Eight Things C-10 Accomplished in 2021

It's easy to feel overwhelmed when the topic at hand is nuclear safety. It's kind of heavy, you know? Sometimes it helps to step back and measure our successes. True, nuclear safety can be hard to quantify, but at C-10, we KNOW we're making a difference. 

For thirty years, the non-profit C-10 Research and Education Foundation has been monitoring airborne radiation in real time, communicating with government officials about safety and security concerns at the Seabrook nuclear plant, and serving as an educational resource for the public in Massachusetts and New Hampshire on what it means to live near a nuclear power plant. 

Seabrook Station is currently licensed to operate until 2050, with the onus the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and plant owner NextEra Energy to ensure it can be done safely.  But who's watching the regulators? C-10, that's who.

1. Expanding the Citizens Radiological Monitoring Network in New Hampshire to improve our coverage area, and successfully making the case to Massachusetts lawmakers to increase funding so that we can invest in field equipment like probes and anemometers.
2. Developing plans to make the network “climate resilient” to ensure that severe weather doesn’t take down our ability to monitor radiation in real time. We’re almost there in securing the funds to launch this transformative project, which will feature radio-based communication powered by a solar and battery configuration. Stay tuned for updates!
3. Keeping the focus on how NextEra Energy Seabrook and the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) are managing the problem of alkali-silica reaction (ASR) that is weakening the concrete meant to contain harmful radiation from escaping into the environment. Check out this recent TV coverage!
4. Educating and engaging with members of Congress and meeting with NRC Commissioner Jeff Baran to ensure that regulators do more to understand ASR at Seabrook Station and at other reactors where it may be silently developing, and that the right experts are at the table to guide policy.
5. Continuously reviewing inspection reports and other documents, consulting with our experts, and communicating with the NRC’s resident inspectors at Seabrook to learn more and press for answers and accountability.
6. Informing Seabrook’s neighbors about how and why they should get potassium iodide tablets (KI) to protect their health in the event of an emergency, as well as other ways to be prepared if the unthinkable happened.
7. Speaking out about environmental justice issues relative to the nuclear life cycle: from mining to waste storage that are particularly burdensome to indigenous and communities of color.
8. Planning for a strong future - C-10's board of directors have approved our 2022-24 three-year strategic plan, which includes new research projects, enhanced data analytics, a renewed focus on education, and investments in our organizational capacity in terms of people and equipment. We'll tell you more about it soon. For an overview of our priorities, click here.

We may not want to think about it, but Seabrook Station isn’t getting any safer as it ages. 
From problems with degrading concrete and mechanical systems, to the increased risks brought by climate change with storms and coastal flooding, now more than ever, we need C-10's watchful eyes and strong voice.

I'm very proud of how we capped our 30-year anniversary. For more details on what we've achieved thanks to our supporters, Business Allies, grant funders and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, see this blog. There's much more to do, and we hope you'll continue to stand with us in this important work.

On behalf of all of us at C-10, thank you so much, and best wishes for the new year!

-Natalie Hildt Treat, Executive Director