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A radioactive wasp nest was found at a facility in South Carolina that was once used for the production of nuclear weapons parts. The discovery was made at the Savannah River Site (SRS) near Aiken, according to a recent report by the U.S. Department of Energy.
On July 3, employees tasked with checking radiation levels at the decommissioned nuclear weapons plant discovered a wasp nest that measured over 10 times what is allowed by federal regulations. The wasp’s nest was located near tanks where liquid nuclear waste is stored.
The U.S. Department of Energy is on the case
The U.S. Department of Energy report stated that the wasp nest was sprayed with insecticide and disposed of as radioactive waste. The report also claimed that there were no leaks from the nuclear waste tanks.
“The delay in reporting was to allow time for reviewing previous wildlife contamination for consistency in reporting criteria,” Department of Energy officials said. “No further action was required in the field. There is no impact from [the] event on other activities and operations.”
So how did the wasp’s nest get so contaminated?
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the nest was likely radioactive due to “onsite legacy radioactive contamination” from when the site was operational, and “not related to a loss of contamination control.” However, the agency also reported that “the ground and surrounded area did not have any contamination.”
The Savannah River Mission Completion (SRMC), which manages the site, also told the Aiken Standard that “no contamination was found in the area” and that “there were no impacts to workers, the environment, or the public.” SRMC added that if there were any radioactive wasps that got away, they “would have significantly lower levels of contamination.”
A watchdog group isn’t happy
Watchdog group Savannah River Site Watch took issue with the reports, calling it at best, incomplete, and at worst, a cover-up of where the contamination actually came from. Since 1992, the facility has been focused on environmental cleanup, nuclear materials management, and research and development.
“I’m as mad as a hornet that SRS didn’t explain where the radioactive waste came from or if there is some kind of leak from the waste tanks that the public should be aware of,” Tom Clements, the executive director of Savannah River Site Watch, told CBS News.
CBS News also reported that the site, which was opened in the early 1950s, was originally focused on the production of plutonium and tritium for use in the manufacture of nuclear weapons. During its operation, the site generated more than 165 million gallons of liquid nuclear waste. That number, according to the SRMC, has been lowered to about 34 million gallons. It was also reported that 43 of the 51 underground tanks at the site are still in use.
In 2019, hundreds of baby crocodiles were found not only living, but thriving in the the canals surrounding the Florida Power & Light (FPL) nuclear power plant in South Florida. In that case, however, people were actually happy about it.
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