Indian Point groundwater radiation levels prompt NRC inspection

New York Times : On Saturday, New York’s governor Andrew Cuomo announced that groundwater radiation levels at the Indian Point nuclear reactor site had experienced a significant rise in three of the site’s monitoring wells. Cuomo reported that one of the wells saw an increase of 65 000%. In response to the elevated levels, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is sending a radiation-protection specialist to the plant to inspect the facility. Entergy Corporation issued a statement that the increased radiation, which was caused by a leak of tritium-contaminated water, did not pose a health risk to the public, and a spokesman for the NRC confirmed that the danger is minimal. However, Cuomo said that he had instructed the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation and Department of Health to participate in the investigation because Indian Point is located in a heavily populated area and is just 45 miles from Manhattan.