doilu
friday, february 21, 1975
lincoln, nebraska vol. 98, no. 86
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State Sen. Steve Fowler, Lincoln, has proposed a legislative
bill which would halt construction of new nuclear power
plants in Nebraska.
Power bill would halt
nuclear plant building
The lights will not go on in any new nuclear power plants in
Nebraska if State Sen. Steve Fowler of Lincoln gets his way.
Fowler has introduced a bill which would prevent construction
on any new nuclear power plants in the state. '
He said problems which could arise ' from nuclear power
production were pointed out to him by his administrative assistant,
Rich Lombardi .
Nuclear power plants in Nebraska are at Ft. Calhoun and
Brownville and proposals have been made for two more, Lombardi
said. -
He said there is concern over more nuclear power plants because
of potential dangers that haven't been explored completely.
The emergency core cooling system, which cools the reactor if
the main cooling system fails has never been fully tested for safety,
Lombardi said.
If the emergency system failed, the reactor could melt and
radiation would be given off, he said, adding that it would affect
people within a 100-mile radius of the reactor.
He said there also has been concern over low-level radiation
given off at the plants. Some reports have shown this radiation
could cause cancer, he added.
Radioactive waste is now shipped to New York to be stored, but
"if they run out of room a storage system will have to be found
somewhere else," Lombardi said.
Both Nebraska plants have exceeded their projected costs two
and one-half times, he said.
Lombardi said if the bill passes it will allow more research to be
done.
Fowler said he is not sure how the bill will fare in the
Legislature since it is a new subject.
Education and information is necessary before the senators will
make a decision, Fowler said.
Rob Aiken, chairman of an ASUN environmental task force,
said he has prepared a pamphlet on the hazards of nuclear power
production.
He said the pamphlet will be distributed cm campus, to special
interest groups and to the public.
A public hearing for the bill will be held March 6, at 2:00.
Report to be ready by April
Lawyer investiaatina LPD
By Lori Demo
He is a former president of the Nebraska
Assoc. of Trial Attorneys, a fellow in the
International Academy of Trial Lawyers and
governor of the Assoc. of Trial Lawyers of
America.
But probably more important to Lincolnites,
Lincoln attorney M.J. Bruckner is the man
heading the Lincoln City Council's investigation
of Lincoln Police Dept. (LPD) policies and
procedures concerning alcohol-related offenses.
Bruckner, 40, was chosen, in late January by
the City Council to investigate charges that LPD
denies suspects their constitutional rights,
harasses people frequenting taverns and private
parties and unnecessarily detains people in jail.
90 people to testify
He began his work three weeks ago and said
by the end of this week "close to 90 people" will
have testified in the investigation.
Most of his work is done at night and on
weekends, he said. Most nights he hears
testimony from citizens until 10 p.m.
So far, Bruckner said, he has had "excellent
cooperation" from the City Council and the City
Legal Dept.
The Lincoln Alcohol Safety Action Project
(LASAP) has given him everything he asked for,
he said. He has statistics on people counseled
there through November, but is waiting for
December figures.
"But I don't know if the LASAP figures make
that much difference," Bruckner said.
April 1 deadline
He said he hopes all people will have testified
by March 1 5 so he can start preparing the report,
to present to the council by April 1 .
He expects more than 100 people will have
testified by that time. Not many of the people
testifying ask to remain anonymous, Bruckner
said. v
Bill Blake, a UNL law student, is helping
Bruckner by researching legal aspects and by
riding in .the LASAP counter-measure unit which
contains the breathalizer unit. Blake, also is
attending the same LASAP counter-measure
school which LASAP officers must attend, he
said.
$50 per hour
Bruckner said he is not sure why the Council
chose him for the job, which pays $50 per hour.
"I didn't apply," he said. "The council asked
me if I'd be interested and I said I would be
willing."
He said the council may have chosen him
because of his experience as a trial lawyer.
"I've been through it all," Bruckner said.
"There is a right way to do things. I have to
know what that is."
City Councilwoman Sue Bailey agreed with
Bruckner. She said they wanted someone who
knew the law, who had some experience in
investigation and who would "be perceived by
the public to be objective."
Bruckner fit all these categories, she said.
Creighton graduate
A 1958 graduate of the Creighton College of
Law, Bruckner spent four and. one-half years
practicing law in Omaha and has been a member
of the Lincoln law firm Marti, Dolton, Bruckner,
O'Gara and Keating since 1964.
Because of the time-consuming investigation
Bruckner said he has been excused from any
trials until he is finished.
In 1971 Bruckner represented a UNL faculty
committee which conducted hearings on Stephen
L. Rozman, a former UNL political science
assistant professor. Rozman lost his case against
the NU Board of Regents, which did not rehire
him in February 1971. The regents claimed
Rozman acted inappropriately during anti-war
activities in May 1970.
Bailey said one of the reasons Bruckner was
chosen .was. be cause "his practice has not brought
him into this field (of police and their
alcohol-related activities), so he shouldn't have
formed any prejudices."
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Photo by Kavin I
M. J. Bruckner, a Lincoln attorney investigating local police policy on alcohol-related arrests.
Varner
proposes
funding
or SUN
NU President D.B. Varner told the
State University of Nebraska i (SUN)
Advisory Council Thursday he would
recommend to the Board of Regents that
they approve $200,000 to $300,000 for
SUN operating expenses.
The money would come from the state
general fund to permit SUN to continue
to make a college education available to
all Nebraskans, he said. The SUN
Advisory Council also passed a resolution
recommending state funding.
The money to operate SUN will be
necessary when the program is separated
from the University of Mid-America
(UMA) on April 1, according to Milan
Wall, SUN regional planning coordinator.
UMA, an experiment in adult open
learning, is a regional outgrowth of the
SUN project. Its members are Kansas
University, University of Missouri, Kansas
State University, Iowa State University
and NU.
Four new courses
The SUN Advisory Council also
reviewed SUN's plans to offer four
courses for college home study beginning
March 2, according to Council Chairman
Thomas Keating of Hastings.
SUN will continue the introductory
psychology course and accounting course
it began last fall.
The courses beginning March'2 include
The Consumer Experience and Making It
Count. The Consumer Experience is a
practical approach to consumer
problem-solving, Wall said. Making It
Count will be, an introduction to
computer science, he said.
AH' four courses include television
segments, newspaper articles and
instructional materials, according to Wall.
Pilot classes evaluated
The council also heard evaluations of
SUN's pilot offerings of introductory
psychology and accounting.
According to a report published by the
SUN Office of Research and Evaluation, a
total of 680 persons were enrolled in
both courses during their first offerings.
More than 90 per cent of those taking the
first two tests in both classes passed the
tests.
The report said the age-range of
enrollecs was from a "gifted 13-year-old
to 70." Eighty-five per cent of all those
enrolled were older than 24.
A 1974 market survey of SUN
enrollees said the most popular reason
chosen to take SUN courses was "to
increase my general knowledge."
Rowena Young, member of the SUN
Advisory Council and SUN students, said
the program is important because it offers
persons over 30, who can't go to the
university, a chance to continue their
education.