Indian Point Nuclear Facility Units 2 And 3 - SPDES Permit
Inclusion of reference to the January 9, 2017 Agreement for the Shutdown of Units 2 and 3 in NYSDEC's modified SPDES Permit and Water Quality Certificate
Facility Background
The Indian Point Nuclear Facility is located in the Village of Buchanan, Westchester County. The Stations are equipped with separate cooling water systems that withdraw water from the Hudson River and discharge that water back to the river through a shared discharge canal. Up to 2.5 billion gallons of water per day are withdrawn from the Hudson River through three intake structures along the shoreline.
Department staff issued a SPDES permit for the Stations in 1987. In April 1992, Consolidated Edison and the New York Power Authority filed a timely SPDES renewal application with the Department. As a result, the Stations have continued to operate pursuant to section 401(2) of the State Administrative Procedure Act.
SEQR and Permit History
In December 1999, the owners and operators of three steam electric generating facilities (Bowline 1 & 2, Roseton, and Indian Point) along the Hudson River submitted, pursuant to the requirements of the State Environmental Quality Review Act ("SEQRA"), a draft environmental impact statement ("DEIS") with respect to the renewal of SPDES permits for the three facilities. The final environmental impact statement was prepared by Department staff and adopted on June 25, 2003.
The Department has prepared a Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement to address the agreement for the shutdown of Indian Point Units 2 and 3.
Procedural Background
On November 12, 2003, pursuant to Part 621 (Uniform Procedures) the DEC commenced a Department Initiated Modification and renewal of the existing SPDES permit for Units 2 and 3 at the Indian Point Nuclear Station. At this time, the Department issued a Notice of Complete Application to solicit comments from the permittee and the public. The Department made available a draft SPDES permit and fact sheets for public review.
Based on the comments submitted, the Department made a determination to conduct an adjudicatory hearing. Department staff has been engaged in the adjudicatory hearing since that time. Further detail regarding the procedural history of the adjudicatory proceeding can be found at the website of the Department's Office of Hearings (see Entergy Nuclear).
Current Modification to SPDES Permit
The current renewal and modification of the SPDES permit includes a reference to a January 9, 2017 agreement between the Department, the permittee and others for both Units 2 and 3 to shut down by 2021. This Commitment represents the best technology available for cooling water intake structures taking into consideration the expected time frame to design, manufacture, and install alternative solutions (e.g. closed-cycle cooling, wedgewire screens). The permit also includes the addition of a condition related to the thermal discharge by allowing for a mixing a zone not to exceed 75 acres. Limits on the conventional industrial discharges are not significantly changed from the previous permit.
Water Quality Certificate
Indian Point Units 2 and 3 are currently the subject of a federal relicensing proceeding with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission ("NRC"). The federal Clean Water Act requires that, prior to any federal agency issuing a license or permit for a particular project, the State in which the project is located, must certify that the project meets State water quality standards. The NYSDEC has determined that the agreement for shutdown of the Units 2 and 3 and the effluent limitations included in the above referenced SPDES permit meets NYS water quality standards.
Related Documents
The following documents are those related to the current modification to the SPDES permit for Indian Point Nuclear Station units 2 & 3. Contact Chris Hogan if you have any questions related to these documents or if you are looking for another document related to Indian Point facility not provided below.
Indian Point SPDES Permit (PDF) (477 KB)
Indian Point SPDES Fact Sheet (PDF) (224 KB)
Indian Point Water Quality Certification (PDF) (83 KB)
Indian Point Supplemental Final Environmental Impact Statement (PDF) (304 KB)