James A. Fitzpatrick nuclear power plant
/ file photo
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Petition Review Board is looking into a petition filed by groups in Central New York.
The petitions are asking for a look at the safety of venting systems at the James A. Fitzpatrick nuclear reactor in Scriba in Oswego County.
The nuclear plant is of the same design as Japan's Fukushima Daiich plant which was damaged in the tsunami last year.
Several people from Central New York will be testifying, including Syracuse Common Councilor Jean Kessner.
The hearing starts at 12:30pm on Tuesday and will be streamed on the NRC website.
The Alliance for a Green Economy (AGREE) says it has obtained documents showing the Fitzpatrick plant is the only one in the U.S. that did not comply with a 1989 NRC recommendation to address known safety vulnerabilities.
AGREE and Beyond Nuclear, a Washington DC-based nuclear watchdog organization, gathered on Lodi Street in Syracuse back in March to push for the closure of the Fitzpatrick plant and present alternatives to nuclear power in New York.
Paul Gunter, of Beyond Nuclear, says the group wants the NRC to host a hearing on what he calls mistakes at Fitzpatrick. He points to the Japan disaster as proof of what can happen.
