SALEM TWP. — Higher electricity prices and loss of jobs. That's what will happen if the nuclear energy industry continues to struggle and nuclear power plants shut down, state lawmakers from both parties said Thursday.

Following a tour of the Susquehanna Steam Electric Station, a nuclear power plant in Salem Twp., state Reps. Tarah Toohil and Eddie Day Pashinski lobbied for a proposed House bill which would classify nuclear power as an alternative energy source and place it in the same tier as solar, wind, low-impact hydropower and geothermal power.

Electric companies would be required to purchase 50% of their electricity from those alternative energy sources, if House Bill 11 becomes law in its present form.

The bill has generated controversy since it was proposed.

Opponents, including advocates of the natural gas industry, describe the bill as a "bail-out" of the nuclear industry, which would cost consumers $500 million per year.

Proponents argue it would save money for consumers in the long run, since further decline in the state's nuclear industry, such as early retirement of the state's five nuclear power stations, could cost billions of dollars per year.

The bill might forestall the planned retirement of Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station near Harrisburg, said Toohil, R-116, Butler Twp., whose district includes Salem Twp. and the Susquehanna Steam power station, owned by Talen Energy.

Toohil and Pashinski, D-121, Wilkes-Barre, praised HB 11 as good news for Susquehanna Steam's hundreds of employees, as well as nuclear industry workers throughout the state.

Toohil, a co-sponsor of HB 11, said she strongly supports the legislation even though she understands the concerns voiced by Citizens Against Nuclear Bailouts, a group funded by the natural gas industry, which has described the bill as a corporate giveaway.

"I also support natural gas, but we need diversity," Toohil said.

Toohil described nuclear power as "clean energy," though she acknowledged the word "nuclear" still has negative connotations for many, based on famous accidents at Three Mile Island in 1979 and Chernobyl, Ukraine, in 1986.

Nuclear power is safe, according to Pashinski, who said the safety and security measures in evidence during Thursday's tour of the power station were impressive.

Nuclear energy has close to no carbon footprint and unlike solar or wind power it is not dependent on weather conditions, Pashinski said.

Former Gov. Tom Ridge, the first director of the Department of Homeland Security, will appear before a state House committee next week to discuss HB 11, according to Toohil.

Ridge's appearance should help convince lawmakers that supporting nuclear energy is a national security priority, she said.

Contact the writer: emark@citizensvoice.com; 570-821-2117