An Open Question to Judge Clymer, Mayor Bray, and Senator Carroll: What Did We Get Wrong?

At Thursday's meeting, several officials characterized concerns raised by residents and Protect McCracken County as "misinformation." We take that seriously. Misinformation is a real problem, and if we have stated something inaccurate, we want to correct it.

So we're asking directly: which of the following statements is false?

• The KRC filed a formal petition with the NRC on May 5, 2026, challenging GLE's license application — including the claim that the NRC's Draft Environmental Impact Statement relied on a generic, uncodified review and skipped site-specific seismic analysis for this location, covering 34 distinct environmental and safety issues.
  

• The U.S. Government Accountability Office has issued two separate reports stating that the DOE's legal authority to transfer depleted uranium tails to a private company is "doubtful" under the USEC Privatization Act of 1996.
  

• McCracken County has committed $71.9 million in connection with the GLE project, and Judge Clymer signed a nondisclosure agreement preventing residents from knowing the structure or terms of that commitment.
  

• 665 acres of the former West Kentucky Wildlife Management Area — public land that McCracken County residents enjoyed — were transferred to GLE, a company that is 51% owned by Silex Systems of Australia and 49% owned by Cameco of Canada, without asking residents of the County if we were okay with that.
  

• The presenter originally announced for the KNEDA Community Education Meetings was Dr. Patrick White, a credentialed nuclear and technology expert. He was replaced with Kara Colton, a policy consultant whose degrees are in political science and European politics, and whose professional background is in representing nuclear industry-affiliated organizations.
  

• The Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant is an active Superfund site — one of the most contaminated industrial sites in the country, with highly toxic and dangerous compounds in the soil and groundwater, including a radioactive isotope with a 200,000-year half-life. Cleanup activities are projected to continue through 2065. This is the land GLE's facility would sit on and adjacent to. No agency — not the NRC, EPA, DOE, or the Commonwealth of Kentucky — is currently required to assess how construction activity on adjacent property could affect that ongoing cleanup: groundwater pump-and-treat systems, dewatering operations, soil disturbance, or seismic vibration near contaminated areas. We don't know the answer. As far as we can tell, no one does.
  

Every one of these statements is documented and sourced. If any of them is inaccurate, we will correct it publicly, immediately, and prominently — that's how this is supposed to work.

But if none of them are inaccurate, then what was called "misinformation" Thursday night were simply facts that some officials found uncomfortable to hear in a room they expected to be a celebration.

Residents deserve to know which it is.

We're not asking anyone to take our word for it. We're asking officials to point to the specific claim, explain what's wrong with it, and show their sources — the same standard we hold ourselves to.

And while we're asking questions: how many of these jobs are actually ours?

Thursday night, residents heard big numbers — 380 direct jobs, 460 indirect jobs, salaries over $100,000. That sounds wonderful. So let's get specific.

How many of those jobs are contractually guaranteed to go to McCracken County residents? Is there a local-hire requirement written into any agreement with GLE or General Matter — or is "240 jobs over 15 years" simply a projection these companies hope to reach, with no enforceable mechanism if they don't?

What happens if the positions requiring specialized nuclear expertise are filled by people relocating from outside the region — which is common in this industry — while local residents are left with construction and support roles?

If these jobs are a cornerstone of the economic case for a $71.9 million county commitment, residents deserve to see the actual hiring commitments in writing. Not a projection. A number, in a contract, with consequences if it isn't met.

Is that too much to ask?