Availability of water at the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant, which is continually decreasing, is “important for nuclear security,” according to the director of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
“The dwindling water levels in the cooling pond remains a potential source of concern, and we will continue to closely monitor and observe the situation at the site to ensure the availability of a sufficient supply of cooling water for the plant’s needs at all times,” International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi said Friday in a general statement on Ukraine.
Experts from IAEA noticed a decrease in the water level of the cooling pond, a potential water source for the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), in the past few weeks. The water level at the ZNPP can decrease due to hot summer weather, according to a general statement by the IAEA.
The ZNPP dug 11 groundwater wells to provide cooling water to sprinkler ponds after the destruction of the Kakhovka dam, which originally supplied water to the plant’s sprinkler ponds. As of now, IAEA said the sprinkler ponds, which currently supply water to cool the plant’s reactor units, are functioning well with water at normal levels, but the cooling pond would need to be available for backup if those sprinkling pond levels dwindle.
The IAEA team also “continues to hear” military activity around the plant, and saw smoke in the distance in the past week, according to the statement. The agency additionally reported air raid alarms at the Khmelnytskyi, Rivne and South Ukraine nuclear power plants, as well as the Chernobyl site, but assured in the statement that “nuclear safety and security is being maintained despite the effects of the ongoing conflict.”