June 2016 provided a reason for California environmentalists and renewable energy advocates the world over to celebrate. In a “somewhat expected” announcement, PG&E communicated its plans to shutter Diablo Canyon, the state’s only remaining nuclear power plant in operation. Perched on an oceanside cliff near Avila Beach and situated on top of a number of earthquake faults [1], the controversial source of about nine percent of California’s electrical supply will cease pumping its electrons into the power grid by 2025.
This beautiful location provided the backdrop for the second chapter of my murder mystery. In Breach of Trust, Dr. Meredith Raffensperger, assumed the role of engineering director at the nuclear power plant working for the general manager, Wendell Wilson:
“Meredith enjoyed working for Wendell. He was fair with people but tough on bad performance. If you were a hard worker and did your best, you were rewarded. Wendell also made quick decisions, something that could be a blessing or a curse, especially at a nuclear power plant. The Diablo Canyon Power Plant became their mutual workplace after she graduated from Georgia Tech as an electrical engineer and completed her apprenticeship at the Southern Company’s Plant Vogtle nuclear facility. Moving to San Luis Obispo County and coming to work for Wendell was a move, in part, to salvage her career from being derailed by a past stormy relationship with her previous boss. The affair had fizzled. Meredith threw herself into her work and decided to prove herself in the male-dominated workplace of nuclear power production. Wendell was a supporter of women in the workplace. He was instrumental in securing her the engineering directorship at Diablo Canyon.”
“The reflective stroll down memory lane masked Meredith’s sense of uneasiness. Thinking about work kept her mind off the gruesome find of the headless body. She made her way to the entry gate of the plant’s protective zone where the police should be arriving momentarily. Meredith planned to escort them to the corpse, at least what was left of it.”
PG&E’s rationale for permanent closure of Diablo Canyon “runs counter to the nuclear industry’s arguments that curbing carbon emissions and combating climate change require use of nuclear power, which generates the most electricity without harmful emissions,” according to the LA Times.
This beautiful location provided the backdrop for the second chapter of my murder mystery. In Breach of Trust, Dr. Meredith Raffensperger, assumed the role of engineering director at the nuclear power plant working for the general manager, Wendell Wilson:
“Meredith enjoyed working for Wendell. He was fair with people but tough on bad performance. If you were a hard worker and did your best, you were rewarded. Wendell also made quick decisions, something that could be a blessing or a curse, especially at a nuclear power plant. The Diablo Canyon Power Plant became their mutual workplace after she graduated from Georgia Tech as an electrical engineer and completed her apprenticeship at the Southern Company’s Plant Vogtle nuclear facility. Moving to San Luis Obispo County and coming to work for Wendell was a move, in part, to salvage her career from being derailed by a past stormy relationship with her previous boss. The affair had fizzled. Meredith threw herself into her work and decided to prove herself in the male-dominated workplace of nuclear power production. Wendell was a supporter of women in the workplace. He was instrumental in securing her the engineering directorship at Diablo Canyon.”
“The reflective stroll down memory lane masked Meredith’s sense of uneasiness. Thinking about work kept her mind off the gruesome find of the headless body. She made her way to the entry gate of the plant’s protective zone where the police should be arriving momentarily. Meredith planned to escort them to the corpse, at least what was left of it.”
PG&E’s rationale for permanent closure of Diablo Canyon “runs counter to the nuclear industry’s arguments that curbing carbon emissions and combating climate change require use of nuclear power, which generates the most electricity without harmful emissions,” according to the LA Times.
Surprisingly, this large utility partnered with environmentalists such as the Friends of the Earth organization [2] to help PG&E migrate toward a state mandate that 50 percent of California’s electricity production is derived from renewable energy sources by the year 2030.
These were the same type of protestors, in my fictional account, that planted themselves outside the gated, secure facility and staged regular protests against nuclear power citing its danger to the community and environment:
These were the same type of protestors, in my fictional account, that planted themselves outside the gated, secure facility and staged regular protests against nuclear power citing its danger to the community and environment:
“‘Not sure.’ Meredith knew better than to ask if any protesters had slipped through the front gates or if they tried to make a water approach. It simply wasn’t possible with Chuck’s crew and all of the high tech gear used to ensure no one got over, under, or through the ten-foot fences. Instead, she asked, ‘How long have the tree-huggers been down there today?’”
“Chuck cocked his head southward toward the distant protesters, ‘Since before dawn. The night shift at the front gate said they began assembling and setting up around 4:00 am. I don’t know why they keep showing up. Since the Reagan years, the press has given up covering these types of sign-waving protests. Of course, that will change today.’”
“As if on cue, a San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s cruiser was making its way down the winding road toward their gate. The crowd at the other gate had spotted the black and white earlier and stirred from their robotic stupor. Those guards read the protesters’ collective expression of anticipation as a signal for greater vigilance; this meant the press would soon be on location too.”
Even though PG&E’s June 2016 announcement will end this chapter in the state’s history as a nuclear pioneer, it certainly bolsters its clean energy credentials. California already is among the leading states for wind production, geothermal power generation, and according to the LA Times, it “leads the nation by far in use of solar energy generated by rooftop panels and by sprawling power arrays in the desert.”
“Chuck cocked his head southward toward the distant protesters, ‘Since before dawn. The night shift at the front gate said they began assembling and setting up around 4:00 am. I don’t know why they keep showing up. Since the Reagan years, the press has given up covering these types of sign-waving protests. Of course, that will change today.’”
“As if on cue, a San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s cruiser was making its way down the winding road toward their gate. The crowd at the other gate had spotted the black and white earlier and stirred from their robotic stupor. Those guards read the protesters’ collective expression of anticipation as a signal for greater vigilance; this meant the press would soon be on location too.”
Even though PG&E’s June 2016 announcement will end this chapter in the state’s history as a nuclear pioneer, it certainly bolsters its clean energy credentials. California already is among the leading states for wind production, geothermal power generation, and according to the LA Times, it “leads the nation by far in use of solar energy generated by rooftop panels and by sprawling power arrays in the desert.”
Over the next decade of transition from nuclear generation to increased renewable energy production, PG&E agreed to ensure the replacement energy will be “greenhouse gas-free energy.” This shift will move PG&E’s renewable power percentage from 30 to 55 points of its total retail power sales [3]. In a big plus for ratepayers, customer costs will not increase because of the permanent closure as current estimates reveal it is now cheaper to close the nuclear power plant than extend its operation until 2044.
[1] According to June 29, 2016 reporting by the San Francisco Chronicle, “The [Diablo Canyon nuclear power] plant, on the Central Coast near San Luis Obispo, is nearly surrounded by earthquake fault lines, all of them discovered after construction began in 1968. Opponents raised the specter of Japan’s Fukushima disaster in 2011, when a tsunami triggered by a massive earthquake knocked out a nuclear plant’s backup power supply and caused three reactors to melt down.”
[2] Friends of the Earth formed in July 1969. Protesting the Diablo Canyon installation was that organization’s first protest target. According to FOE, “After failing to get the Sierra Club to reverse its support for Diablo Canyon, David Brower resigns as executive director. He forms Friends of the Earth, and the organization makes the fight against Diablo Canyon its first campaign.”
[3] On June 28, 2016, California’s States Lands Commission unanimously voted against requiring an environmental impact report to allow PG&E to continue to operate Diablo Canyon until its planned phase out by 2025. PG&E’s Geisha Williams, president of the company’s electricity operations, told commissioners, “These eight to nine years are a gift . . . they’re an amazing transition period . . . and an EIR [Environmental Impact Report] does nothing to help us move forward.” Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom, a member of the commission, reflecting on the forced closure of California’s other nuclear power plant, said, “San Onofre was a disaster . . . it increased wholesale energy costs, it hurt working folks, it hurt the economy and it increased greenhouse gas emissions. I think this [plan for Diablo Canyon] will provide a bridge, whereas San Onofre was a ditch.”
[1] According to June 29, 2016 reporting by the San Francisco Chronicle, “The [Diablo Canyon nuclear power] plant, on the Central Coast near San Luis Obispo, is nearly surrounded by earthquake fault lines, all of them discovered after construction began in 1968. Opponents raised the specter of Japan’s Fukushima disaster in 2011, when a tsunami triggered by a massive earthquake knocked out a nuclear plant’s backup power supply and caused three reactors to melt down.”
[2] Friends of the Earth formed in July 1969. Protesting the Diablo Canyon installation was that organization’s first protest target. According to FOE, “After failing to get the Sierra Club to reverse its support for Diablo Canyon, David Brower resigns as executive director. He forms Friends of the Earth, and the organization makes the fight against Diablo Canyon its first campaign.”
[3] On June 28, 2016, California’s States Lands Commission unanimously voted against requiring an environmental impact report to allow PG&E to continue to operate Diablo Canyon until its planned phase out by 2025. PG&E’s Geisha Williams, president of the company’s electricity operations, told commissioners, “These eight to nine years are a gift . . . they’re an amazing transition period . . . and an EIR [Environmental Impact Report] does nothing to help us move forward.” Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom, a member of the commission, reflecting on the forced closure of California’s other nuclear power plant, said, “San Onofre was a disaster . . . it increased wholesale energy costs, it hurt working folks, it hurt the economy and it increased greenhouse gas emissions. I think this [plan for Diablo Canyon] will provide a bridge, whereas San Onofre was a ditch.”