ensure the site is being managed safely.