DAUPHIN COUNTY, Pa. -- The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission held public meeting discussing how Exelon will decommission Three Mile Island Unit 1 reactor.
The NRC went over a 62 page post shutdown decommissioning activities report outlining plans after the shutdown on September 30.
TMI's owner 'Exelon' has been given 60 years to complete the process.
While the long term route comes with less precautions NRC officials say radioactive materials will be safely stored until the bulk of decommissioning begins.
“My biggest concern is that you as an entity consider strictly the health and well being of this community when this process happens," said Joyce Corradi. “I see this strictly as a safety issue for our children, people in our community.
“We’re tired of shortcuts we have greed and it’s all about money," said Paula Kinney.
"This is an awful proposal if TMI 1 is allowed to be mothballed it’ll never be cleaned up like TMI 2 next to it both sites will become high level radioactive wave sites on an island in the river," said Eric Epstein, Chairman of Three Mile Island Alert, Inc.
"Second issue is use your own money to do the cleanup," he added.
“We want to make sure this is done correctly," said State Rep. Tom Mehaffie, (R) Dauphin County.
NRC officials say there are currently two full-time inspectors at the plant — but once the plant shuts down in September — there will not be someone on-site every day.
“We will be there for all the key activities including the movement of fuel and the removal of any significant components," said Neil Sheehan, NRC spokesperson.
As structures are dismantled the NRC says it is taking additional safety measures to ensure that no radioactivity will be spread.
“We would have to make sure that they are continuing to monitor the plant properly, making sure the spin fuel is taken care of property and that’s something that will be ongoing," added Sheehan.
In a statement Exelon Generation wrote: “We remain focused on operating three mile island unit 1 safely and at industry-leading levels while also working closely with community stakeholders and the nuclear regulatory commission to prepare the plant, our employees and the local community for decommissioning activities after shutdown.” -Exelon Generation
NRC officials say the bulk of the process is not set to begin until 2078.
Three Mile Island is officially scheduled to close on September 30.