The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Forum will focus on group’s efforts
Saving Ohio nuclear power plants is key
A public forum will be held on Jan. 14 in Perry Village to highlight the efforts a statewide group that’s working to keep Ohio’s two nuclear power plants open.
The Ohio Clean Energy Jobs Alliance is seeking a public policy solution that will save the Perry Nuclear Power Plant in North Perry Village and the Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station in Oak Harbor Village, about 25 miles east of Toledo. Both plants, owned by FirstEnergy, are slated to close by 2021.
“We want to talk about FirstEnergy, the alliance and the grassroots support they’re seeking to keep the plants open,” said Perry Township Trustee Board Chairman Rick Amos, regarding to the forum.
The program, slated for 6:30 p.m. at the Manchester West building, 4261 Manchester Road, will serve as the January installment of a regular event known as the Perry Forum. Amos said these forums, held every couple of months, involve elected officials, administrators
and other representatives of Perry and North Perry villages, Perry Township and Perry Schools.
“We get together and kind of share with each other what is happening in each community,” Amos said.
While each Perry Forum is usually held on a weekday morning, the January edition of the gathering was switched to evening and moved to Manchester West to accommodate a larger audience.
Discussions about the fate of the Perry Nuclear Power Plant have intensified since March 28, when FirstEnergy Solutions announced it would close
three of its nuclear power plants, including Perry and Davis-Besse. In recent years, the plants have struggled to compete with the cheaper cost of natural gas.
Three days after announcing the nuclear plant closings, FirstEnergy Solutions and FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Co. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Earlier this month, the Ohio Clean Energy Jobs Alliance formed. The group stated that it will engage legislators, policymakers and the public to emphasize the employment, economic, environmental and grid reliability benefits provided by the state’s two nuclear power facilities.
“We are here to urge our elected leaders to take the necessary steps to save the Davis-Besse and Perry nuclear power stations,” said Lake County Commissioner
Jerry Cirino, who was part of the recent announcement from Columbus unveiling the alliance. “Allowing these facilities to shut down will have a devastating economic impact on their local communities. The operation of Ohio’s nuclear stations contributes over $500 million annually to the state’s economy — over 4,000 jobs are at stake.”
Members of the Ohio Clean Energy Jobs Alliance include the Perry Economic Development Council; Perry Local Schools Superintendent Jack Thompson; Perry Township Trustee Robert Dawson; and North Perry Village Councilmen Mike Cutler and Brian Titus.