About The Citizens Awareness Network

CAN began as a group of concerned citizens organizing to protect their community from a nuclear meltdown. When lightning struck the Yankee Rowe reactor in Western MA in 1992, alarmed citizens began to meet. We were afraid of a meltdown, for the safety of our families and our way of life. We learned that the NRC was allowing the reactor to run with a one in ten thousand (10,000) chance of an accident rather than the required one in a million (1,000,000)!

We began a county-wide program to educate people about our local nuke. We educated people about the fact that the reactor released radioactive waste routinely and regularly into the river that flowed through our community. The river, which is surrounded by farmland, schools and houses, is used extensively for recreation and irrigation. Kids swam, people fished and life centered around a river in which nuclear waste was dumped regularly. Through health studies, we found that people in the surrounding communities had high rates of disease and illness, and that rate continues to grow to this day. No one realized just how the reactor impacted their everyday lives, however, the more people learned about how nuclear power affected them, the more they realized that closure of this reactor was necessary for a safer, cleaner life.

Even though people were angered about the effect the reactor had on their lives and started to push for closure, the corporation bought many people's silence with their "generosity". They gave money to the fire department, bought computers for the schools and gave support to local charities. Concerned citizens were afraid to question or raise concerns. People feared that the local economy would collapse or feared retaliation for taking a stand against the nuke. However, since the reactor closed, the local economy has improved and property values have risen. New local businesses have sprung up that cater to locals as well as to tourists who come to boat on the river that was once a dump for radioactive waste. There were also concerns that workers would lose their jobs, but half of the workforce was employed in decommissioning and many moved on to other reactors. Immediate job loss was minimal.

After the community shut Yankee Rowe, we all wanted to return to our ordinary lives, plant our gardens and visit our neighbors. But Yankee Atomic began a rapid clean up, shipping it's waste that had hurt our community to Barnwell, South Carolina. We felt it was unethical to ship the same toxic waste that hurt us to another community to hurt them. It became clear to us that all communities impacted by the nuclear fuel chain share the same fate, we are all sacrifice communities.

At this point, CAN began the transformation from a small local group into a regional group with multiple chapters. The problem was no longer local; it was a regional, national and global issue that we all had to work together to solve. Producing power with nuclear waste raises serious moral issues, issues that can not be ignored or derided. It is immoral for communities to have to choose between long term health and short term economic gain. It is immoral to produce a toxic waste for which there is no scientifically sound or environmentally just solution and to practice environmental racism by targeting low income, minority and Native American communities for nuclear contamination. It must be made clear that those who work at reactors are not immoral nor are they the problem; they are doing their jobs, jobs that protect their communities from accidents and catastrophes. Many are intimidated from raising concerns as the people in our community were.

What we have now is a great opportunity to choose a clean future for our communities. Now that we know the hidden costs of nuclear power on our health, our safety and our environment, we can choose better, cleaner and safer ways to generate energy for our homes and our communities. CAN envisions a future of safety, prosperity, and health for all in which people generate their own electricity in their homes and communities. Where local energy production has created local jobs and renewable energy is integrated into all of our buildings: our homes, businesses, schools and public buildings. A future where it is easy for everyone to access sustainable and affordable energy sources and the use of clean efficient energy is standard practice. Where family farms and locally-owned businesses are the backbone of our communities, and we have what we need to provide for our future.

CAN now has 7 chapters in 5 states. Join us in creating a clean energy future for everyone.

Pull The Plug Solar Panel Raffle

HELP PULL THE PLUG ON VERMONT YANKEE TODAY WHILE TAKING A CHANCE AT LOWERING YOUR ELECTRIC BILLS!

Tickets $30.00 each

The Raffle will run through Sunday, November 28 or until 500 chances are sold, whichever comes first. In order to enter the raffle each entrant shall purchase a ticket online at www.vtcitizen.org or in person at events throughout the duration of the raffle. Tickets purchased online will be mailed to the participant upon verification of payment.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Thanks for your support and good luck!

The sponsor of this raffle is the Vermont Citizens Action Network, PO Box 16, Hancock VT 05748, (802) 767-9131, which is a registered Vermont Non-Profit Corporation. Donations and purchases of raffle tickets are not tax deductible. Participation in this raffle shall be deemed to be your complete acceptance of the terms and conditions herein.

Entry in the raffle is available only to persons over the age of 18 who live in a jurisdiction where the purchase of raffle tickets is legal. You may be asked to provide the Sponsor with proof of age and/or identity to participate in this raffle. Board members of the sponsor or any entities affiliated with or related to the Sponsor shall not be eligible to enter the raffle. For the purposes herein, the term relative shall mean spouse, partner, parent, child or sibling.

Each entrant shall be entitled to make multiple entries into the raffle. Each ticket shall be priced at $30.00. A maximum of 500 chances will be sold. In the event that the Sponsor deems an entrant to have acted in bad faith, such entrant shall be excluded from the raffle and consequently deemed ineligible to win the Prize, as defined below.

The prize for winning the raffle shall be determined based on the total number of tickets sold as follows: (a) one-half of the proceeds of the raffle, up to a maximum amount of $4,000 if less than 280 raffle tickets are sold or; (b) a solar electric (PV) system consisting of panels and inverters with a wholesale value of $4,000 (retail value of approximately $4,600) provided by The Greenfield Solar Store, 2 Fiske Avenue, Greenfield MA 01301, (413) 772-3122 if 280 to 500 tickets are sold.

Only one prize will be awarded. Chances of winning may vary based on the total tickets sold but will be no more than 1:500. The Sponsor shall execute a random drawing, which shall take place before January 1, 2011. The exact date and location will be announced prior to November 28, 2010 via our website at vtcitizen.org. After the drawing, the winner will be contacted via telephone and email. If, for any reason, the winner fails to respond within thirty (30) days to the notification of his/her winning or if the winner fails to pickup the prize within thirty (30) days of notification of arrival, such winning entrant shall be deemed to have forfeited his / her claim to the prize and the sponsor will conduct a secondary drawing to select a winner. The sponsors decision is final with respect to all matters relating to awarding of the prize and shall not be subject to review or appeal by any entrant or by any third party.

Your participation in the raffle is deemed your agreement that the Sponsor may use your name, likeness or image for promotional and marketing purposes without the requirement for any payment to you and you hereby grant the Sponsor the right to do the same and expressly waive any claims against the Sponsor in this regard. The Prize is neither transferable nor exchangeable. By entering the raffle, each entrant unreservedly agrees to these terms and conditions, which govern the raffle and the awarding of the prize. By entering the raffle each entrant agrees to release, discharge and hold harmless the Sponsor, its legal representatives, affiliates, subsidiaries, agencies and their respective officers, directors, employees and agents from any damages whatsoever suffered, sustained or allegedly sustained in connection the Raffle or the acceptance of the Prize.

The winner shall be solely responsible for any taxes, installation, storage, delivery or other fees levied in relation to the receipt of the prize. The winner shall be responsible for arranging for delivery or pickup of the system at Greenfield Solar Store, 2 Fiske Avenue, Greenfield MA 01301, (413) 772-3122 upon it's arrival. The Sponsor reserves the right to alter these terms and conditions at any time and in its sole discretion. The Sponsor reserves the right, at any time, to cancel, modify or suspend the raffle if, in its sole judgment, the raffle is not capable of being conducted as specified. The winners names will be disclosed to anyone who writes to the sponsor at its physical address. These terms and conditions and any matters relating hereto shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Vermont and jurisdiction over any and all disputes shall be exclusive to the state and federal courts in Vermont. All sales of tickets to this raffle are final and 100% non-refundable.

Thanks for your support and good luck!