(The Center Square) – If signed into law, a bill that passed the Legislature this year would push California officials to study the possible expansion of nuclear energy.
Assembly Bill 2647, authored by Assemblymember Lisa Calderon, D-City of Industry, is now on Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom's desk, awaiting his signature or veto.
The legislation would require the California Energy Commission to assess the role of nuclear power plants in getting the state across the finish line for its climate goals.
California's climate policy includes achieving 100% zero-carbon electricity by 2045, according to a legislative analysis of AB 2647.
“We are very concerned about this bill,” said Haakon Williams, executive director at The Committee to Bridge the Gap, an organization that is against the bill.
“We’re concerned because it sets in motion a process that could lead to the state opening its doors to one of the world’s most dangerous toxic industries," Williams told The Center Square.
Williams said he hopes that if Newsom signs the bill, the California Energy Commission conducts its required study with rigor and neutrality, paying attention to what he said were the serious challenges of nuclear energy.
This is especially crucial in light of the push to expand the state’s energy capacity to meet the increasing pressure of artificial intelligence technology, Williams said.
“I do think there’s a big-picture tendency to want to bend over backwards to accommodate the demands of the A.I. industry, without carefully considering whether we want to or need to meet those demands on nuclear energy in particular,” Williams said. “The push for building new [nuclear power plants] is coming with a slashing of critical safety regulations with the stated purpose being to try to make nuclear energy more cost-affordable. So we have to consider at what cost.”
Only one nuclear power plant currently operates in California: Pacific Gas & Electric's Diablo Canyon Power Plant in San Luis Obispo County, north of Santa Barbara. Two other plants, PG&E’s Humboldt Bay in Northern California, and the Sacramento Municipal Utility District’s Rancho Seco plant were both decommissioned decades ago.
A fourth, the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station near San Clemente in San Diego County, was permanently retired in 2013. It is still in the process of being decommissioned at a price tag of $4.5 billion.
Diablo Canyon operates at a nine-figure annual loss, which PG&E ratepayers pay for despite large taxpayer-funded subsidies, according to the bill analysis.
California currently has a moratorium on building new nuclear energy plants. That ban was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in the 1983 case PG&E vs. Energy Commission.
"Currently, California families pay more for electricity than they did a decade ago," Calderon told The Center Square Monday via email. "Statewide, that translates to billions of dollars more than Californians would pay at the national average. Advanced nuclear is not only an additional energy source to bring down costs associated with fossil fuel consumption, but also creates thousands of well-paid, permanent jobs in construction, engineering, and operations."
San Luis Obispo County, which registered its support for the bill, said in supporting comments in the bill analysis that ensuring long-term clean energy reliability will enhance energy safety and efficiency.
“The County appreciates the bill's comprehensive and analytical approach to informing future state energy policy decisions,” county officials said in their written comments. “The assessment includes analysis of system costs, reliability benefits, environmental and public health impacts, waste management considerations, and potential siting, as well as evaluation of how nuclear technologies may complement a high-renewable energy grid scenario.”
Officials with San Luis Obispo County did not respond to The Center Square before publication time on Monday.
