Nuclear Energy

Tulsunde (population 800), Janshipathar (population 500) apart from a few smaller villages lie
within a 5 km radius from the Jaitapur nuclear plant; some of these villages are less than a kilometer
from the proposed plant; and many more villages are located within a 16-km radius around the
plant. dlxxi
Both these areas are unique in their ecology. Kudankulam lies at the edge of the Gulf of
Mannar, one of the world’s richest marine biodiversity areas, with 3,600 species of flora and fauna,
377 of them endemic. dlxxii Likewise, the Madban area (where the Jaitapur nuclear plant is located)
lies in the Western Ghats, which is among the world's ten top “Biodiversity Hotspots” with over
5000 species of flowering plants, 139 mammal species, 508 bird species and 179 amphibian
species. More than 325 globally threatened species are found in this region, which also has one of
dlxxiii The ecology of both the regions is
the world's highest concentrations of wild relatives of cultivated plants.
so precious, that only a diabolically destructive mind can make plans to wreck it by building a nuclear plant there.
The cooling systems of these plants will be sucking in and discharging millions of litres of
seawater every minute. (The Jaitapur plant will discharge 6 billion litres of seawater a day, dlxxiv 4
million litres every minute.) Billions of fish, fish larvae, spawn, and a tremendous volume of other
marine animals will be sucked in and killed by these cooling systems (discussed in detail in Part IV,
Chapter 3). This high rate of destruction of fish and fish spawn is going to far exceed the
regeneration rate, leading to depletion of fish stocks along both these coastal areas.
Additionally, water discharged into the ocean by the cooling system will be carrying a
terrific amount of heat – and this will dramatically alter the marine environment (we have discussed
this issue too in detail in Part IV, Chapter 3). Needless to say, the biodiversity of both these areas is
going to be badly affected.
According to the MoEF, the temperature of the discharged water should not be more than 7
°C; for Jaitapur, it has imposed the condition that it should not exceed 5 °C. dlxxv Obviously, this
condition is going to be 'more honoured in the breach'. For, temperature increases of the coastal
waters at India's coastal nuclear reactors already violate these norms: 7.7°C (Tarapur 1&2), 8.4°C
(MAPS 1&2 at Kalpakkam), and 9.5°C (for Tarapur 3&4). dlxxvi The plants being built at
Kudankulam and Jaitapur are many times bigger than these plants – and therefore, the temperature
of the water discharged by these plants is going to lead to an increase in sea temperature of at least
10°C, if not more, irrespective of the assertions being made by Srikumar Banerjee (present
Chairperson, AEC) and other spokespersons of the nuclear industry!
This is going to drive away many indigenous fish species. Both these are very rich fishing
areas. The annual fish catch of Ratnagiri district is around 1.25 lakh tons, of which as much as 60-
70 thousand tons is exported. dlxxvii The three coastal districts of south Tamil Nadu – Tirunelveli,
Tuticorin and Kanyakumari – account for 70 percent of the state’s fish catch, and generate over Rs
2,000 crore in annual exports. dlxxviii All this is going to be badly affected, destroying the livelihood
of tens of thousands of local fisherfolk.
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