Was anyone told of 2011 uranium leak? Senator says he was left in dark, wants cleanup

State Sen. Darrell Jackson demanded Friday that Westinghouse clean up a seven-year-old uranium leak at its nuclear fuel factory that threatens to contaminate creeks, groundwater and ponds near the Bluff Road plant.

Jackson, D-Richland, said he has received multiple phone calls from Lower Richland residents asking why they were not told about the 2011 radioactive leak by Westinghouse or state officials.

Westinghouse doesn’t plan to clean up the leaked uranium for at least 40 years if it gets a new federal nuclear operating license, according to government documents reviewed by The State newspaper. The cleanup might be costly because the contamination lies beneath a major building at the nuclear fuel-rod plant, The State reported Friday.

“It should be cleaned up regardless,’’ Jackson said. “We are now talking about the safety of residents. I know it may be inconvenient, and it may be expensive. But they owe it to the citizens in that area.’’

Jackson’s demands for a cleanup came as more details about the 2011 leak emerged Friday.

A spokeswoman for the state’s environmental protection agency said it did not know about the 2011 leak until earlier this year, even though the agency was supposed to be notified by Westinghouse of unauthorized discharges to state waters. So far, federal records show the leak sent uranium into the soil below the plant, but it is not known if the radioactive material has reached groundwater. A June federal study said uranium in the soil will likely pollute groundwater.

Key unanswered questions include whether the leak was reported to any agency, and what responsibility Westinghouse and government agencies would have had to tell the public.

Jackson said he is upset that Westinghouse, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission didn’t say anything about the 2011 uranium leak during a public meeting Monday in Lower Richland.

That meeting drew an overflow crowd to discuss another leak from the Westinghouse plant this summer, in which uranium drained through a hole in the plant’s floor.

“I am very disappointed that they didn’t share that,’’ Jackson said of Westinghouse and government regulators. “Even if they didn’t want to share it in the public meeting, they had an opportunity to share it with me and (County) Councilwoman (Dalhi) Myers.’’

Jackson and Myers organized the meeting earlier this week.

Myers agreed Westinghouse needs to be more forthcoming and address the 2011 contamination. She and Jackson also questioned whether a historic 2015 flood sent contamination from Westinghouse into areas near the plant.

The Westinghouse plant is located in a rural area of modest homes and exclusive hunt clubs between Columbia and Congaree National Park. Many people in the area rely on wells for drinking water. The fuel plant opened in 1969 and employs about 1,000.

So far, DHEC says the uranium poses little threat to the public. Much of the groundwater flow from the plant is away from areas that include private drinking water wells, the agency said earlier this week. Uranium is a toxic material that can cause kidney damage in people who are exposed to large amounts. Some types of uranium are more radioactive than others.

DHEC spokeswoman Cristi Moore said Friday the state agency didn’t learn about the 2011 leak until January, when the Nuclear Regulatory Commission told DHEC. She declined to say if Westinghouse faces fines from DHEC over the spill. DHEC’s rules require the agency be notified when “there is an unauthorized discharge’’ into state waters, such as groundwater, Moore said.

She said a June 2018 environmental study by the NRC is under review at DHEC. The June environmental report said pollution from the 2011 leak threatens to spread from the soil to the area’s groundwater, ponds and creeks.

“We are currently reviewing the NRC report and their latest findings to evaluate potential impacts to the state’s ongoing groundwater monitoring efforts related to the Westinghouse facility,’’ Moore said in an email. So far, the agency has no indication the 2011 leak contaminated groundwater, she said.

Westinghouse has declined comment about the 2011 leak.

NRC officials said this week that soil contamination from the 2011 spill is primarily DHEC’s responsibility. A June environmental assessment by the commission said the leak “was not addressed” in two major consulting reports about contamination on the property.

In 2011, uranium leaked from a pipe buried beneath a building at the Westinghouse site. The leak, unknown to many Lower Richland residents, sent pollution levels soaring. Jackson, who represents the area, said he knew nothing about the leak until it was reported in The State newspaper.

In seeking a new 40-year license to continue running the plant, Westinghouse said it won’t clean up the 2011 pollution until it shutters the facility.

Westinghouse officials have said they want a better relationship with neighbors near the plant, but acknowledged they have failed to communicate with those residents. That was evident at Monday’s raucous meeting, in which many plant neighbors said they had been kept in the dark about happenings at the Westinghouse facility.

The uranium leaks are part of a larger concern about groundwater at the site. Pollution in the water dates back nearly 40 years. The site also has had safety mishaps during the past 20 years that have raised questions.

Two years ago, the company had to shut down part of the plant after a uranium buildup threatened to cause a small explosion in an air pollution control device. In 2017, a worker was sprayed with a toxic substance. This year, the NRC cited the company for failing to ensure proper procedures were in place to limit radiation bursts from occurring, The State previously reported.

This story was originally published August 17, 2018 at 3:41 PM.