Weeks after an Ohio train derailment leaked gallons upon gallons of hazardous materials into local grounwater and prompted officials to burn off chemicals in a toxic plume, Minnesota authorities shared for the first time that a nuclear powerplant located in the central part of the midwest state leaked 400,000 gallons of radioactive water into the surrounding area.
Xcel Energy operates a nuclear powerplant in Monticello, Minnesota and suffered the leak back in November. It claims to have reported the incident to state and federal authorities. Howerver, the public was not made aware in the slightest until a press release from the energy company circulated on March 16th – four months after the catastrophic accident.
“While Xcel reported the leak of water containing tritium to state and federal authorities in late November, the spill had not been made public before Thursday. State officials said they waited to get more information before going public with it,” AP News reported.
In their March statement, Xcel reassured a concerned public that the leak “poses no health and safety risk” despite the fact that the leak could easily have entered the nearby Mississippi River and contaminated groundwater. Much of the community relies on wells to provide drinking water.
“Xcel Energy today reported on steps taken to contain and manage a water leak detected by routine groundwater monitoring systems at its Monticello Nuclear Generating Plant late last year. Xcel Energy took swift action to contain the leak to the plant site, which poses no health and safety risk to the local community or the environment,” the statement began.
In attempting to justify the belated public announcment, the company went on to say that pertinent parties were immediately made aware of what happened.
“Xcel Energy notified the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) as well as the state on Nov. 22, 2022, the day the leak was confirmed. The company has since coordinated regularly with state and federal regulators, as well as local officials. The company has been pumping, storing, treating and reusing the leaked water, which contains levels of tritium that are below the NRC safety thresholds,” the statement continued.
"*" indicates required fields
Xcel then explained what exactly comprosed the radioactive byproduct, citing the presence of a compound called tritium. “Tritium is a compound that is naturally present in the environment and is commonly created in the operation of nuclear power plants. It emits low levels of radiation, similar to everyday materials people use and the food we all eat,” the company said.
Xcel continued: “Ongoing monitoring from over two dozen on-site monitoring wells confirms that the leaked water is fully contained on-site and has not been detected beyond the facility or in any local drinking water. State agencies continue to monitor Xcel Energy’s remediation work to ensure the continued safety of the local community and surrounding environment.”
“We have taken comprehensive measures to address this situation on-site at the plant. While this leak does not pose a risk to the public or the environment, we take this very seriously and are working to safely address the situation,” said Chris Clark, president of Xcel Energy–Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. “We continue to gather and treat all potentially affected water while regularly monitoring nearby groundwater sources. We will continue to partner with local groundwater specialists, and we remain in close cooperation with the MPCA, along with other state and federal regulators and our local community throughout the remediation effort.”
According to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commision, “tritium is a relatively weak source of beta radiation, which itself is too weak to penetrate the skin.”
“However,” the site continues, “it can increase the risk of cancer if consumed in extremely large quantities. Tritium can enter the body through inhalation, ingestion or absorption through the skin.”
It remains to be seen how this accident poses long-term risks for residents in the area.