New York -- Attorney General Andrew Cuomo Thursday announced the filing of a brief calling for the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission to broaden the criteria considered in the relicensing of nuclear power plants -- an action that he said could have implications for the Indian Point power plant.  The brief was filed with the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

Under its current relicensing regulations, the NRC focuses only on the age-related structural degradation of fixed, non-moving components, like the reactor core, containment system, pipes, and electrical cables. 

NRC relicensing regulations do not call for review of factors such as:

●       Location of the plant and local population density

●       Security and susceptibility to a terrorist attack

●       Acceptable emergency warning and evacuation plans

●       Geographic and seismic issues

●       Demonstrated compliance with ongoing regulatory requirements

The current relicensing regulations were developed in 1991 and 1995, when the NRC concluded that limiting the scope of its inquiry would make the relicensing process “more stable and predictable” for the licensees.  To date, the NRC has granted approximately 48 license renewals, and it has yet to deny one. 

Approximately 20 million people – about six percent of the nation’s population – live within 50 miles of Indian Point.  The 9/11 Commission reported that al-Qaeda terrorists had specifically contemplated attacking nuclear power plants with aircraft, and two of the planes hijacked on September 11, 2001 flew near or over Indian Point. The year 2006 marked the fourth straight year that Westchester, Rockland, and Orange counties refused to certify county-based evacuation plans prepared by Entergy, the plant’s owner. 

Indian Point’s original 40-year operating licenses for Reactor Unit 2 and Reactor Unit 3 end in 2013 and 2015, respectively.  In May 2007, Entergy submitted license renewal applications to the NRC for these reactors.  Entergy seeks to extend their operating licenses for another twenty years, or until 2033 and 2035.