Earth Equity News

New York Nuclear Plant's Use of River Water Prompts $1.1 Billion Debate with State. By Matthew L. Wald, NYTimes, August 23, 2010. "Just beneath the wind-stippled surface of the Hudson River, huge pipes suck enough water into the Indian Point nuclear plant every second to fill three Olympic swimming pools. And each second they take in dozens of organisms that are at the center of a $1.1 billion debate. Yes, says New York State, which puts the annual death toll at nearly a billion organisms and is withholding a water permit that the plant would need to extend its initial 40-year operating license. No, says Entergy, the plant owner, which argues that more fish could be saved by installing a different water-intake system. It warns that, if built, the cooling towers would pump tons of pollution into the air of New York's northern suburbs -- and that Westchester County already fails to meet national air quality standards for particulates. Environmental groups like Riverkeeper are arguing for both a shutdown and the construction of cooling towers, which would eliminate the need for Indian Point to take in a huge volume of water from the Hudson to condense steam from the power generation process back into water."