[ RadSafe ] Fwd: Chernobyl: Remembering The World's Worst Nuclear
Power Accident
Norm Cohen
ncohen12 at comcast.net
Tue Apr 26 05:08:16 CEST 2005
------- Forwarded message -------
From: "Nuclear Age Peace Foundation" <wagingpeace at in.optinpro.com>
To: ncohen12 at comcast.net
Subject: Chernobyl: Remembering The World's Worst Nuclear Power Accident
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 2005 22:51:03 -0400
> Chernobyl: The World's Worst Nuclear Power Accident -
Background
> The After-Effects
> The Toxic Legacy of Nuclear Power
> Alternatives in Energy Sources Resources
> Take Action
> Resources
"Chernobyl is a word we would all like to erase from our memory. It
[opened] a Pandora's box of invisible enemies and nameless anxieties in
people's minds, but which most of us probably now think of as safely
relegated to the past. Yet there are two compelling reasons why this
tragedy must not be forgotten...First, if we forget Chernobyl, we
increase the risk of more such technological and environmental disasters
in the future. Second, more than seven million of our fellow human
beings do not have the luxury of forgetting. They are still suffering,
every day, as a result of what happened 14 years ago. Indeed, the legacy
of Chernobyl will be with us, and with our descendants, for generations
to come."
- Kofi Annan, United Nations Secretary General
Chernobyl: The World's Worst Nuclear Power Accident - Background | Top
In Spring 1986, the world's worst nuclear power accident occurred at the
Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, 80 miles north of Kiev in Ukraine in the
former Soviet Union. The accident has been described by the United
Nations as "the greatest environmental catastrophe in the history of
humanity."
On 26 April 1986, at 1:23 AM, a core meltdown occurred at Reactor 4 of
the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, creating a chemical explosion and a
fireball which blew off the reactor's 1,000-ton steel and concrete lid.
Some 190 tons of highly radioactive uranium and graphite were expelled,
spewing radioactive substances to a height of more than 1kilometer into
the earth's atmosphere.
It is estimated that the explosion released more than 200 times the
radioactive fallout of the two nuclear weapons used at the end of World
War II, spreading a radioactive cloud over large parts of the former
Soviet Union, including Belarus, Ukraine and Russia, across Europe, and
reaching as far as Greenland and parts of Asia. The radioactive plume
initially traveled in a northwest direction toward Sweden, Finland and
Eastern Europe, exposing the unsuspecting public to levels up to 100
times the normal background radiation.
For maps of the Chernobyl radioactive fall out: see
http://users.owt.com/smsrpm/Chernobyl/glbrad.html and
http://www.worldprocessor.com/53.htm
The After-Effects | Top
The Chernobyl accident killed more than 30 people immediately, and as a
result of the high radiation levels in the surrounding 20-mile radius,
some 135,000 people were evacuated. However, it was not until the third
day after the explosion that the Soviet authorities reported the full
scale of the accident, and the people of Ukraine did not learn the truth
until 3 May 1986. Early reporting of the accident could have enabled the
affected population to escape exposure to some radioactive particles
known to cause thyroid cancer, such as Iodine 131.
As a result of the Chernobyl accident, deadly radioactive material was
widely dispersed, affecting a vast area, practically the whole of the
northern hemisphere. In fact, today in the UK, hundreds of farms in
Wales are still subject to restrictions due to sheep eating radioactive
grass.
Based on the official reports by the United Nations, up to 9 million
people in Belarus, Ukraine and Russia have been affected directly or
indirectly by the radiation fallout. The people of the affected areas
have received the highest known exposure to radiation in the history of
the Nuclear Age, the full consequences of which will not be seen for at
least another 50 years. While there are no definitive figures of deaths
resulting from the Chernobyl accident, reports vary from zero to over
100,000 fatalities. Since 1986, the rate of thyroid cancer in affected
areas has increased ten fold. Specifically, there has been a significant
increase in the number of thyroid cancer cases among patients age 15 or
younger.
About 155,000 sq. km in Belarus, Ukraine and Russia were contaminated,
which is almost half of the size of Italy. Agricultural areas covering
nearly 52,000 sq. km, which is more than the size of Denmark, were
contaminated with Cesium-137 and Strontium-90, with 30-year and 29-year
half-lives respectively. Despite the resettlement of 404,000 people,
millions continue to live in an environment where residual exposure has
created a range of adverse effects.
For first hand accounts by those who experienced the Chernobyl disaster
and now live with the consequences, go to
http://archive.greenpeace.org/comms/nukes/chernob/read13.html
The Toxic Legacy of Nuclear Power | Top
The radioactive byproducts of the Chernobyl plant explosion will remain
in affected areas for some 48,000 years. An official exclusion zone
around the plant remains in place, extending for 18 miles. It is one of
the most dangerous regions on earth.
The Chernobyl accident demonstrated an often overlooked facet of the
Nuclear Age: it is not only our warlike technologies that threaten
humanity, our so-called "peaceful" technologies can also cause
devastation to life and property.
"Inherently safe" nuclear power reactors are a myth. A devastating
accident can occur in any nuclear reactor, causing the release of large
quantities of deadly radioactive products into the environment. In
addition, one of the biggest problems facing the nuclear industry is
what to do with the radioactive waste generated in a nuclear reactor.
Also, any nuclear power plant capable of producing energy has the
capacity to breed weapons-grade materials for nuclear bombs.
For a Nuclear Energy Fact sheet, go to :
<http://www.wagingpeace.org/menu/issues/nuclear-energy-&-waste/start/fac
t-sheet_ne&w.htm>
http://www.wagingpeace.org/menu/issues/nuclear-energy-&-waste/start/fact
-sheet_ne&w.htm
<http://www.wagingpeace.org/menu/issues/nuclear-energy-&-waste/start/fac
t-sheet_ne&w.htm>
The causes of the Chernobyl accident have been described as a fateful
combination of human error and imperfect technology. The blast occurred
because of a flawed reactor design and inadequately trained personnel
acting without proper regard for safety. Sadly, although Chernobyl is
the largest civil nuclear disaster to date, it may not be the last.
There are currently 440 nuclear reactors in 31 countries and there are
dozens now under construction. Almost twenty years after the Chernobyl
accident, the world has yet to significantly invest human and financial
resources into developing alternatives to nuclear power, the most
dangerous and unsustainable of all energy sources.
Alternatives in Energy Sources | Top
Sixteen percent of the world's electricity now comes from nuclear
energy, 85 percent of which is concentrated in industrialized countries.
In the US, 21percent of energy sources are derived from nuclear power.
The world must decrease its dependence on nuclear energy and advance a
global shift to clean, sustainable and environmentally benign sources of
energy that do not pose the risks inherent in nuclear energy production.
These sources include:
. Bioenergy: biomass, such as plant matter and animal waste, can yield
power, heat, steam and fuel.
. Geothermal: renewable heat energy can be harnessed from deep within
the earth.
. Wind: turbines turning in the air convert kinetic energy in the wind
into electricity.
. Solar: the sun's energy can be captured and used to produce heat and
electricity.
. Hydrogen: if produced by renewable sources, it can power fuel cells to
convert chemical energy directly into electricity, with useful heat and
water as the only byproducts.
. Tidal: using the movement of the ocean to power turbines and generate
electricity.
For more information on clean and sustainable energy sources, go to
http://www.eere.energy.gov/
Take Action | Top
1. Find out if there is a nuclear plant near you
Go to http://www.insc.anl.gov/pwrmaps/map/world_map.php
More than 25% of California's electricity is derived from nuclear power.
To find out what happens if the Chernobyl nuclear accident is applied to
the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant in California, go to
http://www.mothersforpeace.org/resources/maps/maps/chernobylAppliedToDia
blo
For a table of the world's nuclear power reactors, go to
http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/reactors.htm
2. Ask your government to support clean energy
Many more sustainable energy resources could be found and current
resources improved if better technology were available and if the
government and utilities actively promoted their development.
In his budget request for 2006, President Bush called for increased
funding for nuclear power and significant cuts in renewable energy,
energy efficiency, clean air, and climate change related-programs at the
US Department of Energy, US Department of Agriculture, US Department of
Transportation, US Environmental Protection Agency, and other agencies..
Read an analysis of the 2006 budget request by Ken Bossong at
http://www.energybulletin.net/4545.html .
In the US, call or write to your Congressional representatives and urge
them to support reduced dependence on nuclear power and increased
funding for the promotion of clean energy. To find contact information
for your Congressional representatives, go to
http://capwiz.com/wagingpeace/dbq/officials/
Talking points include:
. Risk of Accident: On April 26, 1986 the No. 4 reactor at the Chernobyl
power plant in the former U.S.S.R., exploded, causing the worst nuclear
accident ever. According to the US House of Representatives,
Subcommittee on Oversight & Investigations, "Calculation of Reactor
Accident Consequences (CRAC2) for US Nuclear Power Plants" (1982, 1997),
an accident at a US nuclear power plant could kill more people than were
killed by the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki.
. Environmental Degradation: Radioactive isotopes produced by nuclear
reactors are extraordinarily long-lived, remaining toxic for hundreds of
thousands of years. Presently, we are only beginning to observe and
experience the consequences of producing nuclear energy.
. Nuclear Waste: A typical reactor will generate some 20 to 30 tons of
high-level nuclear waste annually. There is no known way to safely
dispose of this waste, which remains dangerously radioactive until it
naturally decays. The hazardous life of a radioactive element (the
length of time that must elapse before the material is considered safe)
is at least 10 half-lives. For example, Plutonium-239 will remain
hazardous for 240,000 years.
. Nuclear Proliferation Risks: Any nuclear power plant is a potential
nuclear bomb factory. Every nuclear reactor capable of producing energy
has the capacity to generate fissile materials that can be processed for
nuclear bombs.
For further information read the Foundation's Nuclear Energy Fact Sheet
http://www.wagingpeace.org/menu/issues/nuclear-energy-&-waste/start/fact
-sheet_ne&w.htm
<http://www.wagingpeace.org/menu/issues/nuclear-energy-&-waste/start/fac
t-sheet_ne&w.htm>
3. Promote alternative sources of energy in your community
Take initiative to decrease your community's dependence on nuclear power
and find out if there are alternative sources of energy in your
community. Here are some examples:
Solar Power - Solar power is created when light from the sun shines on
solar panels and produces electricity. Solar power is the second fastest
growing source of electricity today and is so abundant that the amount
of sunlight the Earth receives in just 30 minutes is equivalent to all
the power used by humankind in one year.
For more information on solar power, go to
http://www.eere.energy.gov/solar/
Wind Power - A wind turbine uses the wind's energy to generate
electricity. Wind power is the fastest growing energy source in the
world. By the end of 2003, the total capacity for energy generated by
wind sources in the United States was enough to power 1.3 million
American homes.
For more information, go to
http://www.eere.energy.gov/windandhydro/windpoweringamerica/
Wave Power - The ocean is a vast source of energy to be tapped for human
use in the coming years. The pull of the moon and the energy of the wind
create tides and waves that can provide clean renewable energy. The
technologies are still in experimental stages, but have the potential to
provide a significant portion of the world's energy needs in the near
future. There are different ocean technologies that are being developed.
If 0.1% of the energy of the oceans was harnessed for electricity it
could meet the world's demand for energy five times over.
For more information, go to http://www.eere.energy.gov/RE/ocean.html
Resources | Top
For a personal account of the Chernobyl nuclear accident, read "
Chernobyl , the Forbidden Truth" by Alla Yaroshinskaya. The book is
available for purchase from the Foundation. To order a copy, please call
(805) 965-3443.
International Chernobyl Research and Information Network
http://www.chernobyl.info/en
The History of the United Nations and Chernobyl
http://www.un.org/ha/chernobyl/
"Optimizing the International Effort to Study, Mitigate and Minimize the
Consequences of the Chernobyl Disaster: Report of the Secretary-General"
http://www.chernobyl.info/files/doc/UNRepOptimizingIntEff.pdf
Greenpeace "Clean Energy Now!" Campaign http://www.cleanenergynow.org/
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"A time comes when silence is betrayal.
Even when pressed by the demands of
inner truth, men do not easily assume
the task of opposing their government's
policy, especially in time of war.
Nor does the human spirit move without
great difficulty against all the apathy
of conformist thought, within one's own
bosom and in the surrounding world."
- Martin Luther King Jr.
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