By DAN TUOHY
N.H. Statehouse Writer
CONCORD — Gov. Jeanne Shaheen
asked the federal government Tuesday to provide New Hampshire with
anti-radiation pills for residents who live near the Seabrook Station and
Vermont Yankee nuclear power plants.
The request was made after
reviewing state policy on the distribution of potassium iodide, which limits
the body’s thyroid intake of radiation in the event of a nuclear accident.
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission decided in December to make supplies available to states that are
home to the country’s 103 nuclear power plants. Previously, the state policy
was to encourage pharmacies to stock it.
After the terrorist attacks
last year, states revisited response plans. Groups like the Seacoast
Anti-Pollution League called on Shaheen to stockpile potassium iodide. Seabrook
Station, meanwhile, remains on high security alert.
Shaheen is seeking enough
KI, the chemical abbreviation for the medicine, to cover residents who live
within the 10-mile emergency planning zones around the two nuclear power
plants. The request is for 350,000 tablets. Vermont Yankee sits near the
southwest border of New Hampshire.
New Hampshire will submit a
plan for distribution of the tablets to the Federal Emergency Management Agency
within 90 days. The pills are expected to be predistributed to residents and
stocked at designated evacuation centers.
"We believe it makes
sense to take steps to ensure that everyone living near Seabrook Station and
Vermont Yankee has access to potassium iodide in the event of an
emergency," Shaheen said. "At my direction, the Office of Emergency
Management requested a supply of potassium iodide for New Hampshire and I hope
that the federal government acts quickly on our request."
The state of Massachusetts
was among the first states last month to officially request that the federal
government supply potassium iodide.
New Hampshire state
officials previously questioned whether the stockpiling of the medicine would
slow down the evacuation in the event of an emergency at Seabrook Station. But Jenn Hicks, the director of
Seacoast Anti-Pollution League, maintains that potassium iodide would be
used in conjunction with an evacuation plan.
Hicks further argues that
the existing evacuation plans for the Seacoast are inadequate because of
population growth and traffic congestion.
One should not take
potassium iodide unless directed by a public health official or physician.
People who take KI can experience side effects, including sore gums, swelling
of salivary glands and diarrhea. Possible allergic reactions include swelling
of the face and sore joints.
A small, 14-dose package of
potassium iodide costs about $10 at pharmacies. In this case, the federal
government would pay for the supply. Pam Walsh, press secretary to the
governor, said there is a chance that there would be a minor expense for
distribution of the tablets.