Under the Freedom of Information Act, please provide a copy of all referenced attachments and meeting notes contained within the NRC’s recent response to FOIA 2022–000142 previously submitted by Mr. Paul Blanch (see the original Blanch FOIA request at this NRC page: https://bit.ly/3TO5Swu ). A fee waiver and expedited processing are requested.
Details:
Please provide copies of all calendar attachments and notes for The Honorable Christopher T. Hanson for the time period requested by FOIA submitter Paul Blanch in FOIA 2022–000142.
Specifically, on January 31, 2022, the calendar records show that NRC Chairman Christoper Hanson met with Energy Solutions. The calendar contains a paperclip icon indicating an attachment (see embedded and attached image below). This attachment and others were not provided in response to this FOIA request. Additionally, there is a column for the Chairman’s notes on these meetings. We are not sure if these notes were inadvertently redacted, so we are requesting copies of those notes, too.
NRC Calendar image
Request for expedited processing:
The following information is true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief:
Public Watchdogs’ prime directive is that “The public has a right to know how government regulatory agencies conduct the public’s business.” As such, we are primarily engaged in disseminating information to the public. In this instance, there is a compelling and urgent need to inform the public concerning Federal Government activity at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) prior to the scheduled demolition of vital safety-related infrastructure.
Fee waiver requested:
Public Watchdogs is a 501(c)3 non-profit, filing in forma pauperis, and as such, has no commercial or private interest in the requested information, which will be made publicly available at no charge. Public Watchdogs is primarily engaged in disseminating information to the public as well as government law and policy decision makers.
The purpose of the information is to publicly demonstrate whether or not NRC is actively fulfilling its mission to “to protect public health and safety, promote the common defense and security, and protect the environment” through NRC’s vigilant monitoring of ongoing safety issues at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, and other nuclear sites such as the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant. Public Watchdogs is a trusted and recognized source of information to the lay public, and all information is offered to the public free of charge.
Public Watchdogs’ plain-language analyses are disseminated to its 4,000 members and more than 100 local media outlets via the mainstream media, and also through free educational printed and emailed newsletters. The likely impact of the information will be to engender a better public understanding of the regulatory oversight at SONGS, and increased public confidence that the NRC is fulfilling its regulatory responsibility to enforce Federal law and NRC rules.
All relevant responsive documents will be published at the Public Watchdogs’ web site with summaries and links to the data distributed via e-mail, direct mail, and media advisories. Public disclosure will contribute to a broader understanding in the media and the general public of NRC’s regulatory approach to nuclear waste safety issues as it relates to the handling of spent nuclear fuel and the safety of the NRC’s oversight of nuclear power plants and the decommissioning process in general.
