Video: Cyclists Will Save Us From Indian Point Nuclear Catastrophe!
The Gothamist
August 9, 2011
By John Del Signore
http://gothamist.com/2011/08/09/cyclists_will_save_us_from_indian_p.php
As in all things, it falls to the cyclists to save NYC from perdition. Today a group of bike-riding activists dressed in colorful jump suits with pinwheels on their heads rode their bikes from the Lower East Side to Grand Central Station, as part of a demonstration against the Indian Point nuclear plant. Located approximately 25 miles from NYC, the controversial facility has been under increased scrutiny ever since an earthquake in Japan has caused a little “situation” at a nuclear power plant there. Today Times Up! and other activists staged a theatrical protest to urge Governor Cuomo to shut the plant down. Here’s video:
After biking to Grand Central Terminal, the group boarded Metro-North trains to Verplanck, where they planned to board the Clearwater Sloop and sail to Indian Point. The boat is festooned with 50 foot banners reading: “No Fukushima on the Hudson” and “Shut Down Indian Point Now!” Protest organizer Ben Shepard says, “Due to the plant’s vulnerability to a terrorist attack, a laundry list of safety problems, the storage of 1,500 tons of radioactive waste onsite, and the lack of a workable evacuation, we are urging Governor Cuomo to deny the plant’s owner, Entergy Corporation, a 20-year license extension and shut down Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant now.”
But why the pinwheels on their heads? Shepard explains, “We’re promoting alternative energy like wind. NYC could depend on wind.” According to the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, “The capacity factor of wind farms in New York is about 30 percent. However, the effective capacity — the fraction of rated power generated during summer afternoons, the period of peak demand — is estimated to be 10 percent.” Of course, that doesn’t take into consideration cyclists’ helmet-mounted pinwheel power.
