Nuclear Merchant Ship Environmental Impact Analysis Published

"Environmental Impact Analysis (EIA) of the Nuclear Merchant Ship Program — Addendum," a report released by the Maritime Administration, extends the 1975 "Environmental Impact Analysis" which MarAd published, to cover a containership, a bulk cargo vessel, and an icebreaking oil tanker, in addition to the ultra large crude carrier (ULCC) included in the earlier report.

The hypothetical ULCC on which the earlier EIA was based would most likely travel between offshore terminals in the Persian Gulf and terminals along the North Atlantic or Gulf Coasts of the United States. Other types of vessels, such as the containership or bulk cargo vessel, would operate in different environments.

These environments and the effect which nuclear merchant ships would have on them are discussed in the addendum. Ecological impacts of the other types of ships would be somewhat greater than those of the ULCC because of the greater abundance of aquatic organisms at the coastline. However, these impacts can be kept within guidelines established for land-based nuclear powerplants, the report concludes.

A nuclear-powered icebreaking oil tanker operating in the Arctic, the report states, would be expected expected to have significant adverse environmental impact only in the case of an oil spill and particularly during the relatively short period of rapid biological activity during the summer.

"Environmental Impact Analysis (EIA) of the Nuclear Merchant Ship Program — Addendum" may be purchased from the National Technical Information Service, 5285 Port Royal Road, Springfield, Va. 22161 for $6 per copy. The order number is PB 268814/AS.

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Maritime Reporter

First published in 1881 Maritime Reporter is the world's largest audited circulation publication serving the global maritime industry.