No more fish stories at Indian Point

Green groups must scale back baiting the public because the fact don’t support their claims

(NucNet) There are “no significant differences” between radioactive strontium 90 (Sr-90) levels in fish caught near the Indian Point nuclear power plant compared to fish caught further upstream in the Hudson River, a new report shows.

The 31-page report from New York state’s Department of Environmental Conservation agrees with a previous determination by state health officials that there is no public health concern, relative to Sr-90, connected to eating fish caught in the Hudson River.

It concludes that the levels of radionuclides – including Sr-90 – were “two to five orders of magnitude lower” than criteria established for the protection of freshwater ecosystems.

The report also concludes there were no differences in concentrations of Sr-90 and naturally occurring radium 224 in resident fish from the three locations sampled in the lower Hudson River. The locations were near Indian Point, Roseton (about 24 miles upstream) and Catskill (about 75 miles upstream).

The DEC analyzed fish flesh and bones caught in June 2007 near the nuclear plant and from the two areas further upstream.

Environmental groups produced a public uproar four years ago, when a leak was discovered from a spent fuel pool and used the news since then to attack the plants effort to renew its NRC license.

Oh, you mean those fish?

A spokesman for the self-appointed ‘watchdog group’ Riverkeeper told area news media they were reserving comment until they finished studying the new report.

"Riverkeeper is reviewing the DEC's report and will respond once we have fully analyzed its conclusions," said Phillip Musegaas, an attorney and Hudson River program director for the environmental organization.

"Regardless of the report's findings, however, Riverkeeper will continue to pursue all avenues to force Entergy and the NRC to address the risk of future leaks from the spent-fuel pools and buried pipes at the plant that could add to the contamination already on-site and leaching into the Hudson."

NRC not surprised

However, the feds had a different point of view, one which matters significantly to the future of the nuclear power station.

Neil Sheehan, a spokesman for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, told a regional newspaper the state's results were consistent with "previous data gathered on potential environmental impacts from the groundwater contamination at Indian Point."

He added the agency's review of the Indian Point license renewal application is still in motion, and that data reviewed confirm the reactor complies with federal radiation protection standards in its operations.

Entergy spokesman Jerry Nappi said the state's results verified what the company has maintained for years — that its nuclear reactors are operating safely.

"The DEC results were not unexpected, but very helpful in reassuring the public about the safety and environmental impact of Indian Point."

In 2005, Indian Point’s owner Entergy discovered a spent fuel pool water leak to groundwater while installing a new crane to facilitate transfer of unit 2 spent fuel to dry cask storage. This leak was determined to have generated a groundwater plume of tritium (H-3). During efforts to track the H+3 plume, Sr-90 was discovered in a portion of the plume and traced H+back to a leak in the unit 1 spent fuel pool.

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