Cuomo Administration Denies Critical Certification at Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant via EcoWatch

Citing numerous environmental and public safety concerns, the New York Department of State (DOS) has filed an objection to Entergy’s request for a Coastal Consistency Determination for the Indian Point nuclear plant. This objection has the potential to block Entergy’s request for a 20-year extension of its operating license for the plant’s Unit 2 and Unit 3 reactors and require the closure of Indian Point as soon as next year.

In its objection, Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration has highlighted many concerns over Indian Point, including:

• The plant’s massive intake of 2.5 billion gallons of water of day for cooling, which heats the nearby river, killing aquatic life.

• A dubious history of operational accidents including transformer explosions and other component malfunctions.

• The nuclear power plant’s location near two active seismic faults.

• Risks of catastrophic events due to flooding and sea-level rise.

• Indian Point’s location near the nation’s most heavily populated area and its proximity to critical ecological resources and drinking water.

• Electromagnetic interference with transmission lines and pipelines.

• Violations of state water quality standards posed by the continued operation of the plant.

• Risks regarding the storage of on-site nuclear waste in overly dense spent fuel pools; and

• Radiological leaks from spent fuel pools and other components, which have already resulted in large plumes of groundwater contamination under the site that leach into the Hudson River.