Radioactive Skeletons in Holtec International’s Closet…
Articles, and other posts, listed in backwards chronological order:
Posted September 28, 2019 —
MA AG Healey sues federal nuclear regulators over Plymouth plant transfer
As reported by the Boston Globe.
Holtec International has also proposed “temporarily storing” a grand total of 173,600 metric tons of commercial irradiated nuclear fuel at a site mid-way between Hobbs and Carlsbad, New Mexico.
The license tranfer from Entergy to Holtec at Pilgrim atomic reactor in Massachusetts, would include ownership, title, and liability for the irradiated nuclear fuel stored on-site.
Holtec’s grand scheme is to ultimately transport Pilgrim’s highly radioactive waste to its “consolidated interim storage facility” in NM.
Posted September 27, 2019 —
Oyster Creek Stakeholder Forum Leaves Locals with Even More Renewed Fears
As reported by Tap Into Barnegut/Wareton [New Jersey].Holtec International was awarded the license to Oyster Creek atomic reactor and ownership of its irradiated nuclear fuel by a U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) rubber-stamp. Holtec has also proposed to transport the highly radioactive wastes to southeastern New Mexico, for so-called “consolidated interim storage” (CIS). NRC is poised to rubber-stamp that, too.But as with the Oyster Creek license transfer, there is widespread resistance to the Holtec CIS Facility opening in NM.
Posted July 16, 2019 —
Pilgrim Watch Motion to File a New Contention, re: Holtec trustworthiness, reliability, and character (vis-a-vis allegation of bribery attempts, and more)
See the July 16, 2019 Motion filed by environmental watch-dog organization Pilgrim Watch, in the context of Holtec International/SNC-Lavalin’s takeover of the permanently shutdown Pilgrim atomic reactor license for decommissioning and irradiated nuclear fuel management purposes.
Posted July 10, 2019 —
[NJ State Senate Majority Leader] Weinberg ‘troubled’ by Holtec revelations
Posted July 9, 2019 —
Holtec funneled $50,000 to federal employee in bid to win contract, inspector general report says
As reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Posted July 9, 2019 —
Holtec CEO was at center of inquiry that led to disbarment by federal agency
Posted July 2, 2019 —
Meet the Congressman Defending Questionable Tax Breaks for a Company Connected to His Rich Brother
After multiple issues have surfaced with Holtec International’s New Jersey tax break application, Rep. Donald Norcross, its biggest congressional supporter (and the brother of a Holtec board member) is playing defense.
As reported by ProPublica and WNYC.
Posted June 30, 2019 —
Jim Walden went after the mob as a federal prosecutor. Now he’s investigating N.J. tax breaks
As reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer.
June 26, 2019 —
A Huge Tax Break Went to a Politically Connected Company in New Jersey Despite Red Flags
Holtec International told New Jersey regulators that Ohio was competing for its new headquarters. But officials there stripped the firm of past tax awards for failing to create the jobs it promised.
As reported by ProPublica and WNYC.
Posted June 20, 2019 —
New Mexico Commissioner of Public Lands Stephanie Garcia Richard: Holtec Int’l Misrepresentations Raise Serious Safety Concerns for Proposed Nuclear Storage Facility
NM Commissioner of Public Lands’ press release, sub-titled “No Restrictions on Oil, Gas and Mining Activities At Proposed Site,” as well as news coverage, posted.
Posted June 4, 2019:
The Tax Break Application Had a False Answer. Now the State Has Put the Break on Hold.
After WNYC and ProPublica identified a false answer on nuclear company Holtec International’s New Jersey tax break application, state officials have frozen the break pending further investigation.
As further reported by WNYC and ProPublica.
Posted June 3, 2019 —
Sources: Subpoena issued to New Jersey Economic Development Authority seeks documents on Holtec
The news follows an earlier exposé by Politico and WNYC, dated May 23, 2019, re: Holtec’s false testimony to the State of New Jersey on an application which won the company a $260 million tax break. Holtec testified that it had never been barred from doing business with the federal government or any state government. This was false. It had been barred from doing business with the Tennessee Valley Authority, due to a bribery conviction at the Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant in Alabama.
Posted May 23, 2019 —
Re: Holtec — “A False Answer, a Big Political Connection and $260 Million in Tax Breaks”
As reported by ProPublica and WNYC.
Posted December 20, 2018 —
“The NRC staff determined that NRC regulations do not specifically address bribery.”
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has delivered an early Xmas present to Holtec International. NRC has decided that “NRC regulations do not specifically address bribery.” The shocking statement is included in a December 20, 2018 “Closure Letter,” re: an “Allegation” of bribery against Holtec, that NRC launched an official investigation of, lasting nearly five months. In the end, NRC’s curt “Closure Letter” announced that bribery is “not our department”!
On July 30, 2018, in its public comments re: NRC’s National Environmental Policy Act scoping process vis-a-vis Holtec’s proposal to “tempoarily store” all the highly radioactive waste to ever be generated in the United States (and then some) in southeastern New Mexico, Beyond Nuclear included allegations of bribery by Holtec. See page 2 of Beyond Nuclear’s comments, here, re: the bribery allegations against Holtec CEO Krishna Singh.
Specifically, Holtec’s CEO, Krishna Singh, attempted to bribe industry whistle-blower Oscar Shirani of Commonwealth Edison/Exelon (as well as NRC whistle-blower Dr. Ross Landsman), into silence, re: widespread, serious quality assurance (QA) violations in the design and fabrication of Holtec containers for high-level radioactive waste storage and transport, used extensively throughout the U.S. nuclear power industry.
Singh was also implicated in bribing a Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) official in order to secure a contact at the Browns Ferry nuclear power plant in Alabama. The bribery led to a court conviction, and resulted in Holtec paying millions of dollars in fines, as well as a 60-day suspension (a bar) on doing business with TVA.
Of course, $2 million in fines, and a 60-day bar, were mere slaps on the wrist for a giant international corporation like Holtec. Holtec was then simply allowed to proceed merrily along its way, executing and profiting from the contract it secured through bribery, and others that followed thereafter.
Posted September 14, 2018 —
CEO of N.J. firm given $260M in tax breaks trashes local workers as lazy, drug users
Posted September 14, 2018 —
Camden’s Holtec CEO draws rebuke for comments on workforce
As reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Posted September 14, 2018 —
Protesters demand apology from Holtec CEO for calling Camden workers lazy
As reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Posted September 14, 2018 —
Protesters call Holtec CEO’s comments on Camden workers ‘racist’
As reported by WHYY, Philly’s NPR station.
Posted September 13, 2018 —
Protests, promises to move forward after Holtec CEO’s comments
As reported by the Courier-Post.
Posted September 12, 2018 —
SJWPC Statement on Holtec CEO and Congressman Norcross’ Comments About Camden Residents
As released by the South Jersey Women for Progressive Change.
Posted July 29, 2018 —
Holtec Nuclear Waste Cans-Kris Singh: Apparent Bribery-Kickback And Allegation Of Attempted Bribery
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Summary of Oscar Shirani’s Allegations of Quality Assurance Violations Against Holtec Storage/Transport Casks
Now that Holtec International and the Eddy-Lea [Counties] Energy Alliance (ELEA) want to open a parking lot dump in Southeastern New Mexico, it’s time to look back at these whistleblower revelations from more than a decade ago:
- Summary of Oscar Shirani’s Allegations of Quality Assurance Violations Against Holtec Storage/Transport Casks. July 22, 2004.
- Dr. Ross Landsman, NRC dry cask inspector for the Midwest regional office headquartered in Chicago, wrote this memo to his superiors expressing his full support for whistleblower Oscar Shirani’s quality assurance allegations against the Holtec storage/transport casks (handwritten notes by Oscar Shirani, mentioning the devious manner in which Exelon Nuclear orchestrated his firing and defending itself against his wrongful termination lawsuit.
Shirani questioned the structural integrity of the Holtec containers sitting still, going zero miles per hour, let alone traveling 60 miles per hour — or faster — on railways.
Landsman has compared the QA violations involving Holtec containers, and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s incompetence (or worse, collusion) — having done nothing about it — as similar to the reasons why Space Shuttles have hit the ground.Update on July 25, 2019 by admin
And SNC-Lavalin’s radioactive and other skeletons in the closet (Holtec International and SNC-Lavalin have formed a consortium to undertake nuclear power plant decommissioning, as well as high-level radioactive waste management, named Comprehensive Decommissioning International, CDI):