disaster in Chernobyl

Chernobyl Disaster

In its attempt to be a leader in the nuclear power industry, the Soviet Union took risks that proved to be disastrous. Soviet nuclear power reactors were built with a major design flaw, and on the 26th of April 1986 this design flaw caused the greatest nuclear energy disaster in history of the human race. Nuclear power reactors are extremely complicated pieces of machinery with a variety of safety features built into them, however, the Soviets' design had a problem; in the event of a total power failure the system was designed to use back-up generators to power the cooling system and prevent a total meltdown. But the back-up generators required a period of time to reach maximum output, some 60-75 seconds, and in this time the core could possibly begin to meltdown. (Smith 2) Soviet nuclear engineers had hypothesized that a fan used for cooling another part of the reactor could be used, temporarily, to cool the reactor rods which would continue to increase in temperature. But this was only a theory and needed to be tested in order to see if it could be used as an emergency measure.

The test was originally scheduled for the evening of the 25th of April, but a request from Kiev to maintain power output delayed the test until the early hours of the 26th. The Soviet engineers were going to generate a controlled power failure and see if the secondary fan could actually cool the reactor rods. During the experiment they discovered that it could not, and the reactor rods continued to increase in temperature. Once the temperatures were too high, the engineers were not able to re-engage the primary systems and a catastrophic explosion took place. (Smith 2)

This explosion "released at least 5% of the radioactive reactor core into the atmosphere and downwind," killing two that very night and close to 30 more with a few weeks as a result of the radiation. ("Chernobyl Accident 1986") While the winds were initially carried in westerly and northerly directions, "on subsequent days the winds came from all directions." ("The Chernobyl Accident") Within a 4,300 square km area surrounding the plant more than 200,000 people were forced to relocate and the resulting nuclear fallout contaminated large sections of Belarus, Ukraine, and Russia. But this was not the only damage that came from the accident, radiation was detected over large areas of Europe, and there was an increase in cancer rates across the region.

Concerns over the exposure to radiation led to the establishment of several international organizations to study the effects of the disaster at Chernobyl including the European Childhood Leukaemia-Lymphoma Incident Study (ECLIS) "to monitor trends in these diseases in relation to the estimated exposure levels." (Parkin 1006) In 1989, the first of these organizations, the World Health Organization (WHO) initially raised questions about the actual effects the accident had on human health and the environment. This caused the government of the Soviet Union to officially request that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) "to coordinate an international experts' assessment of accidents radiological, environmental and health consequences." ("Chernobyl Accident 1986")

The report by the IAEA indicates that of the first responders to the site, 28 persons died of Acute Radiation Syndrome (ARS) in 1986, and 19 more from 1987-2004. ("Health Impacts") Another 4995 deaths among first responders have been linked to the disaster in the years from 1991-1998 through such infirmities such as neoplasms and circulatory system diseases. But far more disturbing are the incidents of leukemia cases attributed to exposure to radiation, which increased among first responders by more than 30%. ("Health Impacts") Among the general population, the impact of the disaster seems to have also taken its toll and the report links "the accident to an increase in thyroid cancer in children." ("Health Impacts") From the years 1992-2000, about 4000 cases of thyroid cancer were found with the exposed population, with three-quarters, close to 3000 individuals, being children and adolescents between the years 1-18. ("Health Impacts")

In the aftermath of the world's greatest nuclear disaster Chernobyl has caused a major shift in views toward nuclear power and its safety. Chernobyl has created a fear within the minds of the general population that nuclear power plants are an accident waiting to happen, and as a result "the expansion of nuclear capacity came to a near standstill." (El Baradei) In effect, the world said that it no longer wanted nuclear power plants built anywhere near them or their families. However, in the decades that have passed since the disaster's initial impact, the world has learned a number of lessons. First of all is the fact that a "nuclear accident anywhere is a nuclear accident everywhere." (El Baradei) Therefore nuclear safety is an international concern and requires international cooperation. The IAEA has set international rules for nuclear energy involving "peer reviews, safety upgrades, and multilateral assistance efforts, safety conventions, and the body of globally recognized IAEA standards." (EL Baradei)

The world has also come to recognize that despite the best efforts of international authorities, nuclear accidents, while unthinkable, may still happen and the world needs to be prepared for them. The recent tsunami and resulting accident in Japan is a perfect example of how, no matter how safe one thinks a nuclear plant is built, nature can still cause unexpected problems. Because of this possibility, the IAEA, along with other international organizations, have begun to plan for nuclear accident responses. Chernobyl has taught the lesson that increased international coordination is necessary in the aftermath of any potential nuclear disaster. Most of all the international assistance from individual governments, international relief organizations, and other groups needs to be coordinated in an overall strategy. There also has to be plans in place to deal with the potential masses of people who would need to be relocated, either temporarily or permanently. But most of all, the Chernobyl accident has taught international authorities that facts are the most important weapon in response to a nuclear accident. There were numerous cases of preciously needed resources being wasted on unnecessary resettlements, economic disruption from panicked people, and a "widespread distrust of 'official' information & #8230;." (El Baradei)