Press Release | MWK Files Appeal Challenging Turkey Point Nuclear License Extension

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 5, 2026

Contact: 

• Dr. Rachel Silverstein, Chief Executive Officer, Miami Waterkeeper, [email protected], (305) 905-0856
• Rachael Curran, Attorney, Jacobs Public Interest Law Clinic for Democracy and the Environment, [email protected], (727) 537-0802

MIAMI WATERKEEPER FILES FEDERAL APPEAL CHALLENGING TURKEY POINT NUCLEAR LICENSE EXTENSION

Miami, Fla. -

Today, Miami Waterkeeper filed a petition for review to initiate an appeal in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (26-1105), continuing its challenge to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) decision to extend the operating license for the Turkey Point nuclear power plant. 

The filing marks the next step in Miami Waterkeeper’s ongoing effort to ensure that federal regulators fully evaluate the environmental and public health risks associated with extending operations at the Turkey Point facility from 2032 through 2053.

Florida Power & Light first sought a 20-year license extension in 2018, which would extend operations at Turkey Point for up to 80 years. Miami Waterkeeper, Friends of the Earth, and the Natural Resources Defense Council successfully challenged the license extension, which had initially been granted without an analysis of site-specific environmental impacts, including from climate change and groundwater pollution. In 2022, in response to the challenge, the NRC vacated a prior approval and required additional environmental review, returning the license expiration date to 2032 – a significant victory that followed challenges brought by Miami Waterkeeper and its partners. Following this decision, the NRC then also changed regulations for nuclear plants across the nation, requiring reactors applying for a subsequent license extension to conduct a more robust, site-specific analysis of environmental impacts and climate risks. 

However, the NRC subsequently reapproved the extension in 2024, prompting another appeal by Miami Waterkeeper after FPL re-applied for a license extension.

In March, the NRC denied Miami Waterkeeper's administrative appeal of the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board’s renewal decision and terminated the administrative proceeding, allowing the license extension to remain through 2053.

Miami Waterkeeper maintains that the underlying environmental review for the license extension fails to adequately assess key risks, including groundwater contamination from the cooling canal system, potential impacts to South Florida’s drinking water supply, and the effects of climate change and sea level rise on severe accident risk and the safety of long-term plant operations.

“After eight years of advocacy, we remain focused on ensuring that decisions about Turkey Point are forward-looking, grounded in sound science, and protective of the environment and our community,” said Dr. Rachel Silverstein, Chief Executive Officer and Waterkeeper at Miami Waterkeeper. “The NRC’s decision to allow this risky nuclear license extension to remain does not resolve the serious environmental risks posed by operating this facility for decades longer, like ongoing groundwater contamination into our drinking water supply, and operating into an era of climate risks like sea level rise, high temperatures, and stronger storms.”

The Turkey Point nuclear plant and its cooling canals, located on the edge of Biscayne Bay, sits atop the Biscayne Aquifer, the primary source of drinking water for millions of South Florida residents. For decades, the cooling canal system has been seeping contaminated water into the aquifer, stretching underground for miles away from the plant. 

“This appeal asks the Court to ensure NRC meaningfully evaluates and mitigates, as required by law, the real risks to Turkey Point’s safety posed by climate change,” said Rachael Curran, an attorney with the Jacobs Public Interest Law Clinic for Democracy and the Environment representing Miami Waterkeeper in the appeal. “Anything short of NRC’s compliance with federal law and a decision based on a complete and scientifically sound administrative record risks not only South Florida’s drinking water supply, but nuclear disaster.”

Miami Waterkeeper will continue to pursue all available legal avenues and work with partners, scientists, and community members to protect South Florida’s water resources and ecosystems.

About Miami Waterkeeper

Miami Waterkeeper protects South Florida’s waters by advocating for resilient solutions grounded in science, rooted in nature, and driven by community. The organization envisions a resilient South Florida that is a global leader in clean water solutions, where thriving communities and nature coexist. Learn more at miamiwaterkeeper.org.

About Jacobs Public Interest Law Clinic for Democracy and the Environment

The Jacobs Public Interest Law Clinic for Democracy and the Environment at Stetson University College of Law pursues and defends justice through advocacy focused on pressing environmental issues. The clinic provides a much-needed public service of pro bono legal aid while affording Stetson's law students opportunities to work with underserved clients and develop the advocacy skills necessary to be successful attorneys.