ADVISORY COUNCIL

Dr. Lou Borgenicht

Margene Bullcreek
Rep. Rebecca Chavez-
Houck
Mary Dickson
Ed Firmage
Claire Geddes 68 S. Main St, Suite 400 Salt Lake City, Utah 84101 (801) 355-5055
March 18, 2011
Boyer Jarvis
Lisa Kirk Colburn
Governor Gary Herbert
Dr. Jerry Lazar Utah State Capitol Complex
Jim McConkie, esq 350 North State Street, Suite 200
Dee Rowland PO Box 142220
Salt Lake City, Utah 84114-2220
Dr. Kent Staheli
Barbara & Norman Tanner
Sent via fax to 801-538-1528
Kathy VanDame
Chip Ward Governor Herbert:
Terry Tempest Williams
As the nuclear catastrophe unfolds in Japan, we, like people around the
BOARD OF DIRECTORS world, remain deeply concerned for the safety, health, and well-being of
the people of Japan. Our hearts go out to them as they face an
Bob Archibald
unprecedented nuclear crisis on top of two devastating natural disasters.
Jeff Clay
Sue Corth The Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah has spent a decade working to
Mike Cowley protect the people of Utah from nuclear risks—from spent nuclear fuel, to
Ed Firmage, Jr. low-level nuclear waste, to proposed nuclear reactors near the town of
Green River, Utah.
Mary Ellen Navas

We have been opposed to nuclear power in Utah since 2007, because new
www.healutah.org nuclear power will be expensive, devour our state’s precious water
resources, and inevitably produce spent fuel rods that would remain on-
site in Utah indefinitely.

Now, as we continue to witness Japan’s nuclear crisis involving multiple

reactors in various stages of apparent meltdown, and damaged spent
nuclear fuel spewing deadly radioactive material into the open air, we see
with stark clarity that apparently well-managed, well-designed, and well-
constructed reactors in technologically-advanced countries can fail, with
devastating consequences.

Engaging Citizens in the Effort to Protect Public Health from Nuclear and Toxic Waste
Events in Japan remind us that a nuclear calamity in Utah would severely test the emergency
preparedness of a small town like Green River and that a catastrophic radioactive release could severely
contaminate a river that ultimately provides drinking water to 1 in 12 Americans.

Leaders around the globe, from China to France to Germany to New York—places that already host
nuclear reactor sites—are beginning to question the safety of nuclear power.

At the same time, we acknowledge that Utah’s demand for energy services is growing, and that we must
act quickly to meet those needs. HEAL Utah is committed to promoting a safe, secure, and abundant
energy future for our state, even as we oppose nuclear power and look to transition away from dirty and
polluting fossil fuels.

It is for this very reason that HEAL Utah invested in a comprehensive technical study to determine if
Utah could rely on renewable sources of energy paired with modest amounts of natural gas and energy
storage to reliably meet Utah’s long-term energy needs.

Our eUtah report, which benefitted from the advice of a distinguished board of leading Utah energy
experts, demonstrates that such a system provides a viable alternative to the dirty coal on which we now
rely, or the dangerous nuclear power that some have proposed.

Governor Herbert, the events in Japan reinforce the already long list of why nuclear power is a poor
choice for Utah, especially as there are safer, cheaper, and more reliable options to develop our
homegrown energy resources and create immediate jobs for our state.

Therefore, we ask that you and your administration renounce nuclear power as a solution for this state’s
energy needs. Instead, we urge you to prioritize development of Utah’s sun, wind, and geothermal
energy sources – combined with cutting-edge energy storage technologies – to meet Utah’s long-term
energy needs.

Sincerely,

Christopher Thomas
Executive Director
HEAL Utah

cc: Amanda Smith, State Energy Policy Advisor and Executive Director, Environmental Quality
Ted Wilson, Senior Environmental Policy Advisor
Kent Jones, State Engineer
Dennis Strong, Director, Utah Division of Water Resources