Several folks have recently and rather bizarrely advocated for the resurrection of nuclear power generation on the former Holtec site. I would suggest that those who offer such recommendations must simultaneously volunteer their own backyards for storage of the resulting radioactive residue. Very recently our federal government provided a comprehensive consultation system for homeowners who wished to go solar. It not only held one’s hand through the entire process of design and installation, it also maintained a list of expert and trustworthy installers from which one could choose. We used it successfully when we moved to Plymouth three years ago. Of course, the program disappeared under the current administration. Unless one believes that the people of the United States will never get their country back, this program will most assuredly quickly reappear when our country is returned to us. One of these advocates even wants us to believe that a nuclear power plant might be a place to attract tourists.
The absurdity of advocating a new nuclear power plant in a tourist center is exaggerated by a recognition that there are vastly superior alternatives for the environmentally sound and relatively inexpensive generation of electricity. Plymouth enjoys sufficient wind to generate lots and lots of electricity. There are smaller and quiet wind generators available to the homeowner, too. My favorite argument was the one involving Boulder, Colorado. I lived in Boulder during my graduate student years. I used to joke that everyone I had ever met came to visit me there. Boulder is on the edge of the foothills to the Rockies. There is no place I have visited in the world that rivals Boulder for its beauty, environment and vibrant community. We used to joke that one never had to worry about being too cold when skiing in the Rockies near Boulder. It was the possibility of sun burn that required attention.
Let’s consider building large wind generating towers before entertaining the idea that tourists want to spend their vacations close to nuclear sites.
– Fletcher A. Blanchard III