Minnesota regulators knew four months ago that radioactive waste had leaked from a nuclear power plant in Monticello — but they didn’t announce anything about the leak until this week.
Xcel Energy is cleaning up a leak at the Monticello Nuclear Generating Plant after 400,000 gallons of water contaminated with radioactive tritium leaked from pipes at the plant.radioactive waste had leaked from a nuclear power plant in MonticelloThe delay in notifying the public about the November leak raised questions about public safety and transparency, but industry experts said Friday there was never a public health threat.
"We knew there was a presence of tritium in one monitoring well, however Xcel had not yet identified the source of the leak and its location," Minnesota Pollution Control Agency spokesperson Michael Rafferty said Thursday. "Now that we have all the information about where the leak occurred, how much was released into groundwater and that contaminated groundwater had moved beyond the original location, we are sharing this information.
If regulatory officials are sure it didn’t move off site, people shouldn’t have to worry about their safety, he said, adding that companies usually take action when onsite monitoring wells detect elevated levels of contaminants like tritium. Rafferty said the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency decided to share information about its role overseeing the cleanup now "because we have more details about the location and potential movement of the contamination, steps being taken to control the plume and plans for remediation including short-term storage of contaminated water."
The regulatory commission said tritium spills happen from time to time at nuclear plants, but they’ve either been limited to plant properties or involved such low offsite levels that they didn’t impact public health. Xcel Energy reported a small tritium leak at Monticello in 2009.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Regulators monitor tritium leak at Minnesota nuclear plantMinnesota regulators said Thursday they’re monitoring the cleanup of a leak of 400,000 gallons of radioactive water from Xcel Energy’s Monticello nuclear power plant, and the company said there’s no danger to the public.
Read more »
Minnesota regulators monitor 400,000-gallon radioactive water leak cleanupMinnesota regulators said that they are monitoring cleanup efforts by utility Xcel Energy following a leak of 400,000 gallons of radioactive water from its nuclear power plant.
Read more »
Regulators: Nuclear plant leak didn't require public noticeMinnesota regulators knew four months ago that radioactive waste had leaked from a nuclear power plant in Monticello — but they didn’t announce anything about the leak until this week
Read more »
400k gallons of radioactive water leaked from Minnesota nuclear plantMinnesota regulators revealed for the first time on Thursday that they have been monitoring the cleanup from Xcel Energy’s Monticello nuclear plant.
Read more »
Regulators: Nuclear plant leak didn't require public noticeMinnesota regulators knew four months ago that radioactive waste had leaked from a nuclear power plant in Monticello — but they didn't announce anything about the leak until this week.
Read more »
Monticello's Nuclear Power Plant leaked 400,000 gallons in fall 2022Monticello Nuclear Generating Plant in Minnesota leaked water that contained radioactive tritium last year.
Read more »