Reaction to Indian Point closure is mixed

BUCHANAN – Riverkeeper
President Paul Galley termed the agreement to shut down the Indian Point
nuclear power plant “history in the making.” He said the deal
“is a win for the safety of our communities and the health of the
Hudson River and the people of New York.”
Gallay, whose organization has been in the forefront of the fight to shut down the nuclear power plants, said over the next four years Riverkeeper “is going to keep a close eye on Entergy to make sure the plan closes responsibly, and forever.”
Gallay said he knew all along that the plant would eventually have to shut down.
“We knew as the condition of the plant conditioned to worsen, the company would come to the realization that it was time,” Gallay said. “And with the unprecedented number of failed bolts in the core of reactor two, everyone understood that it was time, so we were always of the opinion that this day would come.”
Westchester County Executive Robert Astorino had another point of view. He said the deal was a bad move that will impact residents in the pocketbook.
“It’s typical Cuomo,” Astorino, a Republican said. “The [Democrat] governor, the head of a power company and Riverkeeper go into a back room. It sounds like a joke but the problem is the punch line is in the cost of billions of dollars and that is going to be paid by taxpayers, the middle class, always going to get it and they are going to get it here, too.”
Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D, NY17) said Indian Point “has long posed a grave threat to the safety and well-being of those living not only in the Lower Hudson Valley, but to the nearly 18 million residents within a 50-mile radius, including New York City.”
Lowey said she will work with the state “to find green solutions to meet New York’s energy needed, keep energy prices low, replace jobs and assist the workforce at Indian Point, support the local economy, and address the proper removal and storage of nuclear waste from the facility.”