when the plant is running normal, the water temp stays near 72 all year. the plant has shut down the cooling towers over a dozen times last year, and twice this year. me and my friend fish there all year long. i've caught stripers there in dec, jan, feb. I just wouldn't eat anything out of there, even though they say it's safe. in the summer, guys take bushels of crabs, really big ones, out of there and eat them