Nuclear waste problem of the Russian Navy
The nuclear waste problem of the Russian Navy arises from the operation , decommissioning and dismantling of nuclear reactor-powered ships , including submarines . A solution to safely dispose of high-level radioactive waste in the long term is not yet known.
marine
The Russian Navy emerged from the Soviet Navy and largely adopted its structure. The Northern Fleet and the Pacific Fleet in particular have nuclear-powered ships. The K-3 Leninski Komsomol was put into service in 1958 as the first nuclear-powered submarine .
The ships have their naval bases in the polar sea ( Gadschijewo , Bolschaja Lopatka , Malaja Lopatka , Nerpitschja , Polyarny etc.) and in the Pacific ( Pavlovsky Bay etc.).
From 1955 until the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, 240 nuclear powered submarines were produced. In spring 2010, around 40 of these were still in service in the Russian fleet.
disposal
Many decommissioned ships are initially left in the naval bases. In 2000, around 120 decommissioned nuclear submarines were moored in Sajda Bay .
Fuel rods and the like from operation and disposal are temporarily stored in a number of facilities ( Andrejewa Bay , etc.).
The Yablokow report from 1993 by Alexei Wladimirowitsch Yablokow showed that at that time the Soviet Union had dumped garbage with a total radiation of 2.4 million curie (89 quadrillion Becquerel ), including 18 reactors from submarines and from an icebreaker :
- 16 reactors in the Kara Sea , six of which are still equipped
- 2 reactors in the Sea of Japan
The report contained a number of other examples.
In addition to the disposal problem, there are also problems caused by accidents:
- the nuclear reactor-powered K-219 sank to the sea floor in 1986 with reactors and 30 nuclear warheads
- the nuclear reactor-powered K-278 Komsomolez sank in 1989, traces of plutonium were found released from the warheads
- the K-159 sank in 2003 with two decommissioned nuclear reactors
Problem
For example, the Motowski Bay is noticeably polluted by radioactivity.
The magazine Report Mainz reported at the end of September 2012 that officials from the Russian Environment Ministry expected an uncontrollable chain reaction in the K-27 , in which the fuel rods would be destroyed and the nuclear fuel released. According to an unpublished draft State Council report, the K-27 must be lifted by 2014 to avoid this scenario. The K-159 must therefore also be lifted by 2014 because its protective barriers are insufficient.
According to the Russian State Institute for Radiation Protection (IBRAE), 851 million Becquerels of radioactivity have been released from the K-27 annually since its sinking . Underwater photographs show that the ships have holes.
Attempted solutions
The G8 countries adopted at the Summit in 2002 , a 20-billion-dollar program against the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and materials. Most of it flows to Russia.
In 2006, a long-term interim storage facility for nuclear waste from the Northern Fleet was established in Sajda Bay with the participation of the G8 .
From 2014 the radioactive waste is to be transported to the Mayak facility .
Despite the efforts of recent years, there are still old reactor sections from decommissioned submarines in Russian ports. For example:
- on the Kola Peninsula (Northern Fleet): 69 ° 14 ′ 49.9 ″ N , 33 ° 14 ′ 48.1 ″ E
- in the Awatscha Bay ( Pacific Fleet ): 52 ° 53 '42.7 " N , 158 ° 26' 15.3" O
- near Vladivostok (Pacific Fleet): 42 ° 54 ′ 14.8 ″ N , 132 ° 21 ′ 16.1 ″ E , around 300 m to the southeast, a similar interim storage facility to that of Sajda Bay is under construction (since around 2005 , Concrete surface and building with red roof)
According to the Bellona Foundation , the salvage of the two submerged submarines and the other nuclear waste in the Arctic was carried out by the Russian government mainly due to the plans to explore arctic natural gas and oil deposits and the danger posed by the reactors and nuclear waste deposits , A higher priority in recent years and led to the complete removal plan by the Federal Atomic Energy Agency of Russia (Rosatom). In the case of the K-27 in particular, there is concern that an uncontrolled chain reaction and an explosion could occur during the rescue. In January 2016 it was announced that the Italian-made salvage ship Itarus would be used to salvage the submarines and the nuclear waste containers.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Repository for nuclear submarines: The shining remains of Russian armament. In: Stern , April 8, 2010
- ^ Andreas Knudsen: German-Russian nuclear submarine disposal. MarineForum - Journal for Maritime Issues, ( archive version online )
- ↑ Hannes Gamillscheg: A new Chernobyl threatens in the polar sea. In: Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger , June 1, 2007 ( online ( memento from April 18, 2008 in the Internet Archive ))
- ^ Russians describe extensive dumping of nuclear waste. In: New York Times , April 27, 1993 ( online )
- ↑ Chernobyl under water. Report to Boris Yeltsin reveals gigantic levels of atomic contamination of the seas. In: Focus May 17, 1993 ( online )
- ↑ Genady G. Matishov, Dmitry G. Matishov et al. a .: Anthropogenic radionuclides in Kola and Motovsky Bays of the Barents Sea, Russia. In: Journal of Environmental Radioactivity. 43, 1999, p. 77, doi : 10.1016 / S0265-931X (98) 00096-4 .
- ↑ Genady G. Matishov, Dimitry G. Matishov et al. a .: Discharges of nuclear waste into the Kola Bay and its impact on human radiological doses. In: Journal of Environmental Radioactivity. 48, 2000, p. 5, doi : 10.1016 / S0265-931X (99) 00049-1 .
- ↑ a b Russian officials expect uncontrollable nuclear reaction . Report Mainz . September 25, 2012. Archived from the original on September 26, 2012. Retrieved on September 26, 2012.
- ↑ Thomas Reutter : Arctic threatens nuclear disaster . daily news . September 26, 2012. Archived from the original on September 27, 2012. Retrieved on September 26, 2012.
- ↑ Statement by G8 Leaders ( Memento from June 4, 2013 in the Internet Archive ).
- ^ BMWI : Long-term storage facility and nuclear waste disposal center in Sajda Bay. 2006 ( online ( memento of July 3, 2007 in the Internet Archive ); PDF; 484 kB)
- ^ Andreev bay: creating the infrastructure for radwaste and spent fuel management. In: Environmental Safety 3/2008. Pp. 60–63 ( online )
- ↑ Anna Kireeva: Raising sunken nuclear subs finally taking center stage . Bellona Foundation , April 22, 2015.
- ↑ Charles Digges: Russia receiving ship capable of lifting nuclear waste from Arctic waters from Italy Bellona Foundation , July 24, 2015.
- ^ Charles Digges: Italy sending Russia a new nuclear waste transport vessel to haul submarine reactors Bellona Foundation , February 19, 2016.