Attorney General Clark Joins Coalition Opposing Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Attempt to Weaken Environmental Reviews

A proposal by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) would unlawfully fast-track nuclear power projects by choosing to ignore foreseeable environmental impacts and making it harder for the public to engage, Attorney General Clark and a coalition of attorneys general argued in a comment letter submitted today.

The NRC has proposed changes to how it conducts National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) reviews of projects, changes that the coalition states say would come at the expense of environmental and economic information, public participation, and transparency. The NRC has conceded in its Regulatory Analysis for the Proposed Rule that the changes will likely reduce public confidence in the safety and security of nuclear power.

The NRC's mission emphasizes its obligation to protect "public health and safety" in its regulation of nuclear energy technologies for the "benefit of society and the environment." And yet, the commission's proposed rule limits the environmental impacts the NRC would consider, including environmental justice issues and climate change, removes public participation opportunities at key stages of the environmental review process, and restricts analysis of alternatives for a proposed action.

In their letter, the attorneys general argue that the proposed rule would violate the Administrative Procedure Act and fail to comply with NEPA, if finalized. They also argue that the proposed rule fails to assess the possible environmental effects of the "streamlined" reviews, as required by NEPA. The NRC did not include an environmental analysis of the proposed rule and failed to consider reasonable alternatives to its proposed regulations, in likely violation of NEPA, they argued.

Additionally, the NRC would cut out meaningful opportunities for the public to participate in the environmental review process, which is one of the "twin aims" of NEPA. The NRC's proposed rule would require solicitation of public comment only on the notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement, the minimum required under NEPA, and would not require that the NRC respond to public comments. That heightens the possibility of overlooking or disregarding potentially significant environmental harms.

The attorneys general are asking that the NRC withdraw the proposed rule or, failing that, revise the rule to meet its obligations under the law, including the commission's responsibilities to protect the environment and the public and provide sufficient analysis and justification of the changes the commission wants to make.

Joining Attorney General Clark in filing the letter are the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, and Washington.