Campaign for Safe Energy

• Pilgrim’s 40-year-old General Electric Mark I reactor is the same weak and outdated design as some of those that failed in Fukushima.

• A recent Nuclear Regulatory Commission report found that Pilgrim is the second-most at-risk nuclear plant in the country from a potentially catastrophic earthquake.

• There are more than 1.2 million pounds of radioactive waste currently stored on site — if a fire were to occur in one of the storage pools, thousands could die as a result.

• In the case of a major catastrophe, evacuation plans aren’t sufficient — families on the Cape would have to drive toward Pilgrim to get out of harm’s way, and the millions in the metro-Boston area would quickly become stuck in gridlock.

NUCLEAR POWER IS INHERENTLY UNSAFE

For nearly 40 years, MASSPIRG has campaigned against nuclear power. It's inherently dangerous, potentially catastrophic and a terrible investment for our country. The nuclear meltdowns in Fukushima, Japan have become the most recent example of that troubling reality.

More than 70% of Bay Staters live within the 50-mile evacuation zone of a nuclear power plant plant — that’s more than 4.6 million men, women and children who are one unlikely series of mishaps away from potential disaster.

There is no known safe level of exposure to radiation, and mortality rates from more than mild exposure is extremely high. The levels of radiation that could escape from our reactors in the event of an accident or natural disaster could dramatically harm human health.