Comprehensive Environmental Monitoring

Checking readings off-site.

For the area on and around San Onofre, SCE currently conducts year-round monitoring for radioisotopes in the:

  • air
  • ocean water
  • ground water
  • surrounding sediment
  • soil
  • vegetation
  • marine species

Samples are analyzed onsite as well as off-site by independent labs, as required by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the Environmental Protection Agency, and state programs and reported annually.

Environmental monitoring includes a test garden.

This program primarily analyzes samples from within a 15-mile radius of the plant (with control samples as far as 45 miles away). Locations include the rooftop of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department's San Clemente office; Camp Pendleton sites; and a test garden grown on the plant’s property.

SCE has created an interactive map that provides the location, type and frequency of marine sampling. All results are within federal regulatory limits. A full analysis can be found in the SONGS 2022 Annual Radiation Environmental Operating Reports.