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Four radioactive wasp nests found on South Carolina nuclear facility
Officials say there are no leaks and hazardous nests are from legacy contamination.
Beth Mole
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Aug 4, 2025 3:35 PM
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A wasp queen builds a nest.
Credit:
Getty | William Attard McCarthy – McCarthy’s PhotoWorks
A wasp queen builds a nest.
Credit:
Getty | William Attard McCarthy – McCarthy’s PhotoWorks
In a bizarre discovery at the Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina, officials have found at least four radioactive wasp nests. According to a report by The New York Times, these hazardous nests were built by wasps around the Cold War-era nuclear facility. The SRS is a 310-square-mile site that was used for producing material for nuclear weapons during the 1950s.
The discovery of these radioactive nests has raised several questions about the source of the hazardous materials and the extent of environmental contamination at the SRS. Officials from the US Department of Energy, which owns the site, have stated that there are no leaks and that the radioactivity found in the nests is due to "onsite legacy radioactive contamination not related to a loss of contamination control."
However, experts have pointed out that more information is needed about the absolute level of radioactivity found in the nest, the specific isotopes present, and the type of wasps that built the nest. Some wasp species build their nests using mud or pulp from wood, while others may use different materials.
Timothy Mousseau, a biologist at the University of South Carolina who studies organisms and ecosystems in radioactive regions, said that it is not unreasonable to assume that the wasps gathered legacy contamination for their homes. "There’s some legacy radioactive contamination sitting around in the mud in the bottom of the lakes, or, you know, here and there," he explained.
Mousseau also noted that the main concern relates to whether or not there are large areas of significant contamination that have escaped surveillance in the past. Alternatively, this could indicate that there is some new or old radioactive contamination coming to the surface that was unexpected. He emphasized the importance of investigating further to determine the extent of environmental contamination.
The DOE report on the first wasp nest stated that it was sprayed to kill wasps and then bagged as radioactive waste. The ground and area around where the nest had been did not have any further contamination. In a statement to the Aiken Standard, officials working at the DOE site noted that the wasps themselves pose little risk to the community. They likely have lower levels of contamination on them and generally don’t stray more than a few hundred yards from their nests.
However, The New York Times pointed out a report from 2017 where officials at SRS found radioactive bird droppings on the roof of a building at the site. Birds can carry radioactive material long distances, Mousseau said.
The discovery of these radioactive wasp nests has sparked concerns about environmental contamination and the need for further investigation to determine the extent of legacy radiation present at the SRS. As experts continue to study this phenomenon, more information will be revealed about the causes and effects of radioactive wasp nests on the environment.
Legacy Contamination at Savannah River Site
The discovery of radioactive wasp nests at the SRS highlights the ongoing issue of legacy contamination at the site. The SRS is a 310-square-mile facility that was built in the 1950s to produce material for nuclear weapons, including plutonium and tritium. The facility produced 165 million gallons of radioactive liquid waste, which has been evaporated to 34 million gallons.
The DOE began cleaning up the site in 1996, a process estimated to be completed by 2065. However, despite these efforts, legacy contamination remains a significant concern at the SRS. According to experts, there are still areas where significant contamination may have escaped surveillance in the past.
Legacy contamination is a major challenge for the DOE as it tries to clean up the site and ensure public safety. The discovery of radioactive wasp nests has raised concerns about the effectiveness of these efforts and whether more needs to be done to address legacy contamination at the SRS.
Radioactive Wasp Nests: What We Know
The four radioactive wasp nests were found around a tank used to store nuclear waste at the SRS. The nests were probed for radioactivity, which revealed levels greater than 10 times the total contamination values listed in federal regulations for areas requiring contamination posting and monitoring.
However, experts have pointed out that more information is needed about the absolute level of radioactivity found in the nest, the specific isotopes present, and the type of wasps that built the nest. Some wasp species build their nests using mud or pulp from wood, while others may use different materials.
Timothy Mousseau, a biologist at the University of South Carolina, said that it is not unreasonable to assume that the wasps gathered legacy contamination for their homes. "There’s some legacy radioactive contamination sitting around in the mud in the bottom of the lakes, or, you know, here and there," he explained.
Mousseau also noted that the main concern relates to whether or not there are large areas of significant contamination that have escaped surveillance in the past. Alternatively, this could indicate that there is some new or old radioactive contamination coming to the surface that was unexpected.
The discovery of these radioactive wasp nests has sparked concerns about environmental contamination and the need for further investigation to determine the extent of legacy radiation present at the SRS. As experts continue to study this phenomenon, more information will be revealed about the causes and effects of radioactive wasp nests on the environment.
Conclusion
The discovery of four radioactive wasp nests at the Savannah River Site has raised several questions about the source of hazardous materials and the extent of environmental contamination at the site. Officials from the US Department of Energy have stated that there are no leaks, but experts have pointed out that more information is needed to determine the cause and impact of these findings.
Legacy contamination remains a significant concern at the SRS, and the discovery of radioactive wasp nests highlights the ongoing need for further investigation and cleaning up efforts. As experts continue to study this phenomenon, it will be essential to provide more information about the causes and effects of radioactive wasp nests on the environment.
Ultimately, this incident underscores the importance of continued vigilance in addressing legacy contamination at nuclear facilities like the SRS, where decades-old pollution can still pose a risk to public health.