NYS Rules Indian Point Violates Clean Water Act

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Early Bird

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http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/04/nyregion/04indian.html The ruling concerned the cooling system at Indian Point Units 2 and 3, which were commissioned in the early 1970s. Both take in enormous volumes of river water - a combined 2.5 billion gallons a day, or more than twice the average daily water consumption of all of New York City - and use it to create steam for turbines and to cool the reactors. The water is then pumped back into the Hudson, 20 or 30 degrees hotter.

Sucking so much water causes plankton, eggs and larvae to be drawn into the plant's machinery, or entrained, and the water pressure also causes fish to be trapped, or impinged, against intake screens, the state said.

http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100404/NEWS/4040341

"That power is replaceable," said Alex Matthiessen, president of environmental group Riverkeeper. "The evidence for why the plant doesn't meet state water-quality standards is overwhelming," he said, adding Indian Point accounts for the deaths of about a billion fish a year.

"Given that Entergy is seeking an additional 20-year license...and the previous history of unauthorized 'take' of...sturgeon, it is reasonable to conclude the Indian Point facilities continue to cause mortality to the sturgeon in the Hudson River," staff wrote. "The taking...is unlawful. The Department has determined that (the reactors) are not in compliance."

http://www.lohud.com/article/201004...dian-Point-operations-harming-endangered-fish
 
"That power is replaceable," said Alex Matthiessen, president of environmental group Riverkeeper.

With what??? Plants run on imported oil? Plants run on "dirty coal"?

He'll be the first to complain when he has no electricity or his bills skyrocket!
 
Great, another "riverkeeper". What a bunch of wack-jobs those people are. What are their credentials? Perhaps years and years of tree-hugging experience? Perhaps he can try and have the area declared an NDZ. I'm sure that will fix the problem.

(note: sarcasm is very much intended in this post!)
 
The ruling on Friday is from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Based on what I'm reading here, Indian Point needs a Water Quality Certificate from NYS to get relicensed, and after review NYS DEC denied it.

I haven't waded through it, but there is ton of material at

http://www.dec.ny.gov/permits/40237.html

According the the NYT story, fixing the problem would require building two "stadium-sized" cooling towers, which would be pretty ugly and expensive.

I haven't seen anything that mentions if the higher water temperatures hurt stripers, but they do apparently hurt shad and sturgeon, according to the reports.
 
quote:
Originally posted by Early Bird

The water is then pumped back into the Hudson, 20 or 30 degrees hotter.

Click to expand...


So what's wrong with catching your fish already cooked?

Not sure I see the downside here.
 
That's why the water at Croton was always so warm. I've always attributed it to the amount of alcohol being consumed and then released back into the river.
 
I just saw this:

Entergy, which owns the Indian Point plants, is trying to unload it, along with 3 other nukes, including the controversial Vermont Yankee. They would create a new public company, called Enexus, load it up with $3 billion in debt, suck the $3 billion in cash back to Entergy, and spin Enexus out into a new public company with 4 nukes, no cash, and a huge mortgage.

New York State on 3/26 denied the whole plan since it doesn't think Enexus is financially viable.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/20...rgy-s-spinoff-of-nuclear-plants-update3-.html
 
Maybe Gadis Knight will rededicate her song, The Night the Lights went out in the MHV.
 
New developments, in case anyone is interested:

The Journal News ran an editorial today on Indian Point. "Those who assumed the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's relicensing of Indian Point was a fait accompli have, it is now clear, not fully appreciated the seriousness of New York state's environmental concerns." The editorial seems to be anti-relicensing, but doesn't take a strong stand.

http://www.lohud.com/article/201004...15/OPINION01/Troubled-waters-for-Indian-Point

Plus, Entergy, the owner of Indian Point, yesterday canceled plan to spin it off a public company overloaded with debt, following pressure from NYS. Probably a good thing. They need to deal with the plant, one way or or another, and not run away as they were trying to do.

Here's the AP story on Entergy.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iZEE6iYlnZm94c2GRRHayGSsoQuAD9ET59FO2
 
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