Nuclear Plant Closures in Ohio and Pennsylvania Will Have Significant Negative Impacts on the Environment and Economy

Closure of FirstEnergy plants, Three Mile Island, would reverse
emissions benefits gained over the last 25 years from all renewable
generation in the region; total zero-emission generation in region might
not return to current levels until 2032.

New report highlights potential for higher electricity costs for
local residents, lower GDP, and fewer jobs in the region.

WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The announced closure of four nuclear power plants in Ohio and
Pennsylvania will have severe environmental and economic impacts,
according to a new report
released today by The
Brattle Group. Specifically, these closures would likely result in
an increase of over twenty million metric tons of CO2
emissions, tens of thousands of tons of incremental air pollutants, and
significantly higher electricity costs to consumers. It would also put
hundreds of millions in GDP and thousands of jobs at risk for residents
across Ohio, Pennsylvania and the broader region.

The report, based on prior studies of the impacts of nuclear plants in
Ohio and Pennsylvania, estimates that the combined impact of closing the
Beaver Valley Power Station (PA), Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station
(OH), Perry Nuclear Generating Station (OH) and Three Mile Island
Nuclear Generating Station (PA) will:

• Increase annual CO2 emissions by over 20 million metric
  tons, equivalent to 4.5 million cars on the roads and potential social
  costs of over $900 million per year;
• Increase annual emissions of harmful air pollutants such as SO2,
  NOX and particulate matter by tens of thousands of tons,
  with potential social costs of $170 million per year;
• Increase annual electricity costs by as much as $400 million annually
  for Ohio residents and $285 million for Pennsylvanians;
• Put more than 3,000 direct jobs at risk, as well as thousands of
  additional secondary jobs;
• Eliminate tens of millions of dollars in local tax revenues.

The increase in CO2 and several harmful air pollutants due to
these closures will be a major setback to the region’s efforts to reduce
emissions. In 2017, these four nuclear plants provided one and a half
times as much zero-emission energy as the wind and solar resources
across the entire PJM region. PJM is the largest electricity market in
North America, covering all or part of 13 states including Ohio and
Pennsylvania, and spanning from Illinois to New Jersey and Virginia. The
loss of these plants would quickly reverse the environmental benefits of
all the PJM wind and solar resources developed in the region over the
past 25 years – benefits which were supported with billions of dollars
of customer and taxpayer investment through renewable energy credits and
federal tax credits.

“As this report makes clear, policymakers should take note of the
critical environmental and economic contributions of our nation’s
nuclear plants, especially where their continued operation is
threatened,” noted Brattle Principals and study authors Drs. Dean Murphy
and Mark Berkman. “Any discussion of Pennsylvania’s and Ohio’s energy
futures must recognize the significant environmental and economic risks
associated with allowing these four plants to close. The impending
closures indicate a significant concession in their clean energy
commitments.”

Additional findings regarding the impact of these closures from the
Brattle report include:

• An electricity price increase of up to $2.43/MWh and $1.77/MWh for
  Ohio and Pennsylvania residents, respectively (not accounting for any
  financial support the plants might need to continue operating);
• Another 15 years, at the current renewable growth rate, for the region
  to return to the level of zero-emissions generation in 2017.

“Thousands of lost jobs, major hits to local tax revenues, higher
electricity costs for consumers, and more harmful pollutants – any
lawmaker should take steps to avoid such a situation,” said Nuclear
Matters Advocacy Council Member and former Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH).
“It is imperative that we act to prevent the closures of these four
nuclear plants which contribute needed diversity to Ohio and
Pennsylvania’s overall energy supply and provide residents a dependable
power source in extreme weather situations. Following Vermont Yankee’s
shuttering in New England, we saw devastating effects. The loss of tax
revenues forced local officials to make major budget concessions to the
detriment of their residents, including cutting their municipal budget
by 20 percent, drastically reducing police services and raising their
property taxes by 20 percent. Furthermore, in the year following the
closure, carbon emissions increased by 2.5 percent due to nuclear energy
being replaced by emission producing sources. It would be nothing short
of irresponsible to allow the people of Ohio and Pennsylvania to share a
similar fate.”

“If these plants close, the livelihoods of thousands of Ohio and
Pennsylvania residents will disappear. The over 3,000 highly skilled
individuals directly employed by these sites will leave to seek
employment at other facilities still operating around the country,” said
Lonnie Stephenson, President of the International Brotherhood of
Electrical Workers. “In total, thousands of jobs that directly or
indirectly rely on the nuclear industry in this region will be lost.
Positions at nuclear plants are good, well-paying jobs for hardworking
residents, and without them the fabric of these communities will be torn
apart.”

About the Report

“Impact of Announced Nuclear Closures in Ohio and Pennsylvania” was
prepared for Nuclear Matters by Dr. Dean Murphy and Dr. Mark Berkman of
The Brattle Group.

This report follows the recently announced closures of Exelon’s Three
Mile Island and FirstEnergy’s Davis-Besse, Perry and Beaver Valley
plants, a decision the companies attribute to low power prices in
wholesale markets and the lack of state and federal relief. To develop
the collective estimates outlined in the report, The Brattle Group drew
from previous work estimating the impacts that the loss of the Ohio and
Pennsylvania nuclear plants would have on electricity prices and
emissions: “Ohio
Nuclear Power Plants’ Contribution to the State Economy” (April
2017) and “Pennsylvania
Nuclear Power Plants’ Contribution to the State Economy” (December
2016). This latest report compares the results of these most recent
previous studies with sensitivity cases in order to outline various
approximations.

About Nuclear Matters

Nuclear
Matters® is a national coalition that works to inform the public and
policymakers about the clear benefits of nuclear energy. The coalition
supports solutions that properly value nuclear energy as a reliable,
affordable, safe and carbon-free electricity resource that is essential
to America’s energy future.

Nuclear Matters engages stakeholders and energy consumers around the
country to educate and activate them in support of current and future
nuclear energy use and to promote solutions that will help to preserve
this essential energy resource.

About The Brattle Group

The Brattle Group analyzes complex economic, finance, and regulatory
questions for corporations, law firms, and governments around the world.
We are distinguished by the clarity of our insights and the credibility
of our experts, which include leading international academics and
industry specialists. For more information, please visit www.brattle.com.

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Contacts

For Nuclear Matters:
Edmund Skowronek, 212-446-1860
[email protected]
or
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Pflieger, 212-446-1866
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