Reactors at France's largest nuclear power plant shut down due to jellyfish

**Jellyfish shut down reactors at France's largest nuclear power plant**

Three reactors were shut down at France's Gravelines nuclear power plant on the evening of August 10 due to a large jellyfish infestation, the plant's operator, EDF, said.

The plant, located in the north of the country, is one of the largest in France. It is cooled by a canal connected to the North Sea. The plant consists of six units, each with a capacity of 900 megawatts, for a total of 5.4 gigawatts of electricity.

Reactors 2, 3 and 4 were taken offline due to the jellyfish infestation. As a precautionary measure, reactor 1 was reduced to 50 percent of its capacity. Reactor 5 was previously out of service for scheduled maintenance. Reactor 6 continues to operate at full capacity.

The plant was due to be shut down in 2025. The operator has since implemented new monitoring and fishing methods to prevent similar incidents in the future. An engineer told Reuters that EDF has installed special cameras in the channels and filter drums. This will help detect blockages as early as possible.

The company has also established cooperation with the French Fisheries Organization and the maritime rescue service. They monitor the jellyfish swarms. If a threat is detected, fishermen catch them with nets before they reach the station, reducing the density of the swarm.

After the initial warning, fishing vessels were mobilized on August 8. This was intended to reduce the damage caused by the jellyfish. The jellyfish that had entered the station area are being cleaned using special vacuum trucks. Since there is no new influx of jellyfish, the cleaning work is being completed.

This will allow the reactors to resume operation as soon as possible. EDF said the incident posed no risk to the safety of the plant, its employees or the environment.

Scientists have warned that such incidents could happen more often due to global warming, the introduction of alien species, the decline of predators and overfishing.

EDF is also facing the problem of other reactors across the country that are running out of power due to the heat. The fifth heat wave in weeks is expected to reduce electricity production at French nuclear plants.

One reactor in the north has been out of service for most of the summer due to low river levels. Another reactor failed to fully restart in July and remains largely out of service.