Indian Point Suggests 'Best Option' for Disposal of 1M Gallons of Radioactive Water Is Dumping It All Into the Hudson

by M.C. Millman

Indian Point nuclear facility's owner, Holtec International, divulged at a meeting on February 2 that it still plans to move ahead with dumping one million gallons of radioactive water into the Hudson River as early as August. 

Holtec International described the move during the Indian Point Decommissioning Oversight Board meeting as the "best option" for disposing of the wastewater instead of allowing the contaminated water to naturally — and safely — remain in storage onsite where it would decay over time into non-harmful helium. 

Even though the facility was closed two years ago, Holtec is allowed to discharge waste without federal, state, or local approval at the same rate as the facility did when operating. Discharging into waterways is standard for nuclear plants as virtually all nuclear plants in the U.S. discharge water containing low levels of radioactivity to the waterway on which they are located. This is despite the concern that doing so locally could negatively impact 100,000 people who rely on the water as a backup source and the seven surrounding municipalities whose main source of drinking water is the Hudson. In particular, concerns about the cancerous properties of the waste that could impact residents and children continue to be expressed.

Holtec agreed to give the community at least a month's advance notice before discharging the radioactive waste into the Hudson River. 

The next meeting of the Indian Point Decommissioning Oversight Board is April 27 at 6 p.m. at Cortlandt Town Hall. Participants may also choose to attend virtually.

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