HomeMy WebLinkAboutReso 55-1981 RESOLUTION NO. 55-81
CITY COUNCIL, CITY OF SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, STATE OF CALIFORNIA
A RESOLUTION SUPPORTING ACTIVITATION
OF DIABLO CANYON POWER FACILITY
WHEREAS, the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant was certified for con-
struction by the California Public Utilities Commission more than fourteen
years ago; and
WHEREAS, the power plant has been constructed at a remote site near
San Luis Obispo and is now complete and awaiting licensing by the United States
Nuclear Regulatory Commission; and
WHEREAS, Dr. John A. Blume, president of the Earthquake Engineeri.ng
Research Institute and a renowned authority on earthquake engineering and
structural dynamics, has said that the nuclear plant containment structures
are the "strongest that man has designed . . . l0 to 20 times stronger than
the best buildings in our modern cities . . . Diablo Canyon and other nuclear
plants are the best structures for earthquake safety ever built by man;" and
WHEREAS, Congressman Tom Bevill, Chairman of the Subcommittee on the
Energy and Water Development, finds that "The apparent inability of the
(Nuclear Regulatory) Commission to deal with licensing issues in a timely
and effective manner is taking a terrible economic toll on the utility ind-
ustry, the nuclear power industry, and on the ultimate customer;" and
WHEREAS, Congressman Bevill further states: "At a time when all Americans
are suffering from double-digit inflation, the (Nuclear Regulatory) Commission's
failure to license completed nuclear power plants in a'timely manner has con-
tributed to that inflation by forcing reliance on increasingly expensive im-
ported oil and domestic natural gas. As an example, for those nuclear power
plants (including Diablo Canyon) identified in the (NRC) status report as
impacted, the estimated total addi.tional cost to ratepayers will range as
high as $3.6 billion;" and
WHEREAS, the California Public Utilities Commission has stated that
operation of the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant has "substantial advantages,"
includi~ng"added generation capacity at a time when electric reserve margins
in California are low, replacement of overworked oil and gas-fired generating
plants which depend on expensive and insecure supplies of imported fuel, and
utilization of the massive investment already made in the Diablo facilities;"
and
WHEREAS, the California Energy Commission also recognizes the vital
importance of Diablo Canyon and includes this power plant in its forecast of
the energy supplies required to meet state needs to the year 1990; and
WHEREAS, President Carter, on December 7, 1979, responding to recommend-
ations of the Kemeny Commission on the Accident at Three Mile Island, endorsed
the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's deci.sion to pause in issuing licenSes in
order to put its house in order but urged the" . . . NRC to complete its
work as quickly as possible and, in any event, not later than six months from
today;" and
WHEREAS, California's varied and diverse industrial mix of agriculture,
food processing, manufacturing, electronics, and oil refineries all rely on
electrical energy, and individual consumers depend upon electrical energy in
their jobs, in their homes, and in every other aspect of their daily life;
and
WHEREAS, when licensed and fully operating, the Diablo Canyon Nuclear
Power Plant will generate 2,200 megawatts of electricity, reducing the need
for 20 million equivalent barrels of foreign oil annually, and will generate
enough electricity to serve the needs of two million Californians at a savings
of more than $2 billion in utility bills over what customers would otherwise
pay for electric power during any given five-year period during which the plant
was not operating;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of South
San Francisco that the City of South San Francisco requests that the United
States Nuclear Regulatory Commission expedite the licensing process so that
the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Plant can be licensed at the earliest possible time
consonant with a reasonable assessment of protection of public health and
safety.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this 'Resolution be transmitted
to the President of the United States, the Governor of California, each United
States Senator and Member of the House of Representatives from California,
and the Chairman of the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
I hereby certify that the foregoing Resolution was regularly introduced
and adopted by the City Council of the City of South San Francisco at a
regular
vOte·
AYES'
NOES'
ABSENT-
meeting held on the 6th day of May , 1981, by the following
Councilmen Ronald G. Acosta, Emanuele N. Damonte; and
Gus NicolOpulos
·
Councilman Mark N. Addiego and Councilwoman Roberta Cerri l!eglia
None
City Clerk