INSIDE LOOK: Brunswick Nuclear Plant Endangered Species Program

BRUNSWICK COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — After implementing big improvements four years ago, we got and inside look at Brunswick Nuclear Plant’s Endangered Species Program.

From turtle nests along the beach, to turtle releases, and the turtle hospital, sea turtles are a popular subject in the Cape Fear.

What do sea turtles and the Brunswick Nuclear Plant have in common?

“We care about sea turtles too,” Site Vice President Randy Gideon said.

While producing increasingly clean energy, the Brunswick Nuclear Plant operation also includes the responsibility of managing 1,200 acres of land and wetlands.

Site Vice President Randy Gideon said the Endangered Species Program is a big part of that.

“To keep sea turtles out of our intake canal,” Gideon said.

What happens if a turtle does find its way in?

“We have a requirement to tell the state and they assess,” Gideon said. “We have sea turtle experts on site.”

Gideon said in some cases, it becomes a turtle rescue.

“In this particular case, we found one,” Gideon said. “It looked healthy to us, but when the state folks got a chance to look at it, they said it likely needed to be rehabilitated to have the highest chance of survival and again it had been attacked by a shark outside of our intake.”

Gideon said the turtle was taken to the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Hospital in Surf City.

Lead Scientist Tom Thompson said their environmental program is the longest running, most in depth in the country.”

“The only other area that maybe surpasses this work is some of the work that’s done on the Hudson River,” Thompson said.

Thompson said along with dive teams and more monitoring, duke energy added more screens to the diversion structure at the mouth of the Cape Fear River to keep smaller fish out of the canal.

“So we save more than just sea turtles,” Thompson said.

It is all a part of a mission to protect the environment and produce clean energy.