Testimony To The Nuclear Regulatory Commission on the Proposed Pa'ina Hawaii LLC Irradiator

Senator Norman Sakamoto
January 24, 2007

Below is the text of Senator Sakamoto's testimony to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on the proposed Pa`ina Hawaii LLC Irradiator.  The NRC public hearing is scheduled to be held at the Ala Moana Hotel on February 1, 2007. 

TESTIMONY

The proposed Pa`ina Irradiator is situated on the very edge of the Honolulu International Airport, next to one of the main runways.  While there will be benefits to the State's economy, the risks will be far greater. 

There has been much concern raised about the possibility of radioactive contamination whether from natural catastrophes, human error, or terrorist attacks.  Despite our requests for information on plans for dealing with such disasters from various state agencies, we have received unsatisfactory responses from them.  In a letter dated May 22, 2006 Brian Sekiguchi, Deputy Director-Airports of the Department of Transportation, informed us that the information was not available for release.  In a June 1, 2006 letter, the Department of Health provided us information about evacuations, but nothing further.  Given the proximity of the proposed irradiator to the Honolulu International Airport, any incident at the irradiator facility could result not only in the endangerment of human lives, but also seriously impair operations at the airport.  Even a minor incident could result in serious consequences devastating to our local economy.  Therefore, we cannot support the proposed Pa`ina Hawaii, LLC, Underwater Irradiator application.