Power plant's release of cold water kills fish
1,200 fish died in the Brunner Island incident
Gary Haber
ghaber@ydr.com
About 1,200 fish near Talen Energy's Brunner Island power plant in York Haven died early Saturday when the plant shut down unexpectedly, sending colder-than-usual water into the Susquehanna River.
Workers at the plant were in the process of cutting back on the plant's electricity output around 2 a.m. when the facility shut down automatically, said Todd Martin, a spokesman for Allentown-based Talen Energy.
That caused a 13-degree drop in the temperature of the water sent into the plant's discharge canal. The temperature of the water canal dropped to 32 degrees, down from 45 degrees, in the span of one hour, Martin said Tuesday.
"That is what shocked the fish and created the impact," he said.
The company immediately notified the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission, Martin said. Talen is reviewing the cause of the plant shutdown.
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Michael Helfrich, the Lower Susquehanna riverkeeper, said several varieties of fish died, including carp, small mouth bass and catfish.
"It's certainly not something you want to see," said Helfrich, who is also a member of the York City Council. "While it's relatively small on the scale of bad things, it's still a bad thing."
John Repetz, a DEP spokesman, said the agency will send Talen a notice of violation asking the company to explain the reason for the water release.
The agency will review the company's explanation before deciding whether to impose a fine, or take any other action against the company. The facts of the event would determine the amount of any fine, Repetz said.
"All of these are done on a case-by-case basis," he said.
DEP sent an investigator to the plant on Saturday morning after Talen Energy reported the event, Repetz said.
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