(Beyond Nuclear, public comment #11)
Re: Attachment D: Cultural Resources Consultations, in Point Beach's ER.
Point Beach's outreach to Indigenous Nations, as an attempt to protect Indigenous cultural properties, is woefully inadequate. While a very basic form letter was sent to a single person at 52 different Indigenous Nations, it put the burden on them for further consultation.
The form letter states: "Also, as part of the subsequent license renewal process, NRC may request a consultation with your tribe in accordance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended (Public Law 89-665; 54 U.S.C. 300101 et seq.), and implemented by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation regulations (36 CFR 800)." (emphasis in original)
"...may request a consulation with your tribe..."?!
Many, to most, to all of those 52 named Indigenous Nations have treaties with the United States of America. Treaties are the highest law of the land, equal in stature to the U.S. Constitution itself. Sovereign nation to sovereign nation consultation is what is demanded, by law, and by basic respect.
The form letter also states "The ER addresses the potential to impact historic and cultural resources including tribal cultural resources on or near the PBN site."
But historic and cultural Indigenous resources on or near the Point Beach Nuclear site are not the only relevant issues. What about treaty rights to hunting and gathering territory? What about fishing rights in Lake Michigan, as well as inland surface waters? What about Indigenous Nations' burial sites and other sacred sites that are undoubtedly in the area, which has been inhabited by Indigenous Nations since time immemorial?
The top paragraph on the second page of the basic form letter reads:
"During the subsequent license renewal term, NEPB proposes to continue operating the units as currently operated and based on aging management studies does not expect that refurbishment, construction, ground disturbing activities, or physical changes will be needed. Protection of known cultural resources on the PBN site is managed by the Archaeological, Cultural, & Historic Resources section of the PBN procedures manual. NEPB does not anticipate operation of PBN to adversely affect the environment or any cultural or historic resources." (emphasis in original)
But the Archaeological, Cultural, & Historic Resources section of the PBN procedures manual was not provided, not in hardcopy form, nor even link to it. Again, the burden in on the Indigenous Nations to track down such documents.
And what about protection of unknown cultural resources, very likely located on the PBN site, perhaps even the footprint of current physical plant facilities, or on supposedly undisturbed land?
Point Beach has stated that no adverse effects on the environment, or any cultural or historic resources, are anticipated, re: 80 years of operation of a severely embrittled nuclear power plant -- the worst in the country -- that has had one of the very worst Operational Experiences in the U.S. nuclear power industry (such as, in a short space of time, multiple NRC "red findings" -- the very worst safety violation designation -- more than the 100+ other reactors across the country, combined!).
Impacts to cultural or historic or pre-historic Indigenous Nations' properties and resources do not just occur through construction projects, such as the building of new parking lots, or dry cask storage pads for ever mounting quantities of high-level radioactive waste dry storage casks, however.
Nuclear power plants "routinely" release radioactivity, with permission from NRC. These "routine" radioactivity releases are not harmless, however. As the National Academy of Science has affirmed, over and over for decades, any exposure to ionizing radioactivity carries a health risk to humans, and those risks accumulate over a lifetime of exposures.
And it's not just humans who are harmed. Other plant and animal species are also harmed, as Dr. Timothy Mousseau's large number of wildlife biology studies from Chernobyl and Fukushima have so clearly shown.
Many traditional Indigenous Nations place tremendous value and regard on other species, in addition to human beings. "We are all related," or "All of our relations" is the English translation of a traditional Indigneous phrase across many Nations, expressed in many different languages, recognizing this, as in prayers, ceremonies, and even daily life, such as while hunting, fishing, and gathering.
There is no mention whatsoever in Point Beach's basic form letter to the 52 Indigenous Nations about radioactivity or radiation and its often very long lasting hazards, depending on the radioisotope released. Again, the burden is placed on the lone individual written to by Point Beach at 52 Indigenous Nations, to do the research, to discover such impacts and their significance.
For more information on "routine" radioactivity releases from nuclear power plants, please see the linked Beyond Nuclear pamphlet at: <http://static1.1.sqspcdn.com/static/f/356082/26605366/1444852853757/BN_RoutineRadioactiveReleases_Oct2015.pdf?token=zwsUExAyfOttAa88dOgh7qJ3NkE%3D>.
Of course, as Beyond Nuclear has commented, the risk of a catastrophic radioactivity release at Point Beach is already significantly high, and increases with time. 80 years of operations at Point Beach, with its worst embrittled RPV (Reactor Pressure Vessel) in the U.S., represents sailing ever deeper into uncharted PTS (Pressurized Thermal Shock) risk territory. A catastrophic radioactivity release at Point Beach would have LARGE impacts on Indigenous Nations' interests on and near the site, and very likely far from the site, depending on wind direction, water flow, and food chain distribution networks. EXTRA LARGE, in fact, to borrow a phrase from Susan Schuurman with the Nuclear Issues Study Group in Albuquerque, NM, Beyond Nuclear's colleague in the fight against Consolidated Interim Storage Facilities for irradiated nuclear fuel in s.e. NM, also on lands significant to many Indigenous Nations, as well as the Latinx communities who live there now.
The basic form letter goes on, "Although construction of the existing PBN facility itself may have impacted any archaeological resources that may have been located within its footprint, much of the surrounding area remains largely undisturbed."
That description of past destruction due to lack of caring, concern, law, and regulation is very heartbreaking, and enraging. It can never be repeated again in the future, now that the United States supposedly recognizes that cultural genocide is not acceptable (a dubious proposition, given how Indigenous cultural resources and properties are still abused and even destroyed in this country -- take the Dakota Access Pipeline bulldozing Lakota sacred sites in the Dakotas in 2016, as but one example). But again, "routine" hazardous radiation releases, and the potential for catastrophic, large-scale hazardous radiation releases, also represent an EXTRA LARGE impact. This has gone on for 50 years already, and would go on for another 30 years, if NRC rubber-stamps Point Beach's license extension application.
The basic form letter goes on:
"A cultural resources survey of the property was not required prior to the construction of PBN, but five recorded surveys were conducted at various stages of expansion and licensing between 1993 through 2018. These surveys have covered approximately 972 acres of the of the 1,260-acre PBN property. There are no National Register of Historic Places (NRHP)-eligible cultural resources confirmed within the 1,260-acre PBN property. The June 2004 survey identified findings, which included 15 isolates and one prehistoric archaeological site. PBN has committed to avoiding previously identified sites within the 1,260-acre property."
It is sad and angering that "A cultural resources survey of the property was not required prior to the construction of PBN". This means that Indigenous Nations' cultural resources and properties, including burial sites and sacred sites, could well have been damaged or destroyed simply through the physical construction of the facility, let alone radioactive contamination since.
And what about Point Beach Nuclear committing to avoiding damage or destruction to unidentified sites on the property, in addition to identified sites?
Such damage or destruction can never be allowed to happen again, including on "much of the surrounding area [that] remains largely undisturbed." Of course, "routine"hazardous radioactivity release contamination is itself a significant disturbance, which Point Beach Nuclear entirely downplays and ignores in its basic form letter.
Again, re: the basic form letter's claim that:
"A cultural resources survey of the property was not required prior to the construction of PBN, but five recorded surveys were conducted at various stages of expansion and licensing between 1993 through 2018.These surveys have covered approximately 972 acres of the of the 1,260-acre PBN property. There are no National Register of Historic Places (NRHP)-eligible cultural resources confirmed within the 1,260-acre PBN property. The June 2004 survey identified findings, which included 15 isolates and one prehistoric archaeological site. PBN has committed to avoiding previously identified sites within the 1,260-acre property."
It is hard to understand how Point Beach Nuclear can state that "There are no National Register of Historic Places (NRHP)-eligible cultural resources confirmed within the 1,260-acre PBN property."
Given the June 2004 survey on Point Beach's own property, that identified 15 isolates and one prehistoric archaelogical site, as well as the nearly three-dozen Indigenous culture affiliated sites listed in Point Beach's own Table 2. Archaeological Sites Inventory Entries within a 6-Mile Radius of PBN, it is hard to understand how Point Beach can stand by the claim that there are likely no more Indigenous cultural resources or properties on its site. After all, it has admitted that nearly 300 acres have never even been surveyed, in the past 53 years of site physical disturbance and irradiation, with apparently no plans to do so for another 30+ years of operations. And Point Beach Nuclear already admitted it didn't even check for Indigenous properties and resources that may very well have been located under the physical footprint of its constructed facilities. Those, regretably, may already have been damaged or destroyed by Point Beach Nuclear, a half century or longer ago.
The basic form letter goes on:
"In preparation for the subsequent license renewal application, PBN conducted a literature review of the Wisconsin Historic Preservation Database to identify previously recorded sites within a 6-mile radius. The results of the 2020 literature review are presented in Table 2."
It is unclear how thorough the surveys in the six-mile radius of Point Beach, for Indigenous cultural properties and resources, have been. So very much may have been missed, if the surveys were not thorough nor comprehensive. Meaningful, respectful, legally and constitutionally mandated and required sovereign nation to sovereign nation consultation with the 52 Indigenous Nations identified -- and likely numerous others not yet identified by Point Beach Nuclear -- would almost certainly shed a lot more light.
In addition to federally recognized Indigenous Nations' governments, why were the traditional and spiritual leaders of these Indigenous Nations not consulted?
A final sign of disrespect comes at the end of the basic form letter, where Point Beach writes: "Your response is kindly requested within 45 days of receiving this letter."
The lone individual at each of the 52 Indigenous Nations written to probably has an overwhelming work burden on a good day. But these are not good days. A national pandemic emergency has gripped the entire country for over a year now. And Indigenous Nations are among the hardest hit communities of all, in our entire country, disproportionately so. 45 days is way too little time for meaningful consultation. Especially considering the context -- yet another 20-year license extension, on top of 60 already permitted, filed 10 years ahead of time. As well as the million year hazard that will be generated during that latest 20-year extension -- 800 metric tons, or more, of deadly, hazardous, highly radioactive waste, with nowhere to go, with no safe, sound solutions in sight.
In addition, Indigenous Nations likely have very limited resources to process such a letter from Point Beach Nuclear. And yet there is no offer of funding from Point Beach or NRC to help defray costs, or enable the work necessary to mount a meaningful sovereign nation to sovereign nation consultation.
I urge both Point Beach and NRC to do just that, engage in meaningful sovereign nation to sovereign nation consultations with each of the 52 already identified Indigenous Nations, and any not yet identified, in order to fulfill treaty right legal and constitutional obligations, as well as a sign of basic respect and common courtesy.
Sincerely,
Kevin Kamps
Beyond Nuclear, Radioactive Waste Specialist; Don't Waste Michigan, Board of Directors Member, representing the Lake Michigan Chapter; Citizens for Alternatives to Chemical Contamination, Advisory Board Member
and Kay Drey, Beyond Nuclear, Board of Directors President (University City, Missouri)
Beyond Nuclear
7304 Carroll Avenue, #182
Takoma Park, Maryland 20912
kevin@beyondnuclear.org
www.beyondnuclear.org
Beyond Nuclear aims to educate and activate the public about the connections between nuclear power and nuclear weapons and the need to abolish both to safeguard our future. Beyond Nuclear advocates for an energy future that is sustainable, benign and democratic.
[These comments were submitted to the agency electronically here.]
March 1, 2021 
NRC file photo of Point Beach Units 1 & 2 on the Lake Michigan shore at Two Rivers, WIDear Friends and Colleagues,
