Technology and Operation - Kernkraftwerk Gösgen

Environmental aspects
The KKG and its surrounding area.
Impact of cooling tower
operation
The cooling tower, with a height of 150 m, is
a conspicuous feature of the landscape between
Olten and Aarau and can be seen from
a long way off. Before granting the construction
licence, the Swiss Federal Office of Meteorology
and Climatology (MeteoSwiss) investigated
the potential impact of cooling
tower operation on the environment. The
comprehensive investigations were completed
in 1984 and revealed no appreciable
adverse effects on the environment.
The investigations provided no evidence of
significant variations in precipitation in the
area around the cooling tower, and there was
no proof of any increase in the formation of
fog or black ice. A change of less than 0.2°C in
the average annual temperature above
ground level was determined, together with
an increase of at most 3 % in the annual humidity;
these slight fluctuations are within the
measuring accuracy of such a survey. Between
1980 and 1984, further comprehensive
investigations were carried out in order to
monitor the movements of the shadow cast
by the steam plume emerging from the cooling
tower. MeteoSwiss evaluated more than
2.5 million photos of the shadow movements
to this end. Between 1976 and 1983, sunshine
recorders were operated at eight locations in
the surrounding area. The measurements revealed
that the reduction in sunshine duration
varies as a function of the weather and is essentially
confined to a small area to the north
of the cooling tower. Where there is any reduction
in the duration of sunshine at all, this
is considerably less than one hour per day.
The steam plume, which consists of pure water
vapour is generally less than 200 m high
in summer, but can rise to more than 800 m,
depending on the humidity. In the vicinity of
the KKG, there are no areas subject to the
shadow for a length of time which would lead
to compensation entitlements. The cooling
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