Spring 2005 - Central New York Updates

In March, CNY-CAN celebrated one of our most significant victories in years: nuclear whistleblower Carl Patrickson won his lawsuit against Entergy. Entergy fired Patrickson in 2003 after he reported a major safety problem at the FitzPatrick reactor in Oswego. The victory also provides evidence that Entergy  anagement is creating a chilled work atmosphere that has far-reaching
safety implications.

The judge ruled that Entergy used its “Performance Improvement Program” as a pretext for retaliating against him. CAN has been instrumental in supporting Patrickson and his wife Carolyn through their two-year legal fight. We have organized publicity, rallies, and community support for the Patricksons for over a year. At a press conference announcing the victory, Carolyn Patrickson told the media, “We could not have stuck it out without [CAN’s] support.” Entergy has appealed the judge’s ruling, which could delay financial relief for the Patricksons for years.

In October, we submitted a 2.206 petition to NRC buttressing Carl’s allegations about the safety problem, which could cause the reactor to lose all of its cooling and fire fighting systems in a matter of minutes in the case of a fire. The problem could easily be exploited in an attack, making it a major security vulnerability.

NRC denied the petition in March, but in early April we obtained internal Entergy documents through a Freedom of Information request to the Dept. of Labor, which is hearing Patrickson’s case. The documents plainly support Patrickson’s allegation and make it clear that NRC is complicit in the cover-up. We will use them to generate Congressional pressure after resubmitting or appealing the petition.

Just a week after extensive press coverage of Patrickson’s victory, politicians in Oswego County began  assing resolutions supporting the construction of new nuclear reactors. On March 28, the Oswego City Council passed a resolution, and on April 14 the County Legislature did the same. The resolutions were pushed through with no notice and no public hearings.

The disconnect between politicians’ support for the nukes when Entergy and Constellation are harassing and laying off workers makes this an essential moment to step up our organizing. In April, CNY-CAN received a $7,000 grant from the Funding Exchange to help us start a major outreach program. We plan to hire a team of  
5 people to canvass Oswego neighborhoods this summer in conjunction with a series of events. The program will recruit new members and volunteers and begin a dialogue about nuclear power and the community’s future.