Port Gibson, Mississippi is home to Grand Gulf Nuclear Station, the largest single-unit nuclear power plant in the United States (3).
Nuclear power plants have the potential to stimulate economic health for the community it serves, but this has not been the case in Port Gibson, Mississippi. The Port Gibson community is predominantly Black and the Grand Gulf Nuclear Station has not created a fair distribution of environmental benefits or burdens.
Quick Facts
Nuclear energy supplies roughly 20% of U.S. electricity - here are the top pros & cons of nuclear as an energy source:
Pros: Carbon-free electricity, reliable energy source, small land footprint, and high power output
Cons: Uranium is technically non-renewable, high upfront costs, nuclear waste, and malfunctions can be catastrophic
(7).
The article from Kyne and Bolin (2016) describes how people who live near nuclear power plants can be exposed to multiple sources of ionizing radiation. Nuclear power plants release radioactive gases and discharge radioactive water into surrounding areas. Power plants require 20,000 gallons of water to cool down the reactor core and during the cooling process the water gets contaminated with tritium (radioactive hydrogen). The tritiated water inevitably gets releases into nearby bodies of water or vented into the atmosphere (4).
Other studies have shown that the proximity to nuclear power plants can lead to elevated childhood leukemia rates (1), excessive infant mortality rates (6), and other health concerns. Ultimately, Kyne et al. (2016) argues that nuclear power plants and waste disposal raise "a suite of justice issues including distributive, procedural, recognition and intergenerational justice issues" (4).
Nuclear power creates material waste that can "remain radioactive and dangerous to human health for thousands of years" (10).
In 1986, Mississippi Legislature enacted a law that prohibited Claiborne County from taxing the nuclear power plant (8).
In 2019, the population of Claiborne County, which Port Gibson is in, was 86.6% Black (9).
"As someone who has studied the history of taxation in Claiborne County, specifically, and in Southern states, in general, I can say that the state legislature’s decision in 1986 to strip this majority black county of its taxing authority over Grand Gulf was racially motivated. The state’s unprecedented move to strip the county of its taxing authority over the power plant fit into this longer pattern of preventing black officials from playing a meaningful role in the distribution of tax revenues and limiting its use toward services that would benefit black communities. It was a nakedly racist move in a state with a sordid—and well-deserved—reputation for using the power of state and local government to oppress and exploit its black population and protect white political and economic power."
- Andrew Kahrl, Assistant Professor at the University of Virginia (8)
Current Status
A local Claiborne County resident, Emma Doss, brought attention to the fact that Grand Gulf Nuclear Station was "not included on the tax roll, and that her property was taxed at a higher rate than Grand Gulf’s". Emma Doss claimed this tax scheme merely existed because the demographics of the county and sued the Claiborne County Board of Supervisors, the state tax commission, and the state attorney general’s office. In 2017, the Mississippi Court of Appeals denied the appeal from Claiborne County residents, including Emma Doss. A member of the Claiborne's National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) plans to keep fighting for Claiborne residents (5).
Gleaming Ray of Light
Entergy, the majority owner of the Grand Gulf Nuclear Station, released a statement on November 10th, 2021, announcing their "Largest Expansion of Renewable Power in State History". Entergy plans to add 1,000 Megawatts of solar and other renewable energy to the state over the next five years. The statement claims, “Entergy’s new power generation plan will help put Mississippi in an even better position to recruit job creators and contribute to our state’s economic growth" and "communities will also see the benefits of new construction jobs and new tax revenue as a result of these renewable power plants all being built locally" (2).
Entergy's commitment to clean energy is a step in the right direction for our climate and the Claiborne community. It opens an opportunity for Mississippi to create a fair distribution of environmental and economic benefits for their communities.
While this commitment to clean energy has the potential to be a ray of light for Mississippians, it does not directly address the economic and physiological inequities the people of Claiborne, County have continued to endure. This may only be a genuine ray of light if Mississippi and Entergy chose to take an environmental justice lens to this new opportunity over the next five years.
References
Baker, P. J., & Hoel, D. G. (2007). Meta‐analysis of standardized incidence and mortality rates of childhood leukaemia in proximity to nuclear facilities. European Journal of Cancer Care, 16(4), 355-363.
Entergy Mississippi announces largest expansion of renewable power in state history. Entergy Newsroom. (2021, November 10). Retrieved December 10, 2021, from https://www.entergynewsroom.com/news/entergy-mississippi-announces-largest-expansion-renewable-power-in-state-history/.
Grand Gulf Nuclear Station. Grand Gulf Nuclear Station | Entergy Nuclear | We Power Life. (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2021, from https://www.entergy-nuclear.com/nuclear-sites/grand-gulf/.
Kyne, D., & Bolin, B. (2016). Emerging Environmental Justice Issues in Nuclear Power and Radioactive Contamination. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 13(7), 700. doi:10.3390/ijerph13070700
Local Branch Fights Back. Naacpms.org. (2017, September 13). Retrieved December 10, 2021, from http://naacpms.org/local-branch-fights-back/.
Mangano, J. J. (2008). Excess infant mortality after nuclear plant startup in rural Mississippi. International Journal of Health Services, 38(2), 277-291.
Nuclear energy pros and cons. EnergySage. (2021, November 10). Retrieved December 10, 2021, from https://www.energysage.com/about-clean-energy/nuclear-energy/pros-and-cons-nuclear-energy/.
Reilly, P. J. (2017, May 17). Mississippi taxing - nuclear power and accusations of racism. Forbes. Retrieved December 10, 2021, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterjreilly/2017/05/14/mississippi-taxing-nuclear-power-and-accusations-of-racism/?sh=40eb73304919.
U.S. Census Bureau quickfacts: Claiborne County, Mississippi. (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2021, from https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/claibornecountymississippi.
U.S. Energy Information Administration - EIA - independent statistics and analysis. Nuclear power and the environment - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2021, from https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/nuclear/nuclear-power-and-the-environment.php.