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U.S. Department of Energy
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Impingement and entrainment of fishes at the Savannah River Plant: an NPDES 316b demonstration

Technical Report ·
DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/5115856· OSTI ID:5115856

Environmental impacts of the Savannah River Plant's withdrawal of Savannah River water include impingement of juvenile and adult fish on trash removal screens, and entrainment of planktonic fish eggs and larval fish into the pumping system. The Savannah River Plant (SRP) has the capacity to pump 3.6 million cubic meters of water per day--25% of the minimal river discharge--for cooling and other purposes. Present removal is 7% of the actual river discharge. In the river and intake canals reside sixty-nine species of fishes. The species composition of the resident fish community of the intake canals is similar to the species composition in the river, but different in relative species abundance. The dominant sunfishes tend to reside in the canals for long periods and seldom go from canal to canal. The fish impingement rate at the plant ranks very low in comparison with electric power plants on inland waters. Thirty-five species of fishes were impinged during 1977. The average impingement rate of 7.3 fish per day extrapolates to 2,680 fish per year. No single species comprised more than 10% of the sample. The most commonly impinged species were bluespotted sunfish, warmouth, channel catfish, and yellow perch. The relative abundance of those species impinged deviates from their relative abundance in the canal fish population.

Research Organization:
Du Pont de Nemours (E.I.) and Co., Aiken, S.C. (USA). Savannah River Lab.
DOE Contract Number:
EY-76-C-09-0001
OSTI ID:
5115856
Report Number(s):
DP-1494
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English