Vermont's attorney general says a federal ruling last month preventing the state from closing its only nuclear reactor improperly limits the state's ability to legislate and debate crucial energy issues.

Attorney General William Sorrell (D) filed an appeal in the U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont on Saturday, seeking to overturn the decision that Vermont cannot force the closure of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant in Vernon.

The state wants to close the 1970s reactor after its 40-year license expires next month.

Sorrell said U.S. District Judge J. Garvan Murtha's ruling relied heavily on discussions among state lawmakers, expert witnesses and advocates, and has the potential to chill legislative debates in the future.

"Left unchallenged, this decision could make it harder for ordinary Vermonters to clearly state their views in future legislative hearings," he said.

Murtha ruled that the state cannot force Entergy Corp.'s single boiling water reactor to close (Greenwire, Jan. 20).

State laws aimed at closing the plant are preempted by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's decision in 2010 to approve a 20-year license extension for Entergy that allows the plant to operate through March 2032, he said. Murtha also noted that the state laws were enacted with radiological safety in mind, and that nuclear safety is a federal issue.

But Sorrell said the ruling invalidates two Vermont statutes that authorize the state to decide whether the reactor should continue running after its license expires. The state is appealing all aspects of Murtha's decision, Sorrell said.

"We have strong arguments to make on appeal," he said. "The district court's decision improperly limits the state's legitimate role in deciding whether Vermont Yankee should operate in Vermont beyond March 21, 2012."

Vermont has repeatedly argued the plant is unsafe, pointing to the collapse of cooling towers in 2007 and radioactive leaks in 2005 and 2010.

When Entergy bought the plant in 2002, it signed a memorandum of understanding with Vermont that included a number of conditions, including that the Public Service Board would have jurisdiction to grant or deny the approval of the plant's continued operation and that Entergy would waive any claim it might have to federal pre-emption of actions taken by the board (Greenwire, Sept. 12, 2011).

Vermont's Senate voted 26-4 in 2010 not to allow state regulators to extend the utility's license. Vermont is the only state with a law requiring both houses of the Legislature to give approval before utility regulators certify a nuclear reactor.

Entergy has since argued those conditions are no longer valid because the Legislature passed a law giving itself authority to withhold a certificate of public good for the plant. Entergy also said the Legislature has argued over whether to grant the license based on safety of the reactor, an area that falls solely to the NRC.

Entergy spokesman Michael Burns said the company is ready to respond to the appeal.

"We are committed to ensuring that Vermont Yankee continues to deliver safe, clean and reliable power to the people and businesses in New England, as it does today, and to protecting the jobs of the 600 dedicated Entergy employees in Vermont," Burns said in a statement.

Gov. Peter Shumlin (D) said in a statement that the state has "important and legitimate" concerns with Entergy's operation of the Vermont Yankee plant, and that his administration will continue focusing on the state's authority over the plant's operation.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), an outspoken critic of the plant, also weighed in, saying Entergy should not be dictating how Vermont generates power.

"If Vermont wants to move to energy efficiency and sustainable energy, no corporation should have the right to force our state to stay tethered to an aging, problem-ridden nuclear plant," Sanders said in a statement. "I believe the law is clear that states have the right to reject nuclear power based on economic and other reasons that have nothing to do with safety."

Click here to read Sorrell's appeal.