A report on the effects of the Palisades nuclear power plant closure has been presented to the public by the Palisades Economic Recovery Team. It held a virtual meeting Monday to go over its findings. Carmen Wells-Quigg with the University of Michigan Economic Growth Institute said the report first looked at the loss of tax revenue for Van Buren County since Palisades shut down.
“The Palisades nuclear power plant contributed to around 40% of the total property tax values in Van Buren County in the 2017-2018 period, and that went down in 2022,” Wells-Quigg said.
Wells-Quigg said hardest hit are Covert Public Schools and the Van Buren County Intermediate School District. Fortunately, she said all parties had plenty of time to prepare. Suggested mitigation strategies include possibly increased millages. As for the workforce, Wells-Quigg said there have been ripple effects of the closure that go beyond just those employed by Palisades.
“There will be a number of other organizations, offices, employers who will feel the effects of not being able to attract workers due to this one event. The less workforce supply from this closure will lead to less need for employment services.”
Wells-Quigg said recruitment, job search, and HR businesses are affected. She said the county must make itself more attractive to not only businesses but workers. One way to do that is to expand broadband availability. As for the environmental concerns raised by the closure, she said due to the highly regulated nature of the nuclear industry, there haven’t been issues, and the report doesn’t anticipate any for at least ten years. Now that the report is done, the next phase will be to use its findings to develop mitigation strategies. You can find the report right here.
