The first in a series of advertisements, educating citizens about the potential risk of increasing power output at Vermont Yankee when significant concerns about the plant's physical security remain unanswered, began running Monday in the Brattleboro Reformer.
Security at the plant has been called into question because Wackenhut, the plant's security provider, has received low security marks from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) at Vermont Yankee and engaged in serious security lapses at other nuclear facilities:
- Vermont Yankee got low marks during a simulated attack on the plant just before 9/11.
An NRC statement released after the drill found "potential vulnerabilities in the security program's response strategy." The low grade resulted because "the weaknesses were generally predictable, repeatable and indicative of a broad programmatic problem."
- Wackenhut was caught cutting corners on security at Indian Point Nuclear Plant near New York City in 2002. In early 2003, Entergy, the owner of the plant cancelled Wackenhut's contract there.
- Wackenhut was caught cheating on anti-terrorism security drills at the Department of Energy's Y-12 nuclear weapons plant in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The DOE "downgraded" Wackenhut's performance score in March 2004.
- Wackenhut was caught ignoring security concerns raised by guards at nuclear facilities and illegally punishing the guards who raised them.
Citizens concerned about security are being asked to encourage Vermont Governor Jim Douglas to launch an independent assessment of physical security at Vermont Yankee before the plant gets the green light to increase capacity.
The education campaign is being funded by the Service Employees International Union, the largest union in the U.S. and the nation's largest union of private security officers and public safety personnel.
Entergy Corporation bought the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station in July 2002.
Wackenhut is the nation's second largest security company.
Eye On Wackenhut
Service Employees International Union