Chernobyl Disaster: 26 Years Later

Chernobyl Disaster:  26 Years Later

In 1986, one of the words deadliest nuclear disaster occurred in the Ukrainian Republic, in former Soviet Union. Reactor number 4 of the Chernobyl plant ruptured and exploded after a sudden power surge.  The accident began with a large explosion equal to exploding 160 pounds of TNT. The chemical explosion led to a reaction with graphite which caused and equally larger explosion.  The explosion resulted to a rapid release on heat of heat and steam leading got the destruction of Chernobyl number 4 reactors. The intensity of the explosion blew off the lid of reactor 4. The explosion further made a hole through the roof spreading nuclear material far and wide. As the reactors exploded, the granite used in the plant went up in flames making it difficult to control the fire.

Magnitude of the Disaster

            The magnitude of the disaster was a well hidden secret by the government. However, the explosion had spread radioactive material into the atmosphere and with time, neighboring nations began to notice an abnormal level of radiation in their atmosphere.  Unfortunately, the delay in announcing the disaster to the public and the world hampered rescue efforts. Individual living in the neighboring region were reluctant to move since there were misinformed of the magnitude of the disaster.  When it became apparent that rescue efforts are not successful, the government announced the disaster creating near panic in neighboring regions (American Nuclear Society, 2012). Communities and nations panicked due to information that significant amounts of radioactivity has leaked to the environment.  The lack of adequate information on the level of radioactivity in the atmospheres, region such as Europe destroyed volumes of food and killed thousands of livestock. These strategies were wasteful as the radioactive particles in the northern hemisphere was minimal.

The Soviet society, however, began to feel the effects of the disaster as soon as it occurred with 50 people reported dead soon after the explosion. Almost all the first 50 casualties were the responders who attempted to stop the release of radioactivity after the explosion.  The Soviet community was also slow in destroying foods and animals hence continued to eat contamination foods. To-date there have been many other deaths associated to the Chernobyl disaster (World Nuclear Association, 2012).  There were beliefs that the disaster resulted to short and long term health consequences. Example of long term effects includes the acquisition of diseases like cancer due to radioactivity exposure. However, studies by international bodies such as the UN agencies have refuted the claim of long term deaths associated with Chernobyl disaster. Studies indicate that the long term of Chernobyl disaster was more psychological than physical.

Reason for Magnitude of Chernobyl Disaster

            The Chernobyl disaster was of considerable magnitude due to the distinctive design of the reactors used at the nuclear plant. The Chernobyl reactors had unique designs aimed to manufacture weapon grade plutonium and electricity. The complex nature of the reactors meant that the operators had to be skilled personnel. Unfortunately, the operators of the reactors on that fateful made erroneous decision that put to question their credibility to manage the nuclear plant (American Nuclear Society, 2012). As the operators attempted an engineering run, they made a series of error such as disabling the automatic shut down. Disabling the automatic shut down meant that, after the explosion, it was impossible for the workers to control the release of radioactivity to the atmosphere.

Other than the immediate fatalities, 36 workers, neighboring nations such as Ukraine and Belarus Republic evacuated and resettled its population. Countries such as Ukraine, Russia and Europe reported significant level of land contamination. The damage caused by Chernobyl disaster was significant and to-date the international community continues to assist in recovery efforts. The world nuclear community declared that, in a standard nuclear plant, the magnitude of the reactors 4 disaster would not have been catastrophic (World Nuclear Association, 2012). Unlike the Soviet Union, other nations that engaged in nuclear energy production observed higher design and operational standards. After the accident, the government emphasized the need to secure other nuclear reactors to avert any other disaster.

Chernobyl Disaster and US Culture

 One dominant lesson after the Chernobyl disaster concerns reactor safety. Whereas there had been other nuclear accidents e.g. US Three Mile Island accident, the impact was not as severe as Chernobyl’s. The reactors, in the case of US nuclear plant, was destroyed, but the fall out of radioactivity was contained due to the design of the plant. It was evident that western nations such as US were strict on operations of nuclear plants. In US, for instance, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) licenses the design and operators of all reactors. This ensures that all nuclear plants are safe and that those in charge of operating them are adequately skilled. NRC is strict on safety regulation and intentional violations results to legal repercussions (American Nuclear Society, 2012). NRC conducts on-site inspections on all the reactors and plants in US to ascertain the presence of adequate safety measures. The body also ensures that all the commercial reactors has a resident inspector.  US safety culture is embodied in the institute for nuclear power operations (INPO). INPO is a program that is committed to the nuclear industry safety by embracing training in the nuclear plant operations.  It is these strict measures that have seen the US maintain one the best industrial safety records in terms of nuclear accidents.

Significance of Chernobyl

 Chernobyl disaster is a lesson on the need to enhance safety regulations and culture in the nuclear industry. Nuclear energy is an efficient form of energy that used as an alternative power in nations. Currently, nuclear energy powers 20% of US electricity. On a worldwide scale, use of nuclear energy for electricity is 16%.  With the advancement of technology, this is the direction that nations need to be taking as the world gradually shifts from fossil fuels to nuclear energy. The key thus lies in the ability of nations to guarantee safety in the production process of nuclear energy. Enhancing security measures in nuclear energy requires that nations work together to ensure that all engage in safety improvements. It is vital that nations engaging in nuclear industry work under associations like World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO) to ensure that they maintain the same standards of safety (World Nuclear Association, 2012). Currently, nations dealing with nuclear power plant have embraced quality safety measures. This is evidence that the Chernobyl disaster was an adequate lesson on enhancing safety measure in the nuclear power plants.

Reference

American Nuclear Society, (2012). Chernobyl: In focus. Retrieved from http://www.new.ans.org/pi/resources/sptopics/chernobyl/today.php

World Nuclear Association, (2012).  Chernobyl accident 1986. Retrieved from http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/chernobyl/inf07.html

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