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State cool to Entergy plan to warm river
By SUSAN SMALLHEER Entergy Nuclear has done an
inadequate job of evaluating the effects of warmer water on both Atlantic salmon
smolts and migrating American shad in the The letter largely agrees
with concerns raised by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in April, which also
faulted Entergy for not providing adequate information that the salmon and shad
will be protected. Entergy Nuclear wants to
increase the temperature of the water it discharges into the Entergy’s proposal would
allow the temperature in the river to be between two and five degrees higher
than surrounding levels downstream. The change is requested for
times when the river is between 55 degrees up to 78 degrees. Carol Carpenter, an
environmental analyst with the Department of Environmental Conservation, said
the state’s comments were based on comments from state fisheries biologists
from “We want to make sure
there’s no adverse effect on the fish. The warm water discharge permit is
completely separate from Entergy’s plans to increase power production at the
plant by 20 percent, which still needs state and federal approval.” In a letter to Entergy
Nuclear dated last Friday, the state said that additional studies and work were
needed to answer the state’s questions. “The downstream migration
of salmon smolts has not been adequately addressed. A more comprehensive and
detailed assessment is warranted,” wrote Brian D. Kooiker, chief of the
discharge permits section in the Department of Environmental Conservation. Likewise, the state has
raised questions about the warmer temperature and the effect it might have on
the migration of shad. “The fisheries biologists
are concerned that shad may be avoiding the area at the bottom of the fish
ladder due to temperature differentials between the fish ladder discharge and
the surrounding areas,” Kooiker said. The state relied on a
86-page draft report prepared by Versar Inc., an environmental consulting firm
in And according to two
research scientists with the United States Geologic Survey in The scientists, Stephen
McCormick and Alex Haro, recommended that temperatures in the river not be
allowed to rise over 80 degrees until after July 10, to protect the spawning
shad. The state’s letter echoes
many of the concerns raised by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “Entergy Nuclear’s
proposal has the potential to impact certain life stages of Atlantic salmon and
American shad,” wrote Janice N. Rowan, the “The documentation
provided to date by Entergy Nuclear in support of their request does not
adequately demonstrate that their proposal will assure the protection of salmon
and shad when ambient water temperatures are above 68 degrees,” she added. Rowan said Monday that if
shad, in particular, “hit a thermal wall” they won’t go farther up the
river. Brian Cosgrove, spokesman
for Entergy Nuclear, said the company was committed to pursuing the increase in
discharge water. “We’re having
conversations with the folks at ANR (the Agency of Natural Resources), and
we’re working with them,” he said. Cosgrove said that he had no
estimate on how much money would be saved by not using the cooling towers, even
for only a degree or two. “We want to put more power
on the grid,” he said. “You look for efficiencies wherever you can.” Cosgrove said that the power
production increase was separate from the discharge permit. “The (power)
uprate will go forward with or without this,” he said. Carpenter said when and if
Entergy Nuclear satisfies the state’s concerns, a draft permit would be
written and a public hearing would be held. Contact Susan Smallheer at
susan.smallheer@rutlandherald.com. |