markjacbs
06-24-2011, 10:13 AM
Adrian Covert —Somewhere around 75 percent of U.S. nuclear power plants have been found leaking the radioactive element Tritium into the ground to various extents. Corroded piping buried underground seems to be the main problem, and a problem that can affect groundwater if ignored.
According to the AP, the leaks have mostly been limited to areas inside power plant boundaries, and havent reached public water supplies yet, but samples show radioactive concentrations that are many times over what's considered a healthy level.
Tritium, which is a radioactive form of hydrogen, has leaked from at least 48 of 65 sites, according to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission records reviewed as part of the AP's yearlong examination of safety issues at aging nuclear power plants. Leaks from at least 37 of those facilities contained concentrations exceeding the federal drinking water standard - sometimes at hundreds of times the limit.
Tritium is considered less harmless than an X-ray, but exposure to the element is still considered a cancer risk nonetheless. The report says that safety standards at U.S. nuclear plants have been relaxed over the years to keep them operational, and now that these structures are starting to age, hazardous problems are going unnoticed.
http://gizmodo.com/5814212/nearly-50-us-nuclear-power-plants-are-leaking-tritium
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/21/radioactive-tritium-leaks-us-nuclear-plants_n_881090.html
According to the AP, the leaks have mostly been limited to areas inside power plant boundaries, and havent reached public water supplies yet, but samples show radioactive concentrations that are many times over what's considered a healthy level.
Tritium, which is a radioactive form of hydrogen, has leaked from at least 48 of 65 sites, according to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission records reviewed as part of the AP's yearlong examination of safety issues at aging nuclear power plants. Leaks from at least 37 of those facilities contained concentrations exceeding the federal drinking water standard - sometimes at hundreds of times the limit.
Tritium is considered less harmless than an X-ray, but exposure to the element is still considered a cancer risk nonetheless. The report says that safety standards at U.S. nuclear plants have been relaxed over the years to keep them operational, and now that these structures are starting to age, hazardous problems are going unnoticed.
http://gizmodo.com/5814212/nearly-50-us-nuclear-power-plants-are-leaking-tritium
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/21/radioactive-tritium-leaks-us-nuclear-plants_n_881090.html