(Znifeb' fateo Zonate January 17, 1967
Respectfully referred to
Mr. John J. Burke Director, Office of Congressional Relations Atomic Energy Commission Washington, D. C.
for such consideration as the communication
herewith submitted may warrant, and for a report
thereon, in duplicate to accompany return of
inclosure.
By direction of
GPO 16-73W7-I Harrison A. Williams, Jr. U. S)
1 8111160361 670117 ADR ADOCK 05000247
N
RL CE .VED
1967 JAN 18 4 29 4F 29i
G9E NR .t1AN R
COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND PUBLIC WELFARE
OFFICIAL BUSINESS
Mr. John-J. Burke Director, Office -of Congressional Relations Atomic Energy Commission Washington, D. C.
U. S. S.
- a
866 UNITED NATION5,PLAZA NEW YORK, N. Y. 10017 "'-F,
. anuary 3, 19G67
Sen; tor Harrison 1illiams . . - Senate Of Cicc Building
W,,,ashington, D.C.
Dear Senator Williams:
The Conservation Center has been acting as a link between citizens concerned abou- the over-rapid development and careless siting of nuclear power plants. Within three months thr-:e )"ant nuclear reactors have been
proposed for the Hudson River area.
In addition to the prototype AEC i reactor operated by Consoliatecd Edison at Indian Point, there is now a second and giant nuclear power plant under construction. NiagraS.Iohawk has announced plans to build a nuclear plant opposite Bei.Pit New York, and over the New Year weekend Cen'tral
HusnPower and Lightannounced it would construct another plarit on the Hudson Aiver near Hudson, New York. With great pains we attempted to intervene in behalf of concerned citizens because of a sincere belief that another nuclear plant should be located underground at the tim;,e public hearings were held (September 14-15) on the application of C..on Ed to build at Indian Point. Our reason for questioning the safety of this plant are:
(1) The Atomic Onergy Cormjission.' S o-an Co m.ttee on Ikeactor Safeguai-ds has advised aga-nst iocatin,plants in popuous areas. 'h Cro al 14 ".ioin people within a. 0 mile radius o: Indian Point.) F . (2) Experts have cauzioncd against locating nuclear reactors on major rivers. .9 ~(3) Dr. Edward T ller 'has urged - s a 4i-att r o m n
tary safety that all nuclear reactors be located
. -.:' underground as in Sweden.
an Lhd light of the ran-nitudo of a diatr -iil thu AlC i.tself calculated as possibl -- hoe,,cvcr remote--it would seem * . -, obvious tha.t Consolidae!d Ldison should be required by the
5A - . " 7 ioi.
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Senator Harrison Wiiils page 2
January 3, 1967
I
Oflix.103
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State of New York--if not the AL'C--to place this reactor uncerground. It is said to be th Larccest yet to be given a construction license. This sa;.c uti-ity found it possible when citizen opposition develoncd, to place its entire Stor;m Iling hydro plant under-round fo." scenery's sake. In a statci:lent before th'e SEC, the colpany stated that this did not require riaterial added cost. The AEC in its 1962 report to Congress mentioned that nuclear reactors could be "hardened" by placing them underground at little if any extra expense.
In the light of these facts, isn't it extraordinary that a groi ) of citizens can't be heard?
Sincerely,
Larry Bogart
Director
LB:jr
Enclosure: December ROTARIAN reprint
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f! 7:OW SAFE is that new atomic power plant your town or your nation is so proud of?
in qhicago and New York and Detroit and Hallamin other big cities and country towns around the earhyou have heard a jot about the thrilling step into the atomic age. But if something goes wrong, you and your city near such a plant face a catastrophe like Iliroshima's. In one man's opinion-and I'll introduce that man shortly-that plant is "as dangerous as an atomic bomb."
An official estimate of what might happen in case of an "incident" at a big city plant rcfcrs to deaths in the thousands, injuries in the tens of thousands, and losses in the billions of dollars.
But surely safeguards make such an accident impossible?
There were safeguards supposed to make it impossible for a major electric power shutdown to paralyze New York. There were safeguards supposed to make it impossible for a woman's sleeping pill to maim her un-
born baby. There were safeguards supposed to mke it unthirkable for anyone to mislay a hydrogen bomb,
But accidents happen, If you'd like to see what your insurance company
thinks of the risks around an atomic plant, get out your householder's policy and read the fine print, It probably says soimething like:
"Nuclear Clause... The word 'fire' ii this Policy or endorsements attached hereto is not intended to and does not embrace nuclear reaction or nuclear radiation or radioactive contamination ... and loss by nuclear reaction or nuclear radiation or radioactivo contamination is no, intended to b3 and is not insured against by this Policy . . and nucleor reaction or nuclear radiation or radioactive contamination . . . is not 'explosion' or 'smoke,' " These "incidents" can't happen-but insurance com
panies are very careful not to cover them all the same. If one did happen, it could be pretty bad. Estimates
made a few years ago by the Atomic Energy Commis-
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-n0" are thaltO ,r,.o rz dama. from accidc.al aiu f - • "l "j......... -or lrem S ol IC* , ,oCa.ctor near a big city h i1 ca,. G Such a C,.tas ,... : Y 0 , . ..t. , :.. matcrials Would' -..... . a 1: aenvy rcle ',~ o ici~ act~ v w oul resu t in asing You Surviv c it asnd a e il a ; s a a t ".,tha.l c-,pu,', ,,a. coula 'involve" as many as Who is insiaing yoa? M 00 . .. . . . Not your own insurer. No, the c ;):;1y thai ..:il :c ln lay, ,in's I that rucans up to 3,4.00 people p ant; their n c onpany ., to c tc 0 .killed. So,,e 43,000 probably would be in- more than a fractica of the risk. ;ured. Proncrty darnae could involve the evacuation of YouAif you live
in the U.S.A.-a,' doing the iup to 460,000 perosuIS from an a,'ea of 760 square miles suring yourself with your own life and property and as at a cos't of $2,300,000,000. Gcncral restrictions might a taxpayer. ' bc imposed on some 3,800,000 persons in an area of When insurance companies refuscd to cover uhe risk 0200 square miles-costing up to $2,800,000;000. Ag- involved in the first U.S. atomic power plant planned ricultural restrictions m-ight be imposed on an area of near a large city, the plant was not redesi ne d to provid . 150,000 square miles at a cost running up to greater safety-movcd underground and away from S4u,000,OOOc. Even 10 percent of these estimates the city, for instance. would-represcnt an unprecedented industrial catastro- Instead, the risk was shifted to the people in the . ,,. phe. The financial liability for human casualties was not neighborhood and to the taxpayers at large. in 1957 evaluated and is, obviously, beyond'comprehension, the U.S. Congress enacted the controversial Atomic I Since that study was made, the projected size of Energy Indemnity Act which provides for an "insurance atomic power plants has been trebled and quadrupled subsidy" by paying up to $500,000,000 out of the Fed
, . 7]V IJi
N October, 1965, THE ROTARIAN presented an article U Atomic Power Comes of Age, by Joseph P. Blank, a free-lance writer of the United States of America. Reporting on the "virtually insatiable" need of the world for electrical power, the author termed "atomic power . . . the most economical wcy out" and chronicled the development of nuclear-pbwer in Britain, Switzerland, Italy, France, Germany, the U.S.S.R., and the U.S.A., and reported plans o-: other nations to buy or produce power made in such plcnts. Describi.ng "cdvantages," "costs," and "where and when," Author 3lank also discussed "safety."
Amu.,o ltters tra article evoked was one from John R. t/;age, Ph.D., President (1965-66) of the Rotary Club o
Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.A. "With sincerity and within the eixcellent principles and practices of Rotary" he urgd that we prcsent an article "giving the other side of atomic power an*d its imminent dangers" and he proposed that we obtain such an article from Adolph J.'Ackerman, consulting
engineer and member of the Rotary Club of Madison since' 1962, who, said Dr. Wrage, had taken strong excuption to statements in the article.
We invited Rotarian Ackerman to prepare a statement of his views for presentation in our Your Letters column. He responded that, in the interests of good communication, he thought it better if a professional writer were to review his comprehensive studies :n the frlgi of atomic . ad write an article of a 'denc:th compc;cible to the Blunk arictc, and he proposed that Hlen MaoL'son, u wriler and exccutive of a Madison ncwspaper be ca)os-n ;ror the job.
Here is her articie. Ve pro set it iii the interests of he'aoring all sides, roiteraoing .he d,,c ennt that appa, wcrsn:l.ty in our masthead deta: "As ihe ofi:cial publication oW: mo*," ltcrnatiornai, this MVagozine' ccrries authoritcavo noticcs and articles about rkotcry Internctional. Otherwise no responsibility is assumed for statements of authors."
-iHE EDITORS
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cw,, . ' ' , puhlic coiidn c in "ie engineering profession.
Good lep, aw opAci ) enit
"it presents, sis9 a terrifying breakdown in tie t , A " a .s p oiit si ,Is ca 0
ethical conim itnincilt of the engineer to srv c the public vidin g an 'insuraicl subsidy for the ben ef d of pro, til en in e to se ve th. unconsltUtio nadl. A c,'c r In's Point is: I s
_ _ _-_-_ _spective
sgIivoratcr fbe t )ro.
for .til e vos -rater satcguarcis should be provde ,
IFr l e p P cIe y e n e i s a f e r a n d i n -l , ua ie lats and repealing this s ubsidy." : ( { d L } ,; a ' , a .. " ' c k e r a n , t h e s O n o f i t N e w U 1 1 1 1 , I i I ' O a
n is ained as an engineer
in electr
AOsaoned newspaperw0 man, Helen Mofe.
Afc jIn Mis wn cot and Cnid
son is assist ant mo ro 'n g editor of the Wi- of W isconsin. in Milukee and at the U nvesty
,Sate uat, a dol,, newspapr .- . he worked on thle Madden Dam for the Panama Canal;
" •r .... /)i Madison, Wis. She as d:rec•or.of engineeringeo Da 0 f poraan .. ts
isalso a member of its Seven.man edas bur ere he oa
ubo a r d B o r n i n W a s h i n g t o u, D . , s " . .. s c r v .c c w h ent h e f i rn ew
sd tt
, l a h r d u t t a n i n g '
graa d journalism
and politica sci-
ri We
for o.tng,
Phe feta Kappa of Wisconsin where she was e/ected o LSTs in World War 11; and a h py . d
Phtr Kapa. ',After launching her newspaper career sh e construction for, the S- as Chic O Rioineering and
turned part-time to her campus to lecture in the scholofournal. ,O Paulo al
ism, then, on assignment from her paper, travelled round the r"d.and later to Russia,
igat )rn! worand Powr.opaes in BrazlI hr
and the South Pacific. In he directed construction of thle frtsza~ n
as a Speaker she once addressed 0 ihlic
a a e sn spht fe oar lb o a ground Power .stations in the \Vcsterii iN lcmispiire Mils W s., etah -sonm rredit Pese ntrig Private practic' ni
a1 dies r N i. h R u fp t h e R'tcr C liLkn t r n M ai d i s o n i n 1 1 e l i
h safety director at the ,Ackerman made a comprehensiv t'
University of W isconsin, he is now a meor t raAil's p w faclites and future needs for the udy l i ber of the Rotary Club of Madison Joint Commissio mae poer syste studes in p rr t t left is of Adolph J. Acker-.*
'J i tC nlliso ;n
""7 man, the Roaria n wh s i w ee a a a l PuaVe ezera U guyt in i , whose viw Heen Pru, Chile, Paaa ua ilsuisi
L. Matheson Rupp expounds. Canada, Puerto Rico, Mexico and the Dominican Re
man, tM
c , Venzue, UrugucymdiR
public as well as reports for other consulting firms and banks; and lie served on the board of consulting engincers for the $1,750,000,000 Feather River project
interest above all Others," says Adolph J. Ackerman, to supply more water for Los Angeles. iie is an active
internationally known Madison, Wisconsin, consulting encinaumroflldln.inci,
Itcs
kw aoWes Cst fember in a number of leading engineering societies
internationally Today he is a dignified, soft-spoken grey-haired an
"The great 'hoax' in atomic power was perpetuated with a knack for lucid languap2 and the air of q-uie
when in September, 1965, Congress was persuaded to assurance of a tnan of proven acilievciiemit.
li fel d epy hi is -i ,e a 'd a e a ni er f uit extend the.indemnity Act for another 10 years," he c kar s thH e feels d eep ly th i is
s t is o hty as
w k oi itn clearly identify the truth and to declare it . to speak
N.Ackermanl has set aside other work opportunities in""' recent years to f6gt for what he holds to be the pubic Ackerman got invoved in the atonic power issue
interest against pressures of many kinds from those shortly after the 'i!stie steps were cleared or .,c
eagzer to promote atomic power. velopmnt of peacetiac uses of the "Pig-s
ea,"C,,,
stower.wfrecclearicic woc dof Zil
-Ie is anxious about the danger to families living near powcrsource inatomic fissioi, (For the prodtior of
atomic power plants who trust assurances that "nothing electricity an atomic pAer reactor is just anothce- type
of heat source in place of an oil- or coall-b,ii c,,, it i "
He is alarmed about the economic disaster that a boiler.) severe Plant "incident" cqu/d touch off. He was narmcd by de trcsidicit of boh the Ameican s k enly concerned' over the Plants' Potential for Society of Civil Jgineer. ,A a u catastrophic sabotage."
o C ns li g L i cers to
+1 lie is igo izingJ see
,1
e distur ed by w hat he sees as a be- tional Policy Co m m ttee o n A to mic En rgy ind i ,i
ofya bosydn aniac
r few
represen them onil C , I a by a few engineers and utility directors of their after the coniitn co W.s (ieot iitku p in 195<9, he was !I'
ethical obligations to the public. u daa
Il i ' t t
urged to servec as a 'wi cdg fol- (he lnsitutc. v i, ..
.. ..
(, ' • , '' . .-,
,eV
L. " '- t.isk h cki itw , \ A l ]t.a1 chikf c IIII I a iIL 'i t :itIl (I II i llcd, dkl %1v IL~ I W 'k wl 7c1 1 CII m igh olipnls
his p)Ifc, ii ,uc lerace lie has llh.: a u ,.',.y willi reicrcnces and reserch
nlattei al; written arlicles for professonlail journals; presented a friend-of-the-court brief to the United States Supreme Court in a case involving an atomic power plant; filed protests with boards and congressional committccs; spoken before engineering groups; and conferrcd with directors of public utility boards-warning them that they were getting deep into the atomic power business without knowing all the answers.
Sometimes he gets results: an atomic power plant cancelled on the East Coast and another in the West; plans scrapped for using atomic power on the FeatherRiver project. reactors.
* Sometimes he is heard with respect-and nothing "Rosy propaganda by reactor manufacturers, by a S.. happens. few utility executives, and by the Atomic Energy Corn
Sometimes people won't even listen. Recently he re- mission tends to give the false impression that atomic -'.... ceived a letter from a top-flight business executive (a power has 'arrived' and that it is as safe, reliable, and *. retired military expert) who strongly supports Acker- economical as coal- or oil-fired steampower or hydro
man's position. This executive had vainly attempted to power," he says. persuade a director of a company in the atomic power "The fact is that it comprises less than a half perfield to reconsider. The letter closed with: "... but this cent of the country's installed electric power." He esticaused no concern. Some day someone will have to mates that the total experience with conventional steam
J review this entire question in the aftermath of a power sources and their safety compares with atomic catastrophe." plants at a ratio of 1,000 to 1.5.
With the help of his engineer son William, who turned "A basic absurdity in this new technology," Ackerfrom writing guided missile texts to work with his man declared, "is the breakdown of insurance discifather, and an associate, John W. Forster, Ackerman plines, the high pressure promotion and the indecent
. . has studied every scrap of information he can find on haste before the engineering art and adequate standards * atomic power production. His library is lined with com- of responsibilty have had a chance to develop. Quite
plete copies of reports of the Atomic Energy Commis- aside from the dangers involved, it's like expecting a sion, Congressional hearings, court decisions, corpora- three-year-old child to play a violin concerto."
* tion reports, etc., bound and indexed in detail. He points to a number of cancellations and failures. Sorting out the basic facts in such a complex issue has In one 18-month period, plans for three major atomic
demanded a thorough study of all available references power plants were cancelled, inciuding one in New York and particularly opinions contrary to his own. City. "This seems to indicate [Continued ..........
>U. S. utilities-by coal or oil-fired steam
:!{,../)plants (lower curve--in enlargement). Chart N A X ItC',ll eAIP
\M&1
" ;":"{i:' :,provided by Engineer Adolph J. Ackerman. . "' , " : ''x.'.,~:" ...... ,.... z
N M
' i I1920 1930 194,0 i95 1960
0I"" ."i
______ _________
.. l ...
i; : * ' - Chart -.............. p, ., ;,'', roduc ",,i n .' :, of electricity. by .,:.y . * ~v g '.: 2.r : r ? ( : '
, , " " ., { , , '; ,' -:, ' ' '!,, . , '. "
':. '_ __._ _,_"_ _,_ _, _ _ _ __.,. . . ; • , . .. .. . . 'i, . :* .,\ \ . . • ,- -'." ", ' L".; S.,,,: ,,',J utl t - y coal;: ,,. or i.f hed : steam ,, :"t,; .% ''>€ ;'? ': ,. 2"O' : :;', 5 tC" ' -, ; ."',; ,:t '".'k :",' \k' ' :5
, * . . ,, I.,p. nts .-, .. . .:' "'. ' .er cu ve and a i pow er ' ,,':'''.': .' *7 .t% .* , .,:.,'}: ' z "c" ,, .ttt . ;..;.A . . .,. t G ..'?:X.:;"?S "" g {, . ,' . . plants. (low;e-r'Z'. ur vo-i"
... n ,, 2 >,.£ o .nlar .om ant. a rt I. fr'",.•,:- ,":,,4 "
=,'~~gK .>:{ , w : .¢'',, 't,; J',.' , .a, "' g ',, ,*..g *' ' . 6',' d .Ld:}({ ;A'
P! CCi I [OP:, thc 11k'! ' ',) M I I I! 11 A' : A ckci-fiani ha:, coicL' iIlp will"i ,v;i; !ic.s (); 1lic lc; Jk t U.-"
mitlCe e of atoi lic ino,.'cr p1 m: 1 t . , i.. imiy.
with ;ihe' checry aceoulni ; pm hlsltci hy hii r imlm u uS s. His ii:cpor show repemted service aicrr utius
some -or moare than six months at a stretl--at tile six "working" atomic power plants in the U.S.
Of eight operating atornie power pl ants Ackcrlmn surveyed, only one cost what it was supposed to. The others ranged from $5,000,000 to $79,000,000 over estimates. One of the eight was still being tested when he made his study; the current outlput of the others ranged from a maximum of 78 percent to only 15 percent of the power they were built to produce. Two plants had installed steam boilers to substitute for ailing
* ~ I 117.;~'. ,4
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5ATrATFt.:Li h OF OWN~ERSHItP. MA (COFOCT 0 i 23, 1082; SECTION
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(7117.7a nno, t ,' 7 J7t'C I .1l7'ti.si: look. .7 to,; ic pow(r,.'" AelCkc rlu,77 hold,,S
2 C i Cic',s )jlC il '1 1 ,t 7J'( lolls:
Z'irsla A New vork utility's pljans f" a I,00CQ kw Plant ill the densely Po), ulated QIjjcC, '11-c', of New York Weietili.d off tile s (leily I'l J7inu1Jir) 1964, that Ackermar , had a conf..renc With a eornpally dirct.or opc th adverse" intform ation.,rt peeth
Seconzd. A 325,000 kw plant wa; Planned by a U.S. wic,,t coast utily a i3odcga Dlay; 50 miles north of Sar "Frncisco, in Splite of warnings of -ex. ireJine earthquake risk' n the arca, Afici Strcl~ucj is public protests in Which Ackerman assisted, the plans were dropped linally in, October, 1964, when the excavation for the reactor turned up a secondary earthquake fault.
"These cancellations," Ackerman belicvic', "have thwarted an effort to prove that 'You can put a reactor anywhere.' !"Vtrd. In another case plans for a 260,001) kw atomic power Plant near Roichest,tt N. Y,, wetre cancelW in 1t'Cbruarliy, 1965, after the selected hiuilder dClinedL to guarantee the plant's
dePenilbil ity, Fourth, The State of Calili[0:0 a and the. Atotici 1ncrgy C(tJotn17s'ion in Jan77a ry, 1965, annutkC -ccIree;'.cjj ton7
pllanvs to build a 525,0001 kw atomic
1. Dat of ilng;CltJbr Tt. ln e o4 7t 17g:It o n 017001 7 a, U9 6t h, P ~resid en t; G eo rg e R . M e a~n , , vt'V to n , T itth o !, . F ~ rq e c o f1 7 7 i77 l e :l o i M o in C e fltca l S e cre tary' L loyd H o te7 r , W ili777c1 Illin o is , 43. Lrocon of knolwn Molrhly Il.c; no COrtit M7ock and lao d7Ootlttd lS 4. L,, alon f kn1I,' o~, 11] t~lbic~lt~o 600 8. Known0 bon~dhotders, Ilio1I,'.1-CC5 o te
(idge Avenue v1!, Cofok Cofuntyic titur: 600. security ht'.dcrs owning or itr]ding 5ooe C1s1o Lc I~oo ' ~flCl1,.tl oCorny Iellino i tc 0 7010or of total dfllount of bonds, mortgatges, or otherI ; l1fil , of ~ieI, 71,,i1;,,is ,s t16l0 Ridge Av"i7''1c, tIvanf'. 5ecuIritlc .. O( tnj Coo~,k C'outly Illois 60201. 9. Patraraphsi 7 nd 8 inciod,' 717 casesN t hv' tile (IN ,n,,.. .7 .t I .7 77 771,10(1t'titt~'. .,7 tockl,,e or1 01eocurity' hol(l,cr j7p~caknt tile01 i
6l 11 I.1. N l) 71 17 adh- e lil i 7 Ily~ise tI,'i antii.0 rI,, h e f10 nlnas 7It Ilec o'r't in vo hr c1.7.. c,7 zwv 1, 1600~ idnge''c l'I1 77,,,e Ilho, 77207 Vdiltir, realoll, .1.1n711116c If 017e 'eso ior ie'lrll ,0 c,.,Ir K. KrU~lI,. 700 'i4, 7.1 kI~ llie, 1::ansn,
0 tl h, 11 is.cCt~l 'Itl 711 l, h e~' ;,I . ...n !
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71777.7' p1.11,1 !',17' -,7771 .7 J'
*l~~c1~t~l~lvl.)M "ill: 77 1C1711 ,.J,,''pritjc. . The ~ ~. C '~ , t:77iJa
ill ..I7N)I;77pC.:17cu
Ir such 717 imtiportantIsrie''I een her, I 965, thlc AEC ifluejterilination of the, Plans 'to bujld( !lc plant C because of "fuel elemlent probflems.,"
c plant at I 1ponaIlach near Detroit, s Mich., was Otlrted in 1 956 by several 1m1ldwest ultilities. The reactor plant ran Into many diqiicultic1 and was taken o1.t tof "utfility service" in December, j965, 1after atn irlvCstmerit of $11 1,000,000. It
* was rephIct:6 in 1964 b~y a 150,001 kw olil-burnin holler to Produce steam. * Sixth. At Oak Ridge, Tenn., the AEC's 2 2,00~0 kw a1tomic' po wer Plant 7 was closed down ill January, 1966, be- I cause of a, variety of obsta~cles after S57.000,000 had been spe-nt on it.
.Sel'inh The I-lalin, Nebr.,, 75, s 000 kw pttb:il. at 'a Cost of S54,700,000. stilrteki operating t tn. 7 ary, 1963, bi~ .1Was shut down in August, tin 196.5. The 'AEC ailtottne inl 11.111C, 0 1966, tlla te Plant ivill 170 torn diown at becauseC Of 'tetccial ( didIcultlies'' ex. ni perienced in opI'ratioll th Tile fact t; at intaI~heless other a1totmei p platins arc beinrt built now near cities p7 g1ives, Ackerman grave concern about tbQ issule this new Power' sourco raises ill for his own profession, T 19
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1:1 This' Call for it 11W c , 7' , . ,,,
'.1
4,,,,.l' , n ~rineiple iitrtecred wlit
,It, p.its of so Nile p,- iCr; i pluiin aud
it :isicr O attack him ..s it- irdividual tilail ito respond to his argiments.
'iis ciallengcs to the engineering Sp:ofe'iai made a number of its membets uncomfortable and arouscd their rcsentmcnt; their efforts to ostracize him wcrc not without effect," tho colleague adcled dciily.
As the editorial doors of professional ptalicatians swung shut on him, Ackerman sometimes managed to jam in a persistent toe. In spite of rebuffs, he has published and won increasing professional support over tile years with articles like The Engineer's Obligation to Disclose All-the Facts (CIvIL ENGINEERING, 1961); Atomic Power, A Failure in Engineering Responsibility (ASCE TRANSACTIONS, 1963); Atomic Power Program is Undermining Engineering Responsibility (AMERICAN ENGINEER,
1963); Engineering Responsibilty in Atomic Power (WISCONSIN PROFESSIONAL ENGINEFIR, 1963); Using Engineering to Enslave You (CIVIL ENGI
* . NEERING, 1964); Atomic Power Plants -W lwuat'g Wrong whith Them? (AMnpIi
;, CAN POWER CONFERENCE, 1965); and The Engineer's Responsibility and Duty to Dissent (CONSULTING ENGINEER,
"* 1965).
He has also been working on a book intended to identify the various areas of responsibility in this new technology for engineers, educators, public utility managements and directors. His aim, he explains, is "to provide guidelines for eventually merging atomic power into
, the U.S. cconony in a way that will safely perpetuate the great miracle of America's celctricity supply. I "At present too many directors of public utilities continue to rely on the
" Iindustry's tratditional lines of responsibility and authority, ann are unaware how thesc lines, in the area of atomic pow-i, have become snaled up into a
holirribc. n-'.ss." -Ic cites a recent e,,m:noi' 1 on cthlcs
by Chief Justice \V.r..: "'ocict wsould conie i) grici* withiount elthit. which is unenforceable in the coiirts and cannot be .made part of law .... This Law beyond the Law, as, tit from Law, is the creation of civilization and is indispensable to it .. . In oho of his papr, Ackerman de
clared: "It may be legal but it is not ethical for a chief engincer ... to design and locate an atomic power plant where an accidental failure or sabotage could be disastrous for a community, when such a peril can be reduced or eliminated by an alternative plan costing more money . . . to shift his responsibility in matters involving public safety to his management or to a government agency .. .to design an atomic power plant without adequate knowledge of the magnitude of the energy released in the event of a reactor failure . .. to certify that his design is safe when he has no resource of demonstrated experience as to what is safe, such as prevails with high pressure steam boilers; ...
"It hiay be legal but it is not ethical for a board of directors . . . to suddenly abdicate its corporate responsibilities and authorize construction of a new power plant so perilous to the public that it is not fully insurable under its traditional policies ...to abdicate traditional corporate responsibilities in the event of a major reactor failure and to rely on the taxpayers to compensate the survivors of such a disaster ...to exploit public confidence by authorizing the construction of an atomic power plant near a populous area without disclosing the fact that the available third party liability insurance is grossly inadequate ... "It may be legal but it is not ethical
for engineers, lawyers, ard roanufacturers ... to create a new vocabulary of propaganda desigred to tainimize public concern by avoiding such words as
Reprinted with pcrtmiss;on of the pubiisher
i .
'l,ic ,' etc :1ii hnt<,,n,' a!~ . ' 'd,'.
Y as i. Ci ent' , '* ,: .'
it h.s bccil iy lot to i .:1r: '.,'It:;'; to
a nt 1i:nhcl of d ci:.io s 0Iit ll X Ce :ueiy h:11rn fd ;Y;). ;1s; !':,I ; s Iii.. , i~ i i',,c
Ct ill C I0iCL i11Cd. !11 Ml', 1 0 . i i i;lt
pendent Consiltiit loor it c'-L.:c d to clearly identify the iiott!5 .ilil to deciarc it publicly. I c .n: choose Lititer
to speak LIp or to itleaiil silent, "This is a petsona iccic: : invovug
tremendous irespouisiliiCis.
"Un fortunatelv. wkhea axc... iiied forces are involved. l ": pinion gencrally iteCis ,efmri.Zigi, "oC's a'ofessionat c recr. ,:l -such sti, ;cs a lilc I
praying beconcs icipfui. "WVhen I was in the midst of One ot1
these problems nv wifc aid I attended church services in New York to hear Dr. Norman Vincent Pcadc. Quilt rernarkably the theme of his sermon was 'Never be afraid of any situation, hovcver tough .... Never be afraid of another mail.' "
It's a long, lonely crusade i volving complex and kinpopillar qBucsti as. lt Ackerinan has foiund ,olc elfping hands. In the ari eof0 alertin 1 PC public John Chamberlain, the coiilis, p;ovided moral support at a ciiicai tinie. And Ackerman adds: "I P vo an, ,hiding faith in tle sinccrity and icltediiiy Of top-flight people in busincss and tie professions. Given the facts tiey will make the choice that best seve,, the public interest."
And what does he hope to 7o re t'? "There is just one answer," ie says.
"We need to prove in our courts tiht -he Federal Indemnity Act is tnco.vtiutional. We co-ild tln return to S,' by applying traditional insti ,;rZc pr eices
and corporate rcpondbihli;ics io ;'iis new tCch,o.oy, rd at th' ,.c ti:nc develop the 01,,ie s:tk); f & nsfittiionnl lasw and ecsponsihi,: i'hacer
hg principles ;od ):;a.COCC, whiCht would
p:otect tile puilic i:tcist."
