VNRC files legal paperwork on Yankee tritium leak

In testimony to be filed July 2, the Vermont Natural Resources Council asserts that groundwater pollution at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant violates the state’s recently-enacted groundwater public trust law.
“Every Vermonter owns Vermont’s groundwater,” said Jon Groveman, VNRC’s legal counsel and water program co-director. “If Vermont Yankee is claiming they have not violated Vermont law because the groundwater they have polluted has not spread to drinking water wells off their property, they are wrong,” he said.
In 2008, the legislature passed Act 199, which declares groundwater to be a public trust resource.
VNRC is filing the testimony in a Public Service Board docket investigating the leaks of radioactive substances at the plant. The docket is part of a broader PSB review of whether Vermont Yankee should continue operation.
Groveman said that groundwater, because it is a public trust resource, belongs to all Vermonters and not just the entity that owns the land above it. “Groundwater is to be managed for the benefit of all Vermonters and the public trust doctrine does not allow for contamination of groundwater, even beneath your own property,” he said. “Groundwater flows across property boundaries so these boundaries are meaningless when it comes to public trust resources.”
He noted that repeated discoveries of new leaks in recent months have cast doubt on the reliability of statements of reassurance about water contamination from Vermont Yankee officials.
The filing with the Public Service Board consists of testimony from Kim Greenwood, VNRC’s staff scientist. Greenwood has worked for 15 years on water issues in the private sector, at the Agency of Natural Resources, and for the last five with VNRC.
About VNRC
The Vermont Natural Resources Council is an independent, nonprofit research, education, and advocacy organization founded in 1963 to protect Vermont’s environment, economy, and quality of life. Nearly 6,000 households, businesses, and organizations support VNRC’s mission.
Source: VNRC. 7.1.2010