Nice, But Where Would You Site It?

New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine notes that New Jersey needs to build more power plants. He even thinks that they should include nuclear power among the options. In fact, he thinks that this is the best option.

A report released by the Governor Corzine's office paves the way for New Jersey's first new nuclear power plant in 35 years.

Citing the need to generate new energy, the Energy Master Plan released today says the state "will review siting, permitting, financing and waste disposal issues in evaluating the feasibility of bringing a new nuclear power plant to New Jersey."

Although the plan does not name any sites, PSEG CEO Ralph Izzo said earlier this week: "I am convinced we can fit in an additional [nuclear] unit" at the existing Hope Creek nuclear power complex in Salem County.

Izzo said he was concerned about the cost of construction and getting approval for newer nuclear technologies, adding that possible construction is "quite a few years away."

The environmental community was quick to respond question the need for more nuclear plants.

"One of the most striking things about the governor's plan is that it works to build a case for additional power plants - and in particular points to a new nuclear power plant," said Matt Elliott of Environment New Jersey. "They should look at the existing power plants and determine which should be on line, which ones we can phase out, and then - if there is some gap there in energy demand - you look at the renewable energy first and figure out how to meet that gap."

The energy master plan provides a road map for how New Jersey can meet its energy needs by 2020 and meet Corzine's ambitious goal of cutting greenhouse gases by 20 percent.

The document is clearly more rational and realistic than most. The problem, however, is that many people do not like the idea of a nuclear power plant in their backyard and no new nuclear power plants have gone online in the US in years. That they would locate the new facility adjacent to an existing nuclear power plant makes lots of sense because of shared logistics and preexisting grid.

The regulatory hurdles to overcome mean that it will be years before shovels are even in the ground, but if the state is truly serious about building a new power plant, it's a sign that they're taking energy distribution and the future needs of the state more seriously than usual.

It's interesting that environmentalists are quick to try and shutter as many power plants as possible, despite the fact that economic growth and increased power demands are projected increasing for years into the future. Shutting existing plants might make some sense depending on the capacity at the new nuclear power plant, but the two shouldn't be tied together from the outset. At least now they're not rejecting the idea of nuclear power plants out of hand.