Indian Point update: Save the Hudson Act under attack
October 9, 2025
Larissa Liebmann
Staff Attorney
Key takeaways
- The Save the Hudson Act, a New York law that prevented the dumping of 1.5 million gallons of radioactive wastewater from Indian Point into the Hudson River, has been struck down by a federal court.
- This “tritiated wastewater” is radioactive, but chemically identical to water, and therefore cannot be filtered. Its half-life is 12 years.
- Releasing vast amounts of tritiated wastewater into the Hudson would depress interest in tourism and recreation in the region.
- Holtec, the company tasked with taking apart and remediating the Indian Point site, challenged the Save the Hudson Act based on the principle that certain federal laws can overrule state laws.
- On September 24, 2025, a court ruled in favor of Holtec and struck the law down.
- New York Attorney General Letitia James and Governor Hochul announced that New York will appeal the ruling.
- Riverkeeper, which holds a seat on the Indian Point Decommissioning Oversight Board, supports the decision to appeal.
- You can join Riverkeeper in showing your support for the Attorney General’s decision to stand up for the Hudson River and the communities that rely on it.
The Save the Hudson Act
In response to plans by Holtec International to discharge 1.5 million gallons of radioactive wastewater into the Hudson River from the decommissioning of the Indian Point nuclear power plant, Riverkeeper worked closely with the local community and state legislators to ensure that radioactive discharges were prohibited from shuttered nuclear sites into the Hudson.
Amplifying a groundswell of public support from New Yorkers, Riverkeeper was on the front lines to ensure our elected officials moved legislation over the finish line and into law in 2023. In 2024, Holtec sued New York State claiming that the law was a state overreach. In September 2025, a federal court sided with Holtec’s assertion that a New York State law cannot block the discharge of radioactive wastewater, determining that only the federal government has that authority. New York State plans to appeal this ruling.
What is tritiated wastewater?
Tritiated wastewater is water contaminated with radioactive tritium. Nuclear power plants produce tritium primarily through the use of boron in cooling water to help control the chain reaction created by nuclear fission. The tritium bonds with oxygen to form radioactive tritiated wastewater, which is chemically identical to regular water and therefore cannot be filtered. However, tritium has a half-life of only twelve years, which means that if the water is stored for twelve years, the level of radioactivity is reduced by half.
As the health of the Hudson River improves, New Yorkers are increasingly experiencing the incredible recreational opportunities that the river provides. Holtec’s plan to release the remaining tritiated wastewater from the Indian Point site into the Hudson will depress interest in tourism and recreation in the region. After how far we have come in remediating both the Hudson and people’s relationship with it, this is the last thing our communities need.
The court case
Holtec challenged the Save the Hudson Act based on a legal principle known as “preemption.” This principle is based on the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution, which states that certain federal laws can overrule state laws. Importantly, the court found that the purpose behind New York’s law was to protect economic interests, not to regulate radiological safety.
However, the court also found that the law has a “direct and substantial” impact on decisions made by the federal government regarding radiological safety and therefore is preempted by federal law.
While Riverkeeper respects the decision of the court, we believe it is incorrect. The law regulates the economic impact of tritiated wastewater discharges, not nuclear waste safety, and there are other feasible means for Holtec to dispose of the waste.
What happens next?
At the September 25, 2025 Indian Point Decommissioning Oversight Board meeting, Holtec stated that the company has no plans to immediately begin discharging tritiated wastewater.
New York State has the opportunity to appeal the ruling, which entails asking a federal appellate court to review the decision.
Riverkeeper, which holds a seat on the Indian Point Decommissioning Oversight Board, called on the Attorney General’s office to appeal. Following this, on October 8, 2025, Attorney General Letitia James and Governor Hochul announced that New York intends on appealing the ruling. Please join Riverkeeper in showing your support for the Attorney General’s decision to stand up for the Hudson River and the communities that rely on it.
Related campaigns
Beyond Indian Point
Monitoring the shutdown of a nuclear power plant on the banks of the Hudson that killed billions of fish each year
Saving Hudson River fish
Protecting iconic species vital to our local ecosystems
Related news
September 30, 2025
In response to court setback, Riverkeeper presses for a protected Hudson
Position statement
August 6, 2025
Riverkeeper statement on Indian Point site development
Update