Jayson Needham, a 12-year-old from Pembina interested in nuclear energy, testifies to the interim Advanced Nuclear Energy Committee on June 16, 2026. (Photo by Jacob Orledge/ North Dakota Monitor)
A nuclear reactor in North Dakota could require as much water as a coal power plant, and the regulator responsible for managing the state’s water resources says the Missouri River is the best available source.
Reice Haase, director of the North Dakota Department of Water Resources, said the state uses less than a spoonful of the gallon of water that is the Missouri River as a water resource. The ri…