At the time of the accident at TMI in March, 1979, we lived just twelve miles from the nuclear power station. Having just seen the movie “ The China Syndrome” which, ironically, was showing in local theaters, I recognized with horror that there was a chance radiation was being actively released into our air and water. It was no surprise that Governor Thornburgh called for an evacuation of all children five and under. That included myself and our children who were five, three and one at the time.
We drove to family in Washington D.C. while my husband had to stay in York for his weekend call. Perhaps the worst moment was when the officials announced a hydrogen bubble had formed in the damaged reactor which could possibly cause an explosion. With that my husband and I had “The Conversation” about what to bring out of our home when he was preparing to leave and join us that Monday morning. I remember simply saying, “ All I want is our photo albums”.
As I was educating myself about nuclear power I joined ANGRY’s speakers group
Mary
We were treated on the news to pictures of Jimmy Carter, complete with paper booties, touring the TMI control room and were given reassurances by the owners of the power station but, having seen those publicity stunts played out in The China Syndrome, I couldn’t believe them for a minute. I also found I couldn’t justify returning to York with my children unless I made a pledge to learn about the dangers of nuclear power and take some action. I did return and joined a group called Anti-Nuclear Group Representing York (ANGRY) which had just formed and started meeting in the Quaker Meeting House. One of the first things we discovered was that there was no way to get the full story of radiation releases during the partial meltdown because there had been incomplete compliance with radiation monitoring by the power company. Some areas were not covered with monitors at all and in others, some of those that were up were not working.
No telephone books, no evacuation plan.
As I was educating myself about nuclear power I joined ANGRY’s speakers group and started giving talks at club meetings, in pulpits, anywhere there were people to listen. First and foremost was the need to remind friends and neighbors about the nature of radiation itself, both its immediate lethal effects and also the potential of its sublethal effects with lower dose exposures to cause cancers of all sorts down the line, especially in children like mine. I had learned that the Atomic Energy Commission,which had been formed in the fifties to promote “the peaceful uses of the atom”, had more recently been morphed into the Nuclear Regulatory Commission ( NRC), but was run by the same zealots who tried to convince us that nuclear energy is safe because its engineers were like those in the “nuclear priesthood” who had run the Navy’s nuclear subs.
I learned about the Nuclear Fuel Cycle, where, at its multiple points, there were risks of exposure to radiation – from the place of extraction of uranium ore in the Southwest to its transportation across our highways in the U.S., to the manufacture of fuel pellets in factories in the South, to plutonium creation and accumulation in nuclear wastes at power stations themselves etc. And this is to say nothing of the threat which still remains true today of sabotage by terrorists anywhere along the fuel cycle. Also, it turns out there had been previous accidents and near-misses around our nation which were skillfully played down or hushed up.
we were fingerprinted, our mug shots were taken
As a member of the League of Women Voters, I helped form a study group to explore further the potential impacts of maintaining a nuclear power presence in our community. The NRC , because of increasing public pressure around that time, issued a rule that nuclear power stations could not operate unless there was a viable evacuation plan in place for a ten mile radius around the plant and that it had to be advertised in the front pages of telephone books. (Imagine today such a thing! No telephone books, no evacuation plan. Really, is there a plan anymore?). The plan the TMI energy company came up with included school bus drivers collecting kids from schools and driving them away to safe places. Our LWV team went to interview some of those drivers. It turns out a majority of them were parents themselves and many said they wouldn’t comply as they would be focusing on their rescuing their own children instead. Our group testified about this at ( pro forma) NRC hearings set up to address evacuation planning and ultimately were just dismissed.
On the first anniversary of the accident, at literally its same early hour, scores of us gathered to protest in front of TMI’s gates. Jesse Jackson, of all people, joined us local residents as we expressed our concerns and anger about the effects of the meltdown on our community. Because we were blocking the entrance, we were all arrested, carried away in busses to a police station where we were fingerprinted, our mug shots were taken, then were given misdemeanor citations and sent on our way. It had been a shock to see our government ,whose primary job indisputably should be to protect us, had instead chosen to promote those peaceful uses of the atom. Despite that, as a result of the TMI accident, no new nuclear reactor stations have been built for most of the last forty years. Perhaps this is one blessing.
I was recently in the Rotunda of the State Capital when I saw a display set up by Westinghouse and others promoting nuclear energy. It felt like a dangerous joke. It was a reminder of something I learned forty years ago and keep learning over and over – that as resident citizens we are perpetually tasked to be vigilant and to be publicly and actively involved in the defense of our community’s health. If not us, who?
Mary
