following a $1.5 billion loan

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm toured the Holtec Palisades Training Center on Thursday before announcing the federal government’s commitment to offer a $1.5 billion conditional loan to restart the Palisades nuclear plant. 

Hundreds of people packed into Holtec’s dry fuel storage building in Covert Township as Whitmer and Granholm — who previously served as governor — spotlighted the jobs the revived plant would bring to the community and the role nuclear energy would play in achieving Michigan’s clean energy goals. 

“Once operational, Palisades will provide reliable power to more than 800,000 homes and help us meet our statewide clean energy goals by removing three million tons of CO2 from the atmosphere annually, roughly equal to the emissions of 650,000 cars,” Whitmer said.

Lawmakers seek to revamp state nuclear policy while regulators evaluate benefits and pitfalls

In 2022, the Palisades nuclear plant along Lake Michigan was decommissioned by its current owner, Holtec International. According to a report from Reuters, Holtec purchased the plant from its previous owner Entergy to decommission it, as the plant struggled to compete with natural gas and renewable energy.

The plant could become the first nuclear power plant in the nation to restart operations, with Holtec planning to install two small modular reactors at the facility and resume operations in 2025. 

In addition to its $1.5 billion loan from the federal government, Michigan lawmakers approved $150 million in state funding to support the resurrection of the plant. In a proposed Fiscal Year 2024 budget supplemental, Whitmer asked for an additional $150 million in funding for the project.

At the event, Whitmer told reporters she anticipated the additional funding would still be needed in light of the federal loan and said she would work with the Legislature to pass alongside the state budget for the upcoming fiscal year that begins on Oct. 1.

Granholm said the restart would create 1,000 jobs under a project labor agreement (PLA) with 15 unions. Once the plant is running, it would support 600 positions, half of which would be union jobs.

“Those jobs I know represent both homecomings and new beginnings. Many of the jobs are going to be refilled by people who worked here for more than 20 years. Welcome home to the plant,” Granholm said. “Many are going to be filled by new nuclear talent that’s flocking to the area that you’re recruiting, looking to be part of something that’s historic.

“This is just about everything the president [Joe Biden], our administration — I know Gov. Whitmer and her administration — want for Michigan’s future, for America’s future. A future where workers who defined our energy past will be powering our energy future,” Granholm said. 

While the plant’s revival was celebrated by the Michigan Conservative Energy Forum, multiple environmental organizations including the Michigan Environmental Council, For Love of Water (FLOW) and the Sierra Club have called on the governor to invest funds into other environmental priorities, like drinking and wastewater issues, public transit, environmental cleanups and energy efficiency upgrades for housing. 

“How many homes could be insulated in terms of weatherization or healthy homes upgrades or how that money could be used towards wind and solar and other energy efficiency and demand response upgrades. And think of how many jobs we could create just in those sectors by really using that money instead of propping up one nuclear plant,” said Tim Minotas, deputy legislative and political director for the Sierra Club’s Michigan chapter. 

Ahead of the speech, two individuals carrying signs in protest of the plant were escorted out of the building. Ann Scott and Bruce Davis, the individuals escorted out of the building later told the Advance that two other individuals opposed to the plant were escorted out of the event, while Scott’s husband, Jim Scott, said he was able to stay for the speeches. 

The three Covert Township residents questioned whether the plant would be economically viable following its 2022 closure and raised concerns about the cost of reopening the plant and risks to water quality, citing multiple leaks of radioactive material while the plant was owned by Entergy. 

According to a report from the Holland Sentinel, tritium, a radioactive isotope was involved in multiple leaks from the facility. 

The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) explains that tritium is a naturally-occuring form of radioactive hydrogen that can be found in trace amounts of groundwater throughout the world, and is also a byproduct of nuclear energy generation. Tritium emits a weak form of radiation and primarily enters the body when people eat or drink substances containing tritium, absorb it through their skin or inhale it as a gas in the air.

According to the commission, nuclear power plants have reported abnormal releases of water containing tritium, resulting in ground water contamination. However, nuclear power plants regularly and safely release diluted concentrations of tritiated water. These releases are closely monitored and reported to the NRC and are made public on the commission’s website. 

While the NRC concurs with other national and international radiation protection regulatory agencies that any exposure to radiation could pose some health risk, including increased occurrences of cancer. The NRC and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have established three layers of radiation protection limits to protect the public against potential health risks from nuclear power plant spills or leaks of radioactive liquid, as well as drinking water standards for tritium concentration. 

Jim Scott noted that Palisades’ property abuts his own property. While he acknowledged the community was supportive of the restart, he feels the risks with the plant outweigh the reward. 

“If it has to be subsidized to the degree that they’re suggesting to create these 600 jobs — and again, I’m all for job creation. That’s a great concept. Great idea — but it’s a lot of money to put into that, wouldn’t that money be better invested in other green technologies,” he said.