the release of tons of hot water into streams and ponds from U.S. government plutonium reactors near Aiken, S.C. Nuclear reactors have been changing the environment of the region since the early 1950s-for better and for worse.
Three of the plant's original five reactors are still operating, regularly releasing 158OF water into manmade reservoirs and nearnatural streams, tributaries of the Savannah River. Waters in one 166-acre pond often exceed 122'F when the reactors are running. Some creeks that...