The Indian Point power plant (located in Buchanan, New York, in Westchester County) received a top score in 2008 from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission [1], which concluded that the facility "operated in a manner that preserved public health and safety and fully met all cornerstone objectives." 

Indian PointThe operators of the plant, Entergy Nuclear [2], addressed all NRC concerns in 2008, but the agency will still monitor spent fuel storage installation and on-site groundwater contamination on an ongoing basis. However, as the plant's new alert and notification system is up and running, the NRC will no longer conduct enhanced inspections and oversight. 

According to the Associated Press [3], an agency spokesman stated that "faulty sirens are mostly fixed, groundwater leaks are under control and safety procedures have been addressed."

Nonetheless, the plant has a history of groundwater leaks, including one discovered last month that caused a small amount of radioactive tritium to escape underground.

The 40 year old plant's current operating licenses are set to expire in 2013 and 2015, and Entergy has filed the requisite application to extend these by 20 years. Opponents of Indian Point, including the State of New York, are challenging the license renewals. 

On March 5, the NRC denied an appeal filed by Entergy, which sought to throw out an important environmental claim raised by Riverkeeper [3] in its challenge to the plant's relicensing.