Analysis of the impact of water use and consumption for a nuclear power plant on alterations in the hydrological and temperature regimes of a river: A case study

Abstract

Hydrological indicators are important in shaping the ecological status and economic potential of surface water bodies. Industrial facilities that consume water can change the hydrological and temperature regimes of water bodies. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of water use and consumption for the Rivne Nuclear Power Plant (RNPP) on alterations of indicators of the hydrological and temperature regimes of the Styr River. The study revealed patterns of changes and analyzed the hydrological indicators of the Styr River under water use and consumption by the RNPP, and the temperature regime of the Styr River in the RNPP impact zone, revealed patterns of dynamics of water use and consumption for the RNPP, determined the correlation between the Styr River discharge and the RNPP water discharge in the hydrological regime of the Styr River. The range of variability approach was used to assess of the Styr River hydrological alteration in the RNPP impact zone. During the warm seasons of 2019 and 2020, the Styr River experienced periods of low water flow. A strong positive correlation (r = 0.7 – 0.9, R 2 = 0.7623, p <0.0001) was found between water use and consumption at RNPP and the temperature of Styr River water. Additionally, a very strong positive correlation (r = 0.9934, R 2 = 0.9869) was found between the temperature of Styr River water before and after discharge. Furthermore, it is observed that during the warm season, there is an increase in water consumption and discharge costs for RNPP. Thus, the results of the study indicate that there is no impact of RNPP water discharge, and therefore no measures to improve the condition of the Styr River are required.