THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE RESOLUTION

INTRODUCED BY MARKOSEK, HICKERNELL, BUXTON, ADOLPH, BEYER, BRENNAN, BURNS, D. COSTA, P. COSTA, CREIGHTON, DENLINGER, DeWEESE, DiGIROLAMO, FLECK, GEIST, GEORGE, GROVE, HELM, HESS, KORTZ, LEVDANSKY, MARSHALL, McCALL, McGEEHAN, McILVAINE SMITH, MELIO, MENSCH, MILLARD, MOUL, MUSTIO, M. O'BRIEN, PALLONE, PASHINSKI, PAYNE, QUIGLEY, QUINN, READSHAW, REICHLEY, SAINATO, SANTONI, SAYLOR, SCAVELLO, SIPTROTH, K. SMITH, SOLOBAY, STABACK, SWANGER, R. TAYLOR, TURZAI, VULAKOVICH, WALKO, WHITE AND BOYD, MARCH 13, 2009

INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35, MARCH 13, 2009  

A RESOLUTION

Remembering the accident that occurred on March 28, 1979, at the

Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in Londonderry

Township, Dauphin County.

WHEREAS, In 1957, the United States commercial nuclear

industry was born in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania when a

nuclear reactor went on line in Shippingport; and

WHEREAS, March 28, 2009, is the 30th anniversary of the 1979

accident at the Three Mile Island Unit 2 (TMI-2) nuclear power

plant in Londonderry Township, Dauphin County; and

WHEREAS, The accident at TMI-2 was caused by a combination of

equipment failure and the inability of plant operators to fully

understand the reactor's condition while a gradual loss of

cooling water to the reactor's heat-producing core led to

partial melting of the fuel rod cladding and the uranium fuel

and the release of radioactive material; and

WHEREAS, More than 1,000 skilled and dedicated workers were

involved in the cleanup process which began in August 1979 and

was completed in 1993 and which cost nearly $1 billion; and 

WHEREAS, The TMI-2 accident caused no injuries or deaths; and

WHEREAS, In 1997, the Department of Health discontinued the

30,000-person database of those living within five miles of

TMI-2 after no evidence of abnormal cancer or disease was found;

and

WHEREAS, As recently as 2002, a study by the University of

Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health confirmed that no

significant increase in overall deaths or cancer rates existed;

and

WHEREAS, Lessons learned from the TMI-2 accident brought

about sweeping changes involving emergency response planning,

reactor operator training, human factors engineering, radiation

protection and many other areas of nuclear power plant

operations; and

WHEREAS, Today, TMI-2 remains in a safe, monitored, storage

condition; and

WHEREAS, In 1991, the TMI-2 cleanup program was named by the

National Society of Professional Engineers as one of the top

engineering achievements in the United States; and

WHEREAS, Today, Three Mile Island Unit 1, which began

operating in 1974, employs approximately 600 workers and safely

produces about 900 million watts of electricity, enough for

about 900,000 homes, and has set four separate world records for

continuous days of operation; and

WHEREAS, There are seven operating nuclear power plants in

the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania: Beaver Valley (two units),

Limerick (two units), Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station (two

units), Susquehanna (two units) and Three Mile Island Unit 1

(one unit); and

WHEREAS, Thirty-one states have commercial nuclear power

plants, but nearly one-third of this nation's total capacity is

located in just four states, and the Commonwealth of

Pennsylvania ranks second in total nuclear capacity and nuclear

generation; and

WHEREAS, Since the TMI-2 accident, nuclear power has proven

that it is a clean, safe, reliable and affordable source of

emission-free generation that provides 36% of the electricity

generated in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania today; and

WHEREAS, Nuclear energy is the only large-scale, clean-air

electricity source that can be expanded widely to produce large

amounts of energy, and it makes up nearly 74% of the entire

nation's clean-air electricity generation; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania honor the emergency responders,

local officials, police, firefighters, State employees and many

other citizens who responded heroically to the accident in 1979,

as well as the nearly 1,000 employees who worked diligently to

clean up TMI-2 from 1979 to 1993; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives support the need

for affordable, safe and reliable forms of electricity which

promote the continued economic growth of Pennsylvania; and be it

further

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives support the

continual development of clean and green energy and recognize

the importance of green energy to the economy of Pennsylvania;

and be it further

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives recognize the

importance of the continued safe operation of nuclear power

generation resources in order to continue to provide

Pennsylvania with diverse and affordable sources of energy; and

be it further

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives appreciate the

historic and important contribution that nuclear energy has made

to the electric generation supply mix in Pennsylvania; and be it

further

RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be forwarded to the

Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Department of Energy, the

Governor, the Senate and the members of Pennsylvania

Congressional Delegation.