Sea “luminous” green near nuclear power plant

The sea near a Scots nuclear power station is glowing lime-green, according to a set of satellite photographs.

A concerned local raised the alarm when they spotted a luminous green patch on the satellite photographs surrounding a nuclear power station on Google Earth.

And according to the images, there is an equally vivid area visible just inside the satellite boundary at Hunterston nuclear power station in Ayrshire.

But according to the energy company that generates electricity from the Hunterston B reactors, the spooky green waters can be explained.

A spokesperson for EDF energy said that bubbling water is causing the luminous green patch to appear on the satellite image.

According to the French energy company, the nuclear plant takes in large amounts of seawater to cool its reactors, and then discharges it back into the sea.

The greenish area at sea is where the warmed water bubbles up from the pipeline, and the greenish area on the site is a shaft through which the water surges.

A spokesperson for EDF said: “The Google shot taken offshore is where out cooling water exits a pipe and enters the sea, producing a bubbling effect.”

“The other photograph is of our surge shaft, which the cooling water passes through.”

Critics agreed that the green glow was probably not caused by radioactivity, but argued that nuclear power had other drawbacks.

Peter Roche, a nuclear consultant and former Government radiation advisor said: “No matter how green the glow from Hunterston it cannot make nuclear power as environmentally sound energy source.

“We still have nowhere to put the highly dangerous waste and there are continuous reports of health problems associated with radiation emissions even without any accidents like Fukushima, Chernobyl andThree Mile Island.”

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