LoeperDon'tWorry

Chernobyl Disaster Picture: This is the nuclear reactor that exploded at the Chernobyl Power Plant in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic. Background: On April 26, 1986, Reactor 4 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant exploded releasing radio nuclides, which was anywhere from 3.8% to 20% of the fuel that was stored in the reactor core. There was 400 times more nuclear fallout than what was released by the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. · Causes: o Test- Reactor 4 was scheduled for maintenance and to test the safety emergency core cooling system. § The safety system was turned off · Poor planning of the test procedures and poorly trained employees o Construction § Pressure from the government created the opportunity for shortcuts § A combustible material was used to construct the roof of the reactor building and turbine hall o Didn’t believe that an accident could happen

Effects: Employees and firemen received lethal doses of radiation levels within minutes of the explosion. No one wore radiation protective gear. Explosion threw particles of the nuclear fuel as well as caesium-137, iodine-131, strontium-90 and over 40 other radio nuclides. -Environmental · Soil o Cesium was deposited in the soil § Forest floors are still contaminated because roots, needles and leaves store radiation like a filter o Four square km of forest around the reactor turned brown and died · Water o The power plant is next to the Pripyat River o There was a high concentration of radioactivity in fish o Strontium is soluble in water, and more difficult to track · Wildlife o Initially many animals died around the affected area § Cows/horses/livestock were left after evacuations and died shortly after from thyroid problems o Has become a haven for animals, new species have moved into the area § Still encounter many examples of deformities -Population · April 27 (36 hours later) the residents of Pripyat were evacuated · Power plant workers and fireman that were there died within weeks of the accident o 203 were hospitalized immediately, 31 died · Health Consequences o Cancer, notably, thyroid cancer and leukemia o Genetic defects- Sharp increase in miscarriages, premature births and stillbirths, 3X as many deformities

Solution: · For Chernobyl · A sarcophagus was quickly built around the open reactor building o A New Safe Confinement structure will be built by 2011 · Charity and Aide Funds o People can only be treated o Environment § Environmental management development (EMDU)- to improve water quality in the rivers § Aquascope- an international research project that investigated the radiation content in 30 EU bodies of water and vegetation, especially mushrooms, woodland plants and forest soil · Can only wait for the area to be inhabitable and for the molten radioactive material to decay- which none of us will ever see

§ For industry o Better construction § Concrete Wall Test- [] § Areva Design: [] o Safer operating procedures § Shared Operating Experience § NRC- Nuclear Regulatory Committee § Safety features and procedures § Better industry procedures · Tests · Normal operation · Accidents

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Bennett, Burton, Michael Repacholi, and Zhanat Carr, eds. "Health Effects of the Chernobyl Accident and Special Health Care Programmes." //Health Effects of the Chernobyl Accident and Special Health Care Programmes// (2006). World Health Organization. Web. 7 Feb. 2010. . ======

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"Chernobyl | Chernobyl Accident | Chernobyl Disaster." //World Nuclear Association | Nuclear Power - a Sustainable Energy Resource//. Web. 7 Feb. 2010. . ======

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//Chernobyl Shortly After Explosion //. 1986. Photograph. Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. //Spaceman Gallery//. Web. 7 Feb. 2010. . ======

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//Chernobyl - Tschernobyl - Information //. Web. 7 Feb. 2010. . ======

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//Environmental Consequences of the Chernobyl Accident and their Remediation: Twenty Years of Experience //. Rep. International Atomic Energy Agency, 2006. Web. 7 Feb. 2010. . ======

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Marples, David R. "7 The Chernobyl disasters Its effect on Belarus and Ukraine." //United Nations University//. Web. 7 Feb. 2010. . ======

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"YouTube- What happens when an airplane hits a concrete wall?" //YouTube- Broadcast Yourself.// Web. 7 Feb. 2010. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zl0MhOdkREQ>. ======