Southern California is about to lose one of its most recognizable coastal landmarks. And, depending on your sense of humor, perhaps its most famous pair of boobs.
For decades, the twin concrete honkers of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) have loomed over Interstate 5 and the surf breaks around San Onofre and Trestles. Generations of surfers, and commuters between Orange and San Diego Counties, have used the unmistakable silhouettes as a sign they’re nearing the beach.
Now, the so-called “San Onofre boobs” are finally coming down. Watch here and below.
“In the coming months, crews are going to begin taking down the containment domes behind us,” U.S. Rep. Mike Levin told FOX 11 during an October 28 press conference.
The shuttered nuclear plant stopped generating electricity in 2012 following equipment problems and was permanently retired in 2013. Its demolition has been underway for years, with more than 700 million pounds of material already hauled away.
Southern California Edison now expects work on the domes to begin in 2027, with both gone by the end of that year. Major dismantling should finish by late 2028.
But there’s a much bigger issue beneath the nostalgia.
Related: San Onofre’s Future’s on the Brink, Make Your Voice Heard
More than 1,600 tons of spent nuclear fuel remain in dry-storage canisters roughly 100 feet from the Pacific Ocean. Environmental advocates have long questioned the wisdom of storing radioactive material beside a coastline exposed to erosion, rising seas, earthquakes, and powerful surf.
Especially during a “Super” El Niño season, like right now.
Levin stressed that there is “no immediate danger,” but warned the site was never intended to store spent fuel indefinitely. Edison says its canisters are engineered to withstand extreme natural hazards.
Finding somewhere else to put the waste is another matter. Federal officials are exploring potential host sites in five states and have developed specialized railcars to transport spent fuel, but no destination has been approved.
So, the coastline may soon look dramatically different to surfers facing the unrelenting crowds and revered waves at San-O or Lowers.
The concrete bazongas will be gone. The nuclear waste, for now, won’t.
Related: How “Emergency” Armoring Is Erasing California’s Beaches
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