Oswego County's three nuclear energy facilities will soon begin a project to replace the county's aging public warning system.
Constellation Energy Nuclear Group, which owns the two Nine Mile Point nuclear plants, and Entergy, which owns the James A. Fitzpatrick Nuclear Power Plant, will invest more than $1.5 million to replace the existing sirens in the ten mile radius around the plants.
Jill Lyon, with Constellation, says the sirens are currently used by several groups.
"The public notification system, or emergency siren system, is owned by Constellation Energy Nuclear Group, but supports both of the nuclear energy facilities here in the county and can be used by Oswego County for any need to notify the public of an emergency," Lyon said. "It doesn't just have to be an event at one of the nuclear facilities."
Lyon says the company will work with Entergy to perform the upgrades in the near future.
"The equipment needed to be replaced," Lyon explained. "It was time for the equipment to be upgraded to the newer technology. And so we're going to start that field work in the early summer and hope to complete the replacements by the end of summer."
The 37 existing sirens will be replaced and two new ones will be added, along with battery back-up power. The upgraded system will sound at a similar volume as the current one and will be tested the same number of times each year.
