European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - July 21, 1977, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Nuclear plants not Only produce but also two thirds of the jobs in Southeastern Connecticut committed in nuclear Energy Magazine at the submarine base when the wind blows in Fromm Iwone the official Navy explanation is that the detectors go off merely because they Are so sensitive that they can pick up even minute and harmless increases in Radia Tion it is not an answer that Comfort most some in Waterford Are vehemently in favor of nuclear Power and others Are be tem Netly against but the attitude of most was summed up by Ruth a lifelong resident of new London who lives three Miles from the two Millstone its practically in my and in not picketing and attempting to close the plants or but sometimes 1 just dont know what to think about she my kids ride their bikes Over there and the Man who sold them the land still lives so it cant be All but everyone sort of has misgivings about in at a age now where 1 see people around me touched of one kind of cancer or you kind of that concern led the cancer Center epidemiology unit at Yale medical Center in new Haven la conduct a study in urn of radiation Levels and the incidence of cancer and birth defects la a 54mllc radius of the two we looked at the and we didst find Taid Wister director of the radiation by Michael Knight new York the unlikely spectacle of demonstrators of new in glanders protesting against a cheap and clean source of electricity recently in was a puzzling one for Many people in which committed itself to nuclear Energy a decade ago and now consumes More Uncle a generated electricity than any other state in the More than half the electricity mod in the state in 1976 came from atom powered plants and during periods of Peak operating efficiency such As the last two weeks in february and the first two weeks in March of this year As much As three quarters of the Power used in the state was produced in atomic while the rest of the nation worried Over past and future Oil riling electricity a possible switch to Coa fired and the Prospect of impending shortages of Connecticut enjoys a sur plus at electricity produced at Rales that Are far lower than they might although Are not cd hate to think where wed be with the Cost of electricity in the stale of tonne cd Cut without nuclear said Albert chairman of the stale Public Usu lies control which set months ago ordered 8 rate reduction because of we owe a lot to those who had the fore noting that instead of converting the Stales Oil burning plants to As the 1 Energy administration re Federal Energy he was thinking of int Hansome of them simply be put into cow storage the states two electric Northeast utilities and United Illuminat own in a hah Iteen nectar Power plants scattered throughout new Bigland including the planned sea Droope and draw Power from them in pro portion to their share of in Northeast the fuel cells for reactor larger of the owns outright the two plan on water fonts Millstone Point and a Bullinga a megawatt Plant that was scheduled for completion in 1979 but was delayed until Iso because of the states electricity we have an 87 per cent excess capacity now in our Fossil fired Kleban the nuclear units Are our caseload whenever they Are in they Are utilized the economics of nuclear Power Are he pointed out that electricity in the sate could be generated by nuclear plants at 1 cent a or by Oil fired plants at scents a kilowatt Northeast utilities estimated that it saved j7t million last year by no burning w million barrels of a saving that was effected by bringing the Millstone ii Plant no line in Ite Plant is raining at it per cent capacity this year after a problem plagued Startup period  by mechanical break narrowly averted and accidental releases of radiation into the air and into Long Island the plants record in to considerable uneasiness among people Al ready concerned with the dangers of nuclear it also led to the conclusions of the stale general Assembly temporary nuclear lower evaluation which said in a report published earlier this year that the danger of the failure of mechanical safeguards and human error might have been Dills before the general Assembly this year would ban the disposal of radioactive wastes in the state and would also require permits for the is or so shipments of such wastes that now travel through the slate each aside from producing nuclear Energy also creates about two thirds of the jobs Here in Southeastern con pays half of the real estate taxes of the residents of and produces a albeit chorus of i dont think there axe Loo Many people in this Region who lose any real sleep Over said William president of the Southeastern Connecticut chamber of  to noted that among the Millstone i and Millstone ii the nuclear submarines tied up at the United states Navy base in nearby Groton and the nuclear submarines under construction at the Gen eral dynamics ship said there Are typically from one to two dozen nuclear re actors in the area at any oae there is a he but its so Remote that nobody is that upset about were committed to nuclear and Wii Luil it wed be in bad like new yorkers Lunf about crime or noise or people Here half boast and half complain about living with nuclear almost and almost every one eagerly Tell a visitor about the reaction of tie radiation detectors were below the natural background Levels in other parts of the state and birth defect records for the Region also showed rates lower than the rest of the he it makes it look Tike living near these plants made people of Doest actually seem he added but if people Are going to object to these till have to be for some other one of the people Ruth Greenburg has shared her misgivings with Over the years is her Friend Alison Oldham who has lived in new London for eight t didst think much about and i didst know much about Oldham re but when there was a leak of 300 Gallons of radioactive steam at the Mill Stone Plant two years she became concerned and eventually joined Peoples action for clean a group of sever Al Hundred people that a tied to dozens of similar groups throughout new England through the Clamshell the organization that staged the new Hampshire of Nice it and her fellow activists set we can tables the people who argue with us most Are the Navy who think everything is perfectly All with nuclear she the others Range from people who my husband works at the and theres nothing to worry husband works at the and in scared to death but i dont dare your because i dont want to gel him you should Bear the horror stories about Sloppy procedures and near aed the states two Utility companies have no future plans for and diurnal generating stations within the Tut Bot Naie part ners in plants planned for other regions of government  can expect to us increasing amount of electricity generated at nuclear plants in the years to july 1977 the stars and stripes Page 13