# 220. Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power Plant: The Promise and Peril of Nuclear Energy

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/grating-the-nutmeg-500787/220-connecticut-yankee-atomic-power-plant-the-promise-and-peril-of-nuclear-energy
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/grating-the-nutmeg-500787/220-connecticut-yankee-atomic-power-plant-the-promise-and-peril-of-nuclear-energy.md
Podcast: [Grating the Nutmeg](https://stenobird.com/podcast/grating-the-nutmeg-500787)
Published: 2025-10-31T19:26:00+00:00
Episode link: https://gratingthenutmeg.libsyn.com/220-connecticut-yankee-atomic-power-plant-the-promise-and-peril-of-nuclear-energy
Audio file: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/traffic.libsyn.com/secure/gratingthenutmeg/GTN_Mary_220_FINAL_UPLOAD_2.mp3?dest-id=293199
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/grating-the-nutmeg-500787/episodes/220-connecticut-yankee-atomic-power-plant-the-promise-and-peril-of-nuclear-energy
Duration seconds: 1758

## Resource

The Connecticut Yankee atomic power plant was one of the earliest commercial nuclear reactors in New England. Though it was dismantled at the turn of the 21st century, its legacy remains, both for the landscape of the Connecticut River Valley where it once stood, and for contemporary debates about energy today. This episode explores the plant's life and afterlife, the activists who opposed it, and the promises and perils of nuclear power in the 1960s and today, through the reminiscences of Paul Gionfriddo, a former state legislator and longtime president of People's Action for Clean Energy, a group that has advocated for conservation and renewable energy in Connecticut since the early 1970s. This episode is presented by Dr. Amrys Williams and Jon Kozak. Williams is a historian of science, technology,and the environment who serves as the Executive Director of the Connecticut League of Museums . Her recent research projects have focused on anti-nuclear activism, radioecology, and the public interpretation of nuclear places. Kozak is a graduate student in Public History at Central Connecticut State University and the Communications Manager for the Connecticut League of Museums. His recent research has focused on energy landscapes and the Connecticut Yankee plant. Their guest is Paul Gionfriddo is a former state representative and mayor of Middletown, a graduate of Wesleyan University, and a retired nonprofit professional. He has advocated for mental health and renewable energy, and served as President of People's Action for Clean Energy from 1975 until 1999. For more information, visit these sites: -Connecticut Yankee website: connyankee.com/ -People's Action for Clean Energy website: pacecleanenergy.org/ -1960s film of the construction of the Connecticut Yankee Nuclear P…

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