Protect Biscayne from Nuclear Expansion

Turkey Point Power Plant is located directly along the shores of Biscayne National Park, one of America’s largest marine national parks. Its current operations already threaten the health of our treasured national parks.

Park

Biscayne National Park

Located just a few miles from the city of Miami, Biscayne is the largest marine park in the National Park System and preserves the diverse marine environment where the Atlantic…

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Turkey Point is located near Everglades and Biscayne National Parks. These areas not only protect important and fragile ecosystems, but are critical to the local economy, supporting recreational opportunities, tourism, and providing ecological services. According to the standards of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the agency responsible for overseeing the expansion, “sites adjacent to lands devoted to public use may be considered unsuitable,” and unacceptable impacts are “most apt to arise in areas adjacent to natural-resource-oriented areas.” According to the NRC’s own standards, Turkey Point should not be expanded because of its possible impacts to the ecological health and economic viability of surrounding protected areas.

The two new units could harm the quantity and quality of our limited freshwater resources, which are critical to ensuring the future of our environment and our communities. Proposed water use for the new units could increase salinity levels within Biscayne National Park and hasten saltwater intrusion. It could also threaten future Everglades restoration efforts, which are vital to restore degraded wetland ecosystems.

South Florida is extremely vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, including storm surge, sea level rise, and increased incidents of other types of flooding. Expanding a nuclear power plant in an area that is ground zero for sea level rise threatens our communities and the environment, especially if large amounts of spent nuclear fuel are stored on-site.