Plan to keep Diablo Canyon nuclear plant open splits environmentalists
RICHMOND – California wants to go carbon free, but renewables just can't meet the demand. At least not yet. That energy crunch has pushed Gov. Gavin Newsom to announce his support to keep Diablo Canyon Nuclear plant running for another decade.
"The experts at the state energy commission, and the California Independent System Operator, have been saying we're not gonna have enough power in '25, '26, and maybe beyond that," said Dan Richard with Carbon Free California. "Maybe even to the end of the decade."
Richard and his group have been lobbying to keep Diablo Canyon running past its scheduled closure in 2024. Currently producing about 9% of the state's energy, Richard calls it a necessary link to a greener future.
"There are those two reasons to keep the plant going," Richard said. "One, to keep the lights on, and the other is because it's a clean energy resource. It's competing with, and displaces, not renewables but natural gas."
"I'm listening to arguments, and they are good arguments on both sides," said Bill Allayaud with the Environmental Working Group. "But we can do it without nuclear power. Even though it's attractive because of the no CO2 emissions."
Allayaud opposes the Diablo extension. Along with the longstanding nuclear concerns they worry the move might slow the push for more wind and solar.
"I don't see it as a fossil fuels versus nukes," Allayaud said. "It is nukes versus renewables. The faster, the sooner and the more efficiently we are getting renewables online, the less we need, not just Diablo Canyon, but the gas-fired plants."
Climate concerns and flex alerts have changed some minds, at least for now. One of those minds is the governor.
"One of the amazing things here is, Gov. Newsom was actually instrumental in the early decision to close the plant, back in 2016," Richard said. "He was in a different role then, as Lieutenant Governor, he sat on the State Lands Commission. I think the governor did the responsible thing of saying he is not going to sit there and do nothing while the experts are telling him we're going to be short on power."
