SENIOR ASSEMBLY PROPOSAL NO. 12

INTRODUCED BY SENIOR ASSEMBLY MEMBER LOH

 

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AP 12: DIABLO CANYON POWERPLANT: SEISMIC STUDIES: EMERGENCY EVACUATIONS.

UNDER EXISTING LAW, VARIOUS STATE ENTITIES HAVE RESPONSIBILITY FOR PLANNING FOR, AND RESPONDING TO, EMERGENCIES.

UNDER EXISTING LAW, THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION HAS REGULATORY AUTHORITY OVER PUBLIC UTILITIES, INCLUDING ELECTRICAL CORPORATIONS. THE CALIFORNIA EMERGENCY SERVICES ACT PROVIDES FOR THE ASSESSMENT OF CERTAIN STATE AGENCY COSTS ON UTILITIES OPERATING CERTAIN NUCLEAR POWERPLANTS, AND THE DEPOSIT OF THOSE MONEYS INTO, AND THE APPROPRIATION AND ALLOCATION OF MONEYS FROM, THE NUCLEAR PLANNING ASSESSMENT SPECIAL ACCOUNT. THE ACT REQUIRES THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION TO DEVELOP AND TRANSMIT TO THE OFFICE OF EMERGENCY SERVICES AN EQUITABLE METHOD OF ASSESSING UTILITIES OPERATING NUCLEAR POWERPLANTS FOR THEIR REASONABLE PRO RATA SHARE OF STATE AGENCY COSTS SPECIFIED IN THE ACT AND PROVIDES THAT THE AMOUNTS PAID BY THE UTILITIES BE ALLOWED FOR RATEMAKING PURPOSES BY THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION.

EXISTING LAW REQUIRES THE STATE ENERGY RESOURCES CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION TO ASSESS VARIOUS POLICY AND PLANNING ISSUES AFFECTING THE FUTURE ROLE OF NUCLEAR POWERPLANTS IN THE STATE.

THIS MEASURE WOULD MEMORIALIZE THE LEGISLATURE AND THE GOVERNOR TO ENACT LEGISLATION THAT WOULD REQUIRE THE STATE ENERGY RESOURCES CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION AND PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION TO JOINTLY ACT TO PROTECT THE SAFETY OF THE PUBLIC BY URGING THE FEDERAL NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION TO REQUIRE COMPREHENSIVE DETAILED SEISMIC STUDIES REGARDING THE ABILITY OF THE DIABLO CANYON POWERPLANT AND THE AREA’S INFRASTRUCTURE TO WITHSTAND AN EARTHQUAKE AND NUCLEAR ACCIDENT AT THE SAME TIME, AND TO DETERMINE HOW LONG THE POWERPLANT WOULD BE SELF-SUSTAINING IN THE EVENT OF SUCH DAMAGE. THE MEASURE WOULD ADDITIONALLY MEMORIALIZE THE LEGISLATURE AND THE GOVERNOR TO ENACT LEGISLATION THAT WOULD REQUIRE ALL STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES WITH RESPONSIBILITY FOR RESPONDING TO AN EMERGENCY AT THE DIABLO CANYON POWERPLANT TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT A LONG-RANGE AND COMPREHENSIVE EVACUATION PLAN FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC IN THE EVENT OF SUCH AN EMERGENCY, WITH SEPARATE SPECIFIC STEPS IMPLEMENTED FOR THE EVACUATION OF THE MOST VULNERABLE PERSONS IN THE EVENT OF A NUCLEAR EMERGENCY.

VOTE: MAJORITY.

 

AP 12: RELATING TO THE DIABLO CANYON POWERPLANT

WHEREAS, ALTHOUGH THE DIABLO CANYON POWERPLANT PROVIDES MORE THAN 3,000,000 CALIFORNIANS WITH AFFORDABLE ELECTRICITY, PUBLIC SAFETY MUST ALWAYS BE OUR NUMBER ONE CONCERN, ESPECIALLY FOR SENIORS AND THE DISABLED; AND

WHEREAS, MOST POWERPLANTS IN CALIFORNIA ARE BUILT ALONG THE OCEAN, BUT THERE MAY BE OFFSHORE FAULTS DISCOVERED NEAR THOSE PLANTS AFTER THEY WERE APPROVED AND BEGAN CONSTRUCTION. THERE ARE AT LEAST TWO FAULT LINES OFFSHORE WITHIN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THE DIABLO CANYON POWERPLANT; AND

WHEREAS, THE FEDERAL NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION HAS NOT TAKEN SERIOUS ACTION RELATIVE TO THE 2008 REPORT OF THE STATE ENERGY RESOURCES CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION, ALSO KNOWN AS THE CALIFORNIA ENERGY COMMISSION, WHICH STRONGLY CONCLUDED THAT MORE INFORMATION IS NECESSARY TO DETERMINE THE TRUE SEISMIC RISK SURROUNDING OPERATION OF THE DIABLO CANYON POWERPLANT; AND

WHEREAS, THE CALIFORNIA ENERGY COMMISSION, THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION, AND THE CALIFORNIA COASTAL COMMISSION, STATE SENATOR SAM BLAKESLEE, AND CONGRESSWOMAN LOIS CAPPS HAVE ALL AGREED OR RECOMMENDED THAT INDEPENDENT, PEER REVIEWED, ADVANCED SEISMIC STUDIES BE PERFORMED PRIOR TO CONSIDERATION OF RELICENSURE OF THE DIABLO CANYON POWERPLANT AND THEIR COMPLETION BE A REQUIREMENT FOR SUBMITTING A RELICENSURE APPLICATION FOR THE POWERPLANT; AND

WHEREAS, WHILE THERE IS A GUIDE FOR RESIDENTS OF SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY AS TO WHAT TO DO IN THE EVENT OF AN EMERGENCY INVOLVING THE DIABLO CANYON POWERPLANT, THIS IS ONLY A MINIMUM “BOILERPLATE” INSTRUCTION; AND

WHEREAS, THE GUIDE CONCLUDES THAT: “RESIDENTS WHO CANNOT EVACUATE THEMSELVES SHOULD GO TO A NEARBY COLLECTION POINT TO BE TRANSPORTED TO CAMP ROBERTS OR THE FAIRGROUNDS IN SANTA MARIA. A LIST OF THOSE COLLECTION POINTS CAN BE FOUND ON PAGE A 36 IN THE AT&T PHONE BOOK.” THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE. WHEN A DISASTER HITS, THE SITUATION WILL BE CHAOTIC AND NOBODY WILL BE ABLE TO LOCATE A TELEPHONE BOOK AND REVIEW PAGE A 36 AND IT IS UNREALISTIC TO EXPECT THAT SENIORS AND THE DISABLED WILL BE ABLE TO GET TO A COLLECTION POINT; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT

RESOLVED, BY THE SENIOR ASSEMBLY AND THE SENIOR SENATE, JOINTLY, THAT THE SENIOR LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA AT ITS 2011 REGULAR SESSION, A MAJORITY OF THE MEMBERS VOTING THEREFOR, HEREBY PROPOSES THAT THE CALIFORNIA ENERGY COMMISSION AND PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION JOINTLY ACT TO PROTECT THE SAFETY OF THE PUBLIC BY URGING THE FEDERAL NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION TO REQUIRE COMPREHENSIVE DETAILED SEISMIC STUDIES REGARDING THE ABILITY OF THE DIABLO CANYON POWERPLANT AND THE AREA’S INFRASTRUCTURE TO WITHSTAND AN EARTHQUAKE AND NUCLEAR ACCIDENT AT THE SAME TIME, AND TO DETERMINE HOW LONG THE POWERPLANT WOULD BE SELF-SUSTAINING IN THE EVENT OF SUCH DAMAGE; AND BE IT FURTHER

RESOLVED, THAT ALL STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES WITH RESPONSIBILITY FOR RESPONDING TO AN EMERGENCY AT THE DIABLO CANYON POWERPLANT SHOULD DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT A LONG-RANGE AND COMPREHENSIVE EVACUATION PLAN FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC IN THE EVENT OF SUCH AN EMERGENCY, WITH SPECIFIC STEPS THAT WILL BE UNDERTAKEN TO ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF SENIORS AND THE DISABLED. THERE SHOULD BE SEPARATE SPECIFIC STEPS IMPLEMENTED FOR THE EVACUATION OF THE MOST VULNERABLE PERSONS IN THE EVENT OF A NUCLEAR EMERGENCY; AND BE IT FURTHER

RESOLVED, THAT THE SENIOR LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA RESPECTFULLY MEMORIALIZES THE LEGISLATURE AND THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA TO ENACT APPROPRIATE LEGISLATION THAT WOULD ADDRESS THE CONCERNS SET FORTH IN THIS MEASURE; AND BE IT FURTHER

RESOLVED, THAT A COPY OF THIS MEASURE BE TRANSMITTED TO THE SPEAKER OF THE ASSEMBLY, THE PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE OF THE SENATE, AND THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA.

- 0 -

RN 11 17667