Current Events > Nuclear plant denied being able to dump waste into Cape Cod Bay

(+) Yeah! (+)

Is it actually radioactive water? Or just hard water from the cooling reservoir that poses no threat to the environment? With nuke plants it's kind of tough to tell how people might spin things.

How do they even justify asking?

The wastewater in question is the 1.1 million gallons used to cool spent nuclear fuel rods. The water is known to hold both radioactive and non-radioactive pollutants, though the exact quantities of radioactive isotopes are unclear.

Holtec maintains that discharging water into the bay would be safe, with radiation levels below limits set by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Ken Buesseler, a marine radiochemist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, said more data is needed to fully understand the risks.

Opponents of the dumping argue that even if an analysis finds that the discharge is safe, it could still lead to stigma and economic harm.

"What is the reputational harm to irradiating Cape Cod Bay? And how does that impact our aquaculture, our commercial fishermen, our hotel, motel and overnight-stay economy?" asked Andrew Gottlieb, the executive director of the Association to Preserve Cape Cod and a member of the NDCAP.

Is it actually radioactive water? Or just hard water from the cooling reservoir that poses no threat to the environment? With nuke plants it's kind of tough to tell how people might spin things.

slurp slurp

Is this like that Fukushima thing a few weeks ago where they wanted to dump water into the ocean and South Korea shat their pants even though it was literally of no significance as to ocean sea balance, or would this actually be bad?

People shit their pants about nuclear power all the time and I've no clue what Cape Cod Bay is

I know, nuke plants are big and scary and they keep you up at night. Go get your safety blanket and I'll tell you a bedtime story about all the times braindead activists went against nuke plants because they fundamentally misunderstand the level of danger they bring. Or, you can go read the article I linked where people seem as concerned about the "reputational harm" the plan would cause even if it isn't dangerous.