Comparison of mesozooplankton mortality impacted by the cooling systems of two nuclear power plants at the northern Taiwan coast, southern East China Sea

Highlights: • The cooling system of nuclear power plants cause zooplankton mortality. • Environmental differences between nuclear power plants affect zooplankton mortality. • Cooling water and mechanical damage are affecting zooplankton mortality. - Abstract: The environmental impact caused by thermal discharge waters of power plants is of global concern since thermal discharge directly affects the environmental situation near power plants. The present study used the vital stain neutral red to identify live and dead zooplankton collected from stations at the intake and the outlet of two nuclear power plants (NPPs). Significantly higher mortalities occurred at the outlet station than at the intake station (p p p > 0.05). The weight of organic matter of zooplankton fragments was higher at the outlet station than at the intake station at both NPPs, indicating the physical damage of zooplankton when passing the cooling system.