Area residents outline hopes, concerns for Duane Arnold nuclear restart at public meeting

CEDAR RAPIDS — It was a clear, cool night in Cedar Rapids on Thursday, but Rich Patterson was thinking about the harsh and heated possibility of a future drought.

Speaking at a public meeting organized by the Iowa Utilities Commission, Patterson pressed representatives from Duane Arnold Energy Center owner NextEra Energy about the nuclear plant’s water needs and how that could affect the larger Linn County water supply.

NextEra is seeking regulatory approval to restart the Duane Arnold plant near Palo by early 2029, and company representatives gathered Thursday to hear public feedback on the potential restart and field questions from residents like Patterson.

At some point, “there will be droughts, and we (as residents) are still going to want to drink water and make coffee and take showers,” Patterson said. “I would ask you to get good information on how much water the plant itself is going to take … and superimpose that on a drought to give us good information on how this is going to affect our lives.”

Speaking for NextEra, consultant Mike Davis said the plant, if recommissioned, is expected to use the same amount of water that it did prior to its 2020 decommissioning. That does not account for water used by any potential Duane Arnold customer.

While exact figures were not readily available Thursday for that usage rate, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission at the time of the plant’s most recent relicensing listed surface water and groundwater use conflicts from the plant as being relatively small “even during a period of low flow” in the nearby Cedar River.

That’s due in part to the relatively small size of Duane Arnold, a single-unit boiling water reactor located on roughly 200 acres of land in unincorporated Linn County. The plant can produce just over 600 megawatts of power, making it one of the smallest in the country.

Still, NextEra Energy said the plan to restart the plant represents a pathway toward increased regional resilience amid rising energy demands — largely resulting from the rise of data centers and artificial intelligence — as well as an opportunity to support state and regional economic development.

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“The recommissioning project will have significant positive economic impacts on the local, state and national economies,” said NextEra representative Josh Marcum. “We expect economic impacts of about $8 billion in Linn County, $9 billion for the state of Iowa and $16 billion for the entire nation.”

State, federal approval still pending

Before NextEra can restart operations at Duane Arnold, it must first receive a slew of approvals from local, state and federal entities — including a certificate of public convenience, use and necessity from the Iowa Utilities Commission to commence certain construction activities.

Thursday’s public meeting was a part of that process and kicks off a period of public comment where residents can submit feedback using the IUC’s online portal under the dedicated docket number, GCU-2025-0013.

After 30 days, NextEra can officially apply for the certificate, and the Iowa Utilities Commission has 45 days to either issue a decision or seek more information.

Roughly 60 people attended Thursday's meeting, which was held at the Hawkeye Downs Expo Center in southwest Cedar Rapids. Several asked questions about the restart process while some offered general thoughts or comments.

Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance Vice President of Economic Development Ron Corbett spoke in favor of the project, its overall economic impact and the nearly 400 jobs it would bring to the community once the plant is fully operational.

“We have 1,100 members of our organization (at the Economic Alliance), and we stand in strong support of reopening the Duane Arnold Energy Center,” he said. “For our region, the restart of this is so important for helping build our power grid for the future.”

Pam Mackey Taylor, the Sierra Club’s Iowa chapter director, was considerably less enthusiastic and instead pushed back on NextEra’s proposal and its promotion of nuclear energy as a clean energy source akin to wind or solar.

“Nuclear power is not clean energy, … (and) nuclear power is not renewable energy,” she said. “Uranium, used for fuel, is a finite resource, just like coal, gas and oil.”

Mackey Taylor also noted that the plant’s largest planned consumer, Google, intends to use power from Duane Arnold to support its growing fleet of data centers — which demand large amounts of natural resources like power and water in their own right.

NextEra and Google last month announced a partnership through which the tech giant will purchase the majority of the power produced at Duane Arnold. The remainder will go to Central Iowa Power Cooperative.

No decision was made at Thursday’s meeting pertaining to the certificate of public convenience, use and necessity. That will come at a later date once the Iowa Utilities Commission has reviewed public feedback and all application information from NextEra Energy.

Comments: grace.nieland@thegazette.com