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INES and the disturbances in nuclear facilities

1980 – 1989

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INES, Who the f... is INES?

The International Scale of Nuclear and Radiological Events (INES) is a tool to educate the public about the safety implications of nuclear and radiological events, but INES has a problem...

We are always looking for up-to-date information. Anyone who can help, please send a message to:
nuclear-world@reaktorpleite.de

2019-2010 | 2009-2000 | 1999-1990 | 1989-1980 | 1979-1970 | 1969-1960 | 1959-1950 | 1949-1940 | Before

1989

October 19, 1989 (INES-3) NPP Vandellos, ESP

A fire at the Vandellòs nuclear power plant severely damaged the safety systems. Vandellòs 1 was then finally shut down.
(Cost approx. US$ 931 million)

Vandellós-1 was a 500 MW gas-cooled, graphite-moderated reactor (GCR) whose construction began on 21 June 1968 and which began operation on 11 February 1972. It was shut down in 1990 after a turbine fire that almost led to a major nuclear accident...

Near meltdown in Vandellós-1

On October 19, 1989, hydrogen ignited after a turbine in the non-nuclear part of the nuclear power plant was shut down, causing a generator turbine to explode and catch fire. The fire spread quickly and threatened the reactor's cooling system. While the power plant director later declared that all safety systems had worked, in reality panic had broken out in the control room. "The technicians," reported firefighters who had rushed to the scene from the surrounding area, "screamed in confusion and fled."

The fire brigade did not fight the fire with foam, as would have been correct, but with water, which flooded the power plant basement and threatened the cooling systems. Two of four carbon dioxide pumps were damaged, and the secondary circuit was also affected. The reactor temperature rose sharply, but fortunately fell back to normal the following day. The nuclear power plant narrowly avoided a core meltdown and a possible major accident...

Slowly but surely, relevant infos about incidents in the nuclear industry is being removed from Wikipedia!

Wikipedia

Nuclear Power Plant Vandellòs

Block 1

The first unit, Vandellòs-1, was a graphite-moderated and carbon dioxide-cooled reactor (UNGG reactor). This unit had an electrical output of 500 MW and was put into operation in 1972. On October 19, 1989, a serious accident occurred there (INES 3), in which the unit was irreparably damaged by a fire. Repairing the plant would have been uneconomical, so on July 31, 1990 it was decided to shut down unit 1...

April 7, 1989 (Broken Arrow) submarine accidents K-278 Komsomolets sunk south of Bear Island

42 crew members died, the nuclear reactor including the fuel and two nuclear torpedoes lie at a depth of 1685 meters...
(Costs ?)

Nuclear Power Accidents

Atomwaffen A-Z

Nuclear weapon accidents

North Cape Basin, 1989

On the line between North Cape and Bear Islands, the nuclear-powered Soviet submarine K-278 “Komsomolets” (Mike class) deviated from course on April 7, 1989 and sank after a few hours of surface travel. 42 crew members died from burns, injuries, suffocation and hypothermia. A nuclear reactor and two torpedoes with nuclear warheads lie at a depth of 1685 meters, almost 480 kilometers from Norway's coast.

Wikipedia

Komsomolets (submarine)

The K-278 Komsomolets was a Soviet nuclear submarine. It entered service in 1984 and sank on April 7, 1989. The sinking claimed the lives of 42 crew members.

[...] The fate of the Komsomolets

On April 7, 1989, a fire broke out in the Komsomolets' stern compartment. The boat was at a depth of 150 to 380 meters when a valve on a high-pressure air line connecting the boat's main ballast tanks ruptured and leaking oil (presumably from the hydraulic valve) caught fire on a hot surface. The spread of the fire could not be stopped by sealing off the compartments, as the fire spread through the boat's cable ducts. As a direct result, the reactor's automatic emergency shutdown was initiated to prevent overloading. This caused the drive to fail. The lack of power led to system failure throughout the boat, including the failure of most safety systems. The boat managed to surface after XNUMX minutes, but the rupture in the compressed air system further fueled the fire. Most of the crew left the boat. After a few hours the hull broke and the boat sank. The commander and four other crew members remaining on board tried to save themselves with the emergency capsule. However, this was partially flooded and filled with poisonous gases - only one of them survived ascent to the surface.

[...] At the time of the sinking, the boat was carrying two nuclear-armed and eight conventional torpedoes.

[...] The consequences of the demise of the Komsomolets

The sinking site is in one of the world's richest fisheries, and a leak of radioactive inventory could cost the fishing industry billions in losses. In May 1992, the research vessel Akademik Mstislaw Keldysh was called to the scene of the accident and discovered numerous fractures along the entire length of the titanium pressure hull. Some were up to 40 cm long. It was also believed that cracks could be seen in the primary cooling circuit. Cracks in this cycle would allow radioactive material to leave the reactor core and enter the lake water and thus the food chain. In the spring of 1993, the Russian government classified the fractures as harmless. Another study in August 1993 examined the circulation movements of the water at the accident site, but found no “vertical mixing” of the layers and therefore no acute risk of radioactive contamination. However, people were surprised to find an almost 8 m large hole in the bow torpedo room, which could not be explained as a result of the accident, but was obviously caused by an explosion.

[...] When an investigation revealed a leak of plutonium-239 from one of the warheads in the summer of 1994, the torpedo tube was sealed.

The cost of salvaging the boat was estimated at over $1995 billion in 24, and there was also the risk that the hull might break during the operation. As a fallback plan, sealing the boat with a jelly-like material was considered. Implementation of this plan began on June 1995, 1996, and was completed in July 20. It is expected that the hull will provide protection for 30 to XNUMX years...

1989 (INES Class.?) NPP Krsko, SVN

The release of radioactive radiation into the environment means INES-3 ...

Wikipedia

Krsko Nuclear Power Plant#Incidents

In 1989, as a correct response to an operational disruption, a valve to relieve pressure in the reactor circuit was opened due to pressure. After the pressure transient was reduced, it unexpectedly got stuck in the open position (as it did before the core meltdown accident in Three Mile Island in 1979). Due to the associated loss of cooling water, the emergency cooling switched on automatically (here, in contrast to Three Mile Island, it was not switched off again by the staff by mistake). After about fifteen minutes, the valve closed and the emergency cooling had replenished the reactor circuit to some extent. After the accident, slightly radioactive water had to be removed from the containment swamp by discharging it into the neighboring Sava river. (Source: SKI Report IRS)

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Krsko (Slovenia)

Spiegel 17/1987

»A cold shiver runs down my spine«

SPIEGEL report on concealed nuclear power plant accidents around the world Humanity has narrowly avoided disaster several times. This is revealed by 48 incident reports that were concealed by the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency: often the most bizarre, mundane mishaps from the United States and Argentina to Bulgaria and Pakistan...

1988

June 18, 1988 (INES Class.?) NPP Tihange, BEL

The release of radioactive radiation into the environment means INES-3 ...

On June 18, 1988, during the operation of the pressurized water reactor, a sudden leak occurred in a short section of the ECCS (Emergency Core Cooling System) pipeline that could not be isolated. The leak rate was in the order of 1.300 liters per hour. The cause of the leak was a crack in the wall of the pipeline measuring 9 cm on the inside and 4,5 cm on the outside. The risk of a pipe rupture in the emergency cooling system is considerable, as cold cooling water is injected into the hot system in the event of a coolant loss.
(Costs ?)

Nuclear Power Accidents

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Tihange (Belgium)#Incidents

On June 18, 1988, a leak was discovered in the reactor core's emergency cooling system...

The List of incidents at the Tihange nuclear power plant in Wikipedia begins in 2002 ...

Wikipedia

Tihange Nuclear Power Plant#Incidents, damage and reactions

The Tihange nuclear power plant consists of three power plant blocks that were connected to the grid from 1975 to 1985...

SPIEGEL report on hidden nuclear power plant incidents around the world

»A cold shiver runs down my spine«

Humanity has slipped past the catastrophe several times by a hair's breadth. This is revealed by 48 accident reports that were kept secret by the Vienna International Atomic Energy Agency: breakdowns, often of the most bizarre, profane kind from the United States and Argentina to Bulgaria and Pakistan ...

12 May 1988 (INES-2) Civaux, FRA

The Civaux-1 pressurized water reactor was shut down for five days when, during start-up tests, a 25 cm diameter pipe of the main residual heat removal system ruptured and a large leak (30.000 liters per hour) occurred in the primary cooling circuit. The reactor core must be continuously cooled, even when shut down, to dissipate the significant amount of residual heat from the fuel. It took nine hours to isolate the leak and achieve a stable situation. An 18 cm long crack was found at a weld and 300 m³ of primary coolant had leaked into the reactor building. The operator EDF suggested classifying the event as level 1 on the INES scale, but the safety authorities opted for level 2.
(Costs ?)

Nuclear Power Accidents

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Civaux (France)

On May 12, 1998, a serious accident occurred at Civaux-1. Due to a critical design flaw, a pipe ruptured under the influence of extreme temperature fluctuations. The primary cooling system lost 300 cubic meters of contaminated water—nearly three-quarters of a full load. It took 10 hours before a response team, wearing protective suits, could enter the containment structure and bring the reactor back under control, thereby preventing a catastrophe. Fortunately, the reactor was still in the test run phase at the time of the accident, and the fuel assemblies were generating very little heat. Following the accident, the entire construction series was halted: “The reactor core of Civaux-1 was unloaded, as were the cores of the two N1996 units commissioned in 1997 and 4 at the Chooz site in the Ardennes.” The residual heat removal system was redesigned and rebuilt.

Wikipedia

Civaux nuclear power plant

On May 12, 1998, a nuclear incident occurred in which a crack 18 centimeters long and 2,5 centimeters wide appeared in a cooling circuit of the first reactor. According to authorities, 30 m³ of water per hour escaped through this crack. The leak could only be located after almost 10 hours and the leaking water circuit was shut off. Cooling until the leak was repaired was ensured with the second water circuit. The incident was classified by the French nuclear regulator ASN as level 2 on the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES)...

1987

16 December 1987 (INES-1 Class.?) NPP Biblis, GER

The release of radioactive radiation into the environment means INES-3 ...

At the Biblis nuclear power plant, a shut-off valve failed and the surrounding area was contaminated.
(Costs approximately US$15 million)

Nuclear Power Accidents

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Biblis (Hesse)

At Biblis A, an incident occurred on December 16, 1987, in which radioactive water escaped the containment vessel due to valve failure and operator error. "For 15 hours, the outside world was protected from contamination by highly radioactive cooling water from reactor block A only by a barrier, the so-called secondary containment structure." The incident was not reported by the operator but was discovered days later by the regulatory authority during an investigation into another malfunction at the nuclear power plant. The subsequent investigation by TÜV Bayern determined that an uncontrollable incident had been narrowly averted and that serious violations of safety regulations had been occurring for years.

The story of this accident, which almost led to the closure of Biblis, as well as the cover-up by RWE and German politics, in which the then Environment Minister Klaus Töpfer was also involved, was examined in detail by "Spiegel" in 1988...

Mirror

11 December 1988

“We were incredibly lucky”

For almost a year, the operators of the Biblis nuclear power plant and the supervisory authorities kept the worst incident in the history of German nuclear technology secret. The course of this accident refutes the safety philosophy of nuclear energy production at its weakest point: the incorrect actions of humans in relation to a highly complex machine system are not predictable.

25 December 1988

Big sloppiness New highlight of the series of breakdowns in nuclear reactors

Brokdorf was operated without functioning emergency generators, in Biblis specially developed protective circuits failed - the reactor is switched off...

Wikipedia

Biblis Nuclear Power Plant#Events and Disturbances

In total, there have been 437 (Biblis A) plus 440 (Biblis B) reportable events since commissioning (as of December 31, 2013).

Employees had overlooked a shut-off valve that was not closed. In order to close the valve, a test valve was opened in inching mode. This caused radioactive primary coolant to leak from the containment vessel into the annular space. Since the reactor cooling water leaked from the primary circuit outside the containment vessel and thus a return from the sump via the safety feed pumps or after-cooling pumps was no longer possible, there was heated debate about the danger of a possible major accident. The incident only became public a year later, through an article in an American specialist magazine (Nucleonics Week)...

September 13, 1987 (INES-5) Cobalt cannon Goiania, BRA

A radiotherapy machine containing 19 grams of cesium-137 was stolen from a disused clinic, and the cesium was released; 249 people were irradiated, and 4 of them died.
(Costs ?)

Nuclear Power Accidents

The nuclear chain

Goiania, Brazil

Radiation accident

One of the worst civilian radiation accidents of all time occurred in the Brazilian city of Goiânia. In 1987, scrap collectors took a radiotherapy device containing caesium-137 from an empty clinic, which resulted in 249 people being exposed to radiation. Four of them died a short time later, and at least 21 suffered severe radiation damage. The long-term consequences of the accident were never investigated, and the decontamination of the affected districts was only superficial...

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Goiania, Brazil 1987

Robbery of cesium-137 from a disused radiation clinic

In the fall of 1987, just one year after Chernobyl, a nuclear disaster occurred in the central Brazilian city of Goiânia. It makes it clear that radioactive substances stored in medical centers can pose similar risks to commercial and military nuclear reactors that are out of control.

The disaster began in the ruins of the Instituto Goiâno de Radioterapia, a disused radiotherapy center that had not been demolished. The government had failed to remove radioactive materials from the site, and the former operator had left equipment there...

Wikipedia

The Goiânia accident

... During a break-in at a disused clinic, a medical device for radiotherapy was stolen and the thieves distributed the radioactive material it contained among friends and acquaintances. Hundreds of people were contaminated with radioactivity, some of it severe, four people died within a few weeks and further deaths are linked to the accident. Parts of the city are still contaminated with radioactivity today. Due to the extent of the contamination, the accident was classified by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as the largest radiological accident to date in the world and was given a level 5 (out of 7) on the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES) ...

1986

October 3, 1986 (Broken Arrow) submarine accidents, K-219 sunk east of Bermuda

More exciting than any crime novel...

Atomwaffen A-Z

Nuclear weapon accidents

Bermuda Islands, 1986

On October 980, 6, around 1986 kilometers northeast of the Bermuda Islands, the Soviet nuclear submarine K-219 (Yankee-I class) sank while being towed after a fire broke out in the missile bay on October 3. Four crew members lost their lives. There are conflicting reports about what sank with the submarine: two nuclear reactors and 16 ballistic missiles sank at a depth of 5.000 meters...

According to a survivor, 44 nuclear warheads sank and broke apart, releasing 90 kg of plutonium-239. The United States refused to finance or support an investigation of the accident site for radioactive contamination.

Wikipedia

K-219 (submarine)

K-219 was a nuclear submarine of the Soviet Navy. It belonged to the Project 667A type, NATO designation: Yankee-I class.

On October 3, 1986, around 680 nautical miles northeast of the Bermuda Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, one of the missiles detonated in its silo, and the missile compartment filled with water. The K-219 then surfaced and drifted on the surface of the water for three days. On October 6, the submarine finally sank for reasons that are ultimately unknown...

The accident on October 3

explosion on board

In the early hours of the morning, a seal burst and the silo filled with water. Attempts to empty the silo failed. As in the 1973 accident, nitric acid formed there, which attacked the missile's casing. Weapons officer Petrachkov therefore asked the submarine to be brought up to a depth of 50 m in order to vent the missile shaft and eject the missile. The change in depth was necessary to protect the sensitive missile from being crushed by the high water pressure at great depths. The process of floating an RSM-25 took about five minutes for Yankee-class boats. However, since the gas mixture ignited during the floatation, the missile exploded in the silo, ripping the silo open towards the sea and damaging the missile's nuclear warheads...

1986 (INES Class.?) NPP Mühleberg, CHE

Release of radioactive radiation into the environment means INES-3 ...

Slowly but surely, relevant information on disruptions in the nuclear industry is emerging from Wikipedia Removed! The following text is no longer available on Wikipedia as of October 2023.

Wikipedia

Mühleberg nuclear power plant

In the Chernobyl year of 1986, an independent physics teacher took dose measurements in the vicinity of the Mühleberg nuclear power plant. To his amazement, the readings were unusually high one day. The operator had to admit filter damage, which led to releases just below the limit value. Allegedly, neither the operator nor the HSK supervisory authority registered this release. The values are still slightly higher today...

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Mühleberg (Switzerland)

SPIEGEL report on hidden nuclear power plant incidents around the world

»A cold shiver runs down my spine«

May 4th and 5th, 1986 (INES 0 Class.?) NPP THTR 300, Hamm, NRW, DEU

Release of radioactive radiation into the environment means INES-3 ...

Measures to remove a damaged fuel element in the THTR resulted in the destruction of 41 fuel elements and the release of graphite dust within a radius of 4 square kilometers around the facility.
(Cost approx. US$ 308,2 million)

Nuclear Power Accidents

The incident

The incident, which cost the operators of the THTR-300 the favor of the SPD, which governed in North Rhine-Westphalia, occurred on the night of May 4-5, 1986. The radioactive cloud emanating from the radioactive reactor ruins in Chernobyl (INES 7 super-disaster on April 26, 1986) lay over Europe.

The loading of the THTR in Hamm-Uentrop should actually be automatic - exactly 60 new graphite fuel balls should be added by the automatic system at the top and 60 'old' balls should be removed at the bottom.

On the evening of May 4, 1986, one of the fuel element spheres became jammed in the piping of the fuel loading system and would not move forward or backward. The technician attempted to use gas pressure to force the broken sphere out of the pipe and into the reactor. The first purge gas used was clean, non-radioactively contaminated helium, freshly drawn from the storage container and blown toward the reactor. But the purge gas pressure alone was apparently not strong enough, so the person at the control panel sent all 40 other spheres after it, one after the other. The result of this action was 41 broken spheres and an open gas lock...

Wikipedia

THTR-300 Nuclear Power Plant#Problems and Incidents

The existing measuring devices were switched off at the time of the incident, so the exact quantities are unknown. Further attempts to blow the pipes free resulted in all jammed balls breaking and parts of the system being bent. The reactor was temporarily shut down. On September 1, 1989, the decommissioning of THTR-300 was decided due to disagreements over further funding.

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Hamm-Uentrop (North Rhine-Westphalia)

Near the reactor, 50.000 becquerels of radiation per square meter of soil were measured, caused by radioactive graphite dust. The operator initially kept quiet about the incident and later described the environmental impact as "not significantly significant"...

SPIEGEL article 'Sparkling eyes'

The Hammer reactor type was considered promising for the future – until the incident at the beginning of May...

April 26, 1986 (INES-7 NAMS 8) NPP Chernobyl, USSR

There were about 5,2 million TBq of radioactive radiation releasedA faulty reactor safety test at the Chernobyl nuclear reactor resulted in a steam explosion, a core meltdown and required a massive evacuation.
(Cost at least 700.000 million US$, continuing to rise year after year.)

Nuclear Power Accidents

Forum for Ecological-Social Market Economy (FÖS)

Follow-up costs and international expenses

The Chernobyl nuclear disaster on April 26, 1986 is the worst disaster in the history of nuclear power generation. According to an extensive literature review by the University of Southern California, the cost of the disaster by 2016 amounted to around 700 billion dollars (about 646 billion euros) worldwide. (Samet/Seo 2016).

The total includes direct costs (damage to the facility and the surrounding area, production losses, immediate health consequences) as well as indirect costs. These include the construction and renovation of the sarcophagus, the relocation of 200.000 people from the affected areas, compensation payments, radiation monitoring, and healthcare for the 10 million people in surrounding countries who were exposed to nuclear radiation.

The nuclear chain

Chernobyl, Ukraine

Catastrophe in a nuclear power plant

The Chernobyl nuclear meltdown in April 1986 was by far the largest accident in the history of the civilian nuclear industry. Entire areas of the country were contaminated and made uninhabitable for generations. The radioactive fallout led to tens of thousands of cases of cancer, deaths, miscarriages and deformities - and not just in the former Soviet Union.

Background

The first nuclear reactor was built in Chernobyl between 1971 and 1977. By 1983, the plant had been expanded to include three more reactors. In the neighboring town of Pripyat, almost all of the approximately 18.000 residents lived from jobs in the nuclear industry. The Chernobyl disaster began during a system test on April 26, 1986. A sudden increase in reactor power made an emergency shutdown necessary. This led to the achievement of a supercritical mass and thus to the start of an atomic chain reaction within the reactor. The 1.000-ton roof was lifted by the force of the explosion and the graphite-containing inventory caught fire. A cloud of radioactive smoke swept over large parts of Eastern and Central Europe and covered entire areas with radioactive fallout. Large amounts of radioactivity fell, especially north of the power plant, in parts of Belarus, but parts of Scandinavia, Asia Minor and the Bavarian Forest were also covered with radioactive iodine-131 or cesium-137. The catastrophe was kept secret from the population for days. Evacuation and protection measures were severely delayed.

Consequences for the environment and health

The first victims of the nuclear disaster were the approximately 800.000 liquidators, mostly young recruits who were brought to Chernobyl from all over the Soviet Union to bring the disaster under control. With their bare hands they had to carry radioactive rubble across the site and build a gigantic sarcophagus over the damaged reactor block. An estimated 14 to 15% of them had already died by 2005, 19 years after the accident; more than 90% of them are ill, many presumably due to their high radiation exposure...

Wikipedia

Chernobyl nuclear disaster

A super meltdown (INES level 7) in block 4 of the Chernobyl nuclear power station in the Ukraine resulted in a core meltdown and subsequent explosions. Large amounts of radioactivity were released when the reactor core was exposed and burned, and the immediate surroundings were heavily contaminated; in addition, there were numerous direct radiation victims among the auxiliary workers. The super meltdown was verified by radioactivity measurements and fallout in Sweden and other European countries. A large-scale restricted area was set up and the area evacuated...

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Chernobyl (Ukraine)

On April 26, 1986, the INES level 4 catastrophic accident occurred in Chernobyl reactor 7, during which, after a core meltdown and hydrogen explosions, large amounts of radioactive substances leaked into the environment and the atmosphere ...

Federal Office for the Safety of Nuclear Waste Management (BASE)

Nuclear accidents

In the history of the civilian use of nuclear energy, there have been serious accidents in nuclear facilities. The causes of the accidents were very different. Nuclear accidents can be caused by the failure of technical components, human error or natural disasters. A nuclear accident releases radioactive substances in greatly increased quantities...

Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BFS)

Nuclear accidents: Chernobyl

The Chernobyl accident led to the revision of programs to protect the population from radioactive radiation in many countries...

4 January 1986 (INES-4) Nuclear factory Sequoyah, OK, USA

A container ruptured at the Sequoyah uranium conversion plant, killing one worker and requiring 37 workers to be hospitalized on site.
(Cost approx. US$ 40,7 million)

Nuclear Power Accidents

Wikipedia

List of Accidents in Nuclear Facilities#1980s_Years

In the Uranium conversion plant Sequoyah by Kerr McGee In Gore, Oklahoma, an overfilled cylinder containing uranium hexafluoride burst after being heated to unacceptable levels. While filling uranium hexafluoride into a transport cylinder intended for this purpose, it was noticed that too much had been filled into the cylinder due to incorrect calibration of a scale. The attempt to empty the cylinder back to a normal level initially failed because the uranium hexafluoride in the container had cooled and solidified. To enable further decanting, heating of the cylinder was instructed to liquefy the material again. During the heating process, the overfilled cylinder ruptured and uranyl fluoride and hydrofluoric acid were released by reacting with the humidity. One worker died from inhaling hydrofluoric acid, and 100 workers and residents had to be hospitalized.

Kerr-McGee#Court case

Kerr-McGee's legal successor, Anadarko Petroleum, had attempted to avoid paying fines by outsourcing the defendants to Tronox, which later had to file for bankruptcy. A judge ruled in December 2013 that this outsourcing was fraudulent...

Anadarko Petroleum#Uranium mining

Uranium mining

The company Kerr-McGee, which was taken over by Anadarko in 2006, contaminated several industrial sites in the USA over a period of 85 years. Toxic substances were released into the groundwater and uranium was allowed to escape into the environment. The company had tried to avoid paying fines by outsourcing the areas in question to a special company (Tronox). A judge ruled in December 2013 that this outsourcing was fraud. The indigenous people of the Navajo tribe complain that Kerr-McGee had contaminated areas that they use for religious ceremonies and for hunting. To prevent children from bathing in contaminated water, the Navajo distributed a special comic book. The plaintiffs included the Navajo reservation in the southwest of the USA, the federal government and eleven states, as well as environmental groups. On April 4, 2014, the U.S. government announced that the company had agreed to pay a record fine of $5,15 billion (€3,76 billion).

Plutonium processing

The acquired company Kerr-McGee had already made negative headlines through a series of scandals at the plutonium processing plant Cimarron Fuel Fabrication Site, which was brought to light by the union activist Karen Silkwood This scandal gained international notoriety in 1983 through the film Silkwood, starring Meryl Streep.

Wikipedia

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

Sequoyah Fuels Corp

Sequoyah Fuels Corporation owned and operated a uranium processing plant near Gore, Oklahoma. The company was founded in 1983 as a subsidiary of Kerr McGee founded. In 1988 it was sold to General Atomics.

The 1986 Sequoyah Corporation fuel release in Oklahoma

On January 4, 1986, a tank rupture occurred at the Sequoyah plant, killing 26-year-old worker James Harrison and requiring 37 of the 42 workers on site to be hospitalized...

Another accident involving the release of UF6 occurred in 1992. The plant ceased production in 1993 and was decommissioned.

AtomkraftwerkePlag

There are comparable nuclear factories all over the world:

Sites for uranium enrichment and reprocessing

During reprocessing, the inventory of spent fuel elements can be separated from one another in a complex chemical process (PUREX). Separated uranium and plutonium can then be reused. As far as the theory...

YouTube 7:00

Uranium economy: Facilities for processing uranium

Reprocessing plants turn a few tons of nuclear waste into many tons of nuclear waste

All uranium and plutonium factories produce radioactive nuclear waste: Uranium processing, enrichment, and reprocessing plants, whether at Hanford, La Hague, Windscale/Sellafield, Mayak, Tokaimura, or elsewhere in the world, all face the same problem: With each processing step, more and more extremely toxic and highly radioactive waste is generated...

1985

August 10, 1985 (INES-5) Nuclear submarine K-431 Vladivostok, USSR

Wikipedia

Echo Class#K-31

K-31 was laid down on January 11, 1964 in Komsomolsk-on-Amur and launched on September 8, 1964. In 1978, the boat was given the tactical number K-431. On August 10, 1985, the boat was anchored at a naval facility in Chasma Bay, 55 km from the city of Vladivostok, to receive new fuel rods for its reactors. An error in releasing and lifting the top cap of a reactor caused a spontaneous chain reaction. The reactor cover was blown off and ruptured the boat's pressure hull, allowing water to enter the hull and K-431 to sink to the bottom next to the pier. Ten crew members were killed. The accident and subsequent salvage operations left seven people heavily irradiated and 39 others suffering from radiation sickness. The reactor compartment was subsequently filled with cement and K-431 was towed to a long-term storage facility. In 2010, the boat was transferred to the shipyard "Stern" in Bolshoi Kamen and its scrapping began ...

The nuclear chain

Chasma Bay, Russia

Nuclear submarine accident

In August 1985, an explosion on a Soviet nuclear submarine in Chasma Bay resulted in a massive release of radioactivity. More than 290 people were exposed to radioactivity and the sea and surrounding terrain were permanently contaminated. The nuclear accident was kept secret for many years. In addition, the surrounding sea has been extensively contaminated due to long-term dumping of nuclear waste. The extent of the consequences for the environment and health will probably never be fully understood.

Background

The Soviet naval base in Chasma Bay near Vladivostok was treated as a state secret during the Cold War. On the morning of August 10, 1985, workers there had just opened the reactor of the nuclear submarine K-431 when the wave of a passing torpedo boat hit the ship. All fuel rods slipped and the resulting critical mass led to a spontaneous chain reaction. A massive explosion tore off the 12-ton reactor cover and reactor fuel elements and destroyed the submarine's pressure hull. The fire that followed the explosion released radioactive isotopes such as iodine-131, cobalt-60 and manganese-54 for about seven hours. The radioactive cloud rose up to 50 m and was blown to the northwest, where radioactive fallout left a contaminated path 3,5 kilometers long and up to 650 m wide over the Dunai Peninsula. At the same time, the seabed and parts of the adjacent harbor were contaminated with cobalt-60. Similar accidents on Russian nuclear submarines were reported in Severodvinsk in 1965, 1968 and 1980, and in Nizhny Novgorod in 1970, where a nuclear chain reaction occurred during the construction of a submarine nuclear reactor. The Chasma Bay accident was successfully kept secret until 1993.

Consequences for the environment and health

Ten people died as a direct result of the explosion. The pure gamma radiation reached five millisieverts per hour (about 16.000 times the natural background radiation of 0,0003 mSv/h). The rest of the radiation was released in the form of radioactive particles with a total activity of 259 PBq (peta = quadrillion)...

July 10, 1985 - Sinking of the Rainbow Warrior I, Auckland, NZ

Greenpeace

Rainbow Warrior I - the legend

In May 1985, the crew landed on the heavily radiation-contaminated Pacific island of Rongelap. Their residents had asked Greenpeace for help. The Rainbow Warrior takes around 300 people on board and relocates them to another island.

A few weeks later there was a scandal. The Greenpeace flagship anchored in the port of Auckland in New Zealand after its South Seas mission. On July 10, 1985, two bombs detonated on the ship's hull, tearing a huge hole in the ship's side. The Rainbow Warrior sinks immediately. The crew escapes to shore, Greenpeace photographer Fernando Perreira dies...

The assassination of the Rainbow Warrior

Terror against peaceful anti-nuclear protest: In July 1985, an explosion rips apart the Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior in the port of Auckland, New Zealand. The trail leads to the French secret service...

Wikipedia

Sinking the Rainbow Warrior

The Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior was sunk on July 10, 1985 by French Service Action agents in Auckland, New Zealand.

Dubbed "Operation Satanique" by the French secret service, the operation was financed from the "fonds speciaux", a sort of official "black box" that only the President of the Republic can access...

June 14, 1985 (INES Class.?) Research reactor Constituyentes, ARG

Deviation from the permissible ranges for the safe operation of the plant means at least INES-1 ...

An excessive local power peak in the reactor core of the "RA-1 Enrico Fermi" led to the failure of 46 fuel rods, and radioactive material from the fuel elements was released into the reactor cooling system.
(Cost approx. US$ 11,2 million)

Nuclear Power Accidents

Information about this incident in the RA-1 research reactor on June 14, 1985 is in Wikipedia not to be found.

Wikipedia

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

RA-1 Enrico Fermi

RA-1 Enrico Fermi is a research reactor in Argentina. It was the first nuclear reactor built in that country and the first research reactor in the Southern Hemisphere.

Construction began in April 1957 and first criticality was achieved on January 20, 1958. It produced the first medical and industrial radioisotopes manufactured in Argentina and was used to train personnel for the country's first two nuclear power plants.

It is a pool reactor with enriched uranium oxide fuel (20% U-235), light water coolant and moderator, and a graphite reflector. It generates 40 kilowatts of thermal energy at full approved power.

It has been modernized several times and is currently used for research and teaching.

SPIEGEL report on hidden nuclear power plant incidents around the world

»A cold shiver runs down my spine«

June 9, 1985 (INES Class.?) NPP Davis Besse, OH, USA

In June 1985, a potentially catastrophic 12-minute coolant loss shut down the power plant for more than a year. The NRC called the accident the worst since Three Mile Island.
(Cost approx. US$ 26 million)

Nuclear Power Accidents

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Davis Besse (USA)

Davis-Besse-1, a pressurized water reactor with a power output of 925 MW, has been in operation since August 12, 1977...

Wikipedia

Nuclear power plant_Davis_Besse#Incidents

On June 9, 1985, when the cooling system was being put into operation, a pump malfunctioned. The pump's speed was too high due to an operator's incorrect operation. To counteract this, the pump's output was reduced. Shortly afterwards, another pump developed excess pressure. The operators switched the pump off. However, this stopped the circulation of the coolant flow. To counteract this, an operator activated the emergency feedwater pumps. At first, the event was classified as "extraordinary"; later, the incident was investigated more closely and it was found that it almost led to a core meltdown (melting of the reactor core). According to IAEA estimates, the incident at the INES was at least level 4, i.e. an "accident"...

Wikipedia

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

Nuclear reactor accidents in the United States

Loss of cooling water in the Davis-Besse reactor after the main pumps were switched off and the auxiliary pumps tripped due to an operating error. NRC review finds an emergency should have been declared for the site area.

Sierra Club

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

DAVIS BESSE NUCLEAR REACTOR

The Davis-Besse nuclear reactor is located on Lake Erie in Oak Harbor, Ohio, 20 miles east of Toledo. It is a commercial nuclear power plant with an output of 894 megawatts. In 2015, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) granted FirstEnergy a license extension to operate Davis-Besse 20 years beyond its design lifespan of 40 years. The generation of high-level radioactive waste at Davis-Besse will increase by approximately 30 tons per year.

ACCIDENTS AND INCIDENTS: Davis-Besse has experienced accidents and violations since before it was put into operation.

Six of the 34 "major accidents" in the United States occurred at Davis-Besse...

1984

July 17, 1984 (INES-3 NAMS 1,8) Nuclear factory Windscale/Sellafield, GBR

There were about 2,9 TBq radioactive radiation released. A solvent fire in the sludge tank of the wastewater treatment plant in building B241 was caused by dripping hot metal during cutting work.
(Cost approx. US$ 33,4 million)

Nuclear Power Accidents

The nuclear chain

Sellafield/Windscale, UK

The largest civilian and military nuclear facility in Europe is in Sellafield. While in the past plutonium was produced here for the British nuclear weapons program, the site now serves as a nuclear waste reprocessing plant. The Great Fire of 1957 and numerous radioactive leaks contaminated the environment and exposed the population to increased levels of radiation...

Slowly but surely, relevant infos about incidents in the nuclear industry is being removed from Wikipedia!

Wikipedia

Sellafield

The complex was made famous by a catastrophic fire in 1957 and by frequent nuclear incidents, which is one of the reasons why it was renamed Sellafield. Up until the mid-1980s, large quantities of the nuclear waste generated in day-to-day operations were discharged in liquid form via a pipeline into the Irish Sea.

Wikipedia

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

Sellafield # Incidents

Radiological releases

Between 1950 and 2000 there were 21 serious off-site incidents or accidents involving radiological releases that warranted classification on the International Nuclear Event Scale, one at Level 5, five at Level 4 and fifteen at Level 3. In addition, there were in intentional releases of plutonium and irradiated uranium oxide particles into the atmosphere known for extended periods in the 1950s and 1960s...

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Sellafield (formerly Windscale), UK

In November 2001, the European Parliament adopted a Study on the possible toxic effects of the reprocessing plants in La Hague (France) and Sellafield, written by WISE/Paris under the direction of Mycle Schneider. The study concluded that up to that point, both sites had caused the highest human-caused release of radioactivity ever, comparable to one major nuclear accident every year. The release of radioactive substances was possibly twice that after the Chernobyl disaster. A significant increase in leukaemia cases has been observed in the area surrounding both sites; it is considered possible that radioactive emissions from both plants may have contributed to this. At Sellafield, significant concentrations of radionuclides have been detected in food, sediments, flora and fauna. Carbon-14, caesium-137, cobalt-60, iodine-129, plutonium, strontium-90, technetium-99, the latter with a half-life of 214.000 years...

According to an October 2018 report, the decommissioning of Sellafield is scheduled to be completed by 2120. Estimated to cost £121bn...

There are comparable nuclear factories all over the world:

Sites for uranium enrichment and reprocessing

YouTube 7:00

Uranium economy: Facilities for processing uranium

Reprocessing plants turn a few tons of nuclear waste into many tons of nuclear waste

June 13, 1984 (INES Class.?) NPP Fort St. Vrain, CO, USA

Moisture ingress led to the failure of 6 fuel assemblies at the Fort St. Vrain nuclear power plant, necessitating an emergency shutdown by the Public Service Company of Colorado.
(Cost approx. US$ 26 million)

Nuclear Power Accidents

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Fort St Vrain (USA)

For example, on June 13, 1984 B. triggered an emergency shutdown due to defects in fuel elements; there was damage of 26 million US dollars. On September 6, 1984, snow and storms caused the emergency power supply to fail. On October 3, 1987, leaking oil caused a fire in the turbine room and extensive damage.

Gloomy record

Like other high-temperature reactors, Fort St. Vrain had poor performance. The reactor never operated above 73% of its capacity and was shut down from June 23, 1984, to April 11, 1986. On August 18, 1989, it was shut down due to a jammed control rod; its permanent closure was announced 11 days later...

Wikipedia

Fort St. Vrain Nuclear Power Plant

The Fort St. Vrain Nuclear Generating Station with a high-temperature reactor was located near Platteville in the US state of Colorado.

History

The reactor in Fort St. Vrain was one of two high-temperature reactors in the USA. Construction began on September 1, 1968. The reactor's output was 342 megawatts. The reactor began operation on December 11, 1976. After it was shut down in 1989, the building was demolished by 1992. The dismantling, which cost 174 million USD, was completed in 1997 and a gas-fired power plant was built on the site.

Wikipedia

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

Fort Saint Vrain Nuclear Power Plant

Water infiltration and corrosion problems (helium circulators)

The biggest problem at Fort St. Vrain involved the helium circulator. The smaller molecules of helium required very tight seals to prevent the gas from escaping. Some seals consisted of moving surfaces, and a water-lubricated bearing was used to contain the helium. A gas purification system was provided to remove contaminants, including water, from the helium system. Design problems resulted in too much water being in the helium system, causing corrosion...

SPIEGEL report on hidden nuclear power plant incidents around the world

»A cold shiver runs down my spine«

1983

November 11, 1983 (INES-3) Nuclear factory Windscale/Sellafield, GBR

Accidental transfer of 59 TBq Radioactivity with solvents and raw materials from building B205 into a sea tank in building B242.
(Cost approx. US$ 44 million)

Nuclear Power Accidents

The nuclear chain

Sellafield/Windscale, UK

Slowly but surely, relevant infos about incidents in the nuclear industry is being removed from Wikipedia!

Wikipedia

Sellafield

Wikipedia

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

Sellafield # Incidents

Radiological releases

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Sellafield (formerly Windscale), UK

According to an October 2018 report, the decommissioning of Sellafield is scheduled to be completed by 2120. Estimated to cost £121bn...

There are comparable nuclear factories all over the world:

Sites for uranium enrichment and reprocessing

YouTube 7:00

Uranium economy: Facilities for processing uranium

Reprocessing plants turn a few tons of nuclear waste into many tons of nuclear waste

September 23, 1983 (INES-4) Research reactor Constituyentes, ARG

On September 23, 1983, a core meltdown occurred at the Constituyentes nuclear center due to an operator error during the reconfiguration of the RA-2 research reactor, resulting in a total of 18 people exposed to radiation were; one of the Reactor technician died two days later the radiation damage suffered.
(Cost approx. US$ 76 million)

Nuclear Power Accidents

Wikipedia

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

Accident nuclear reactor RA-2

The RA-2 nuclear accident that occurred in Argentina on Friday, September 23, 1983 stems from serious human operator error that triggered a power excursion at the RA-2 research reactor. The reactor was located in the Centro Atómico Constituyentes, a department of the Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica (CNEA). This is the deadliest accident in the history of Argentine nuclear development, and the technician in charge of the tests died. In addition, 17 other people were exposed to varying degrees of radiation, depending on their distance from the scene of the accident...

Nuclear accident at reactor RA-2#Causes

According to a report by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the cnea After the incident, an internal commission was set up to investigate the causes, which came to the following conclusions:

The moderator fluid was not completely drained from the tank before the core configuration was changed.
Two fuel elements that should have been completely removed remained in the reactor in contact with the graphite reflector.
The order in which the fuel assembly repositioning was performed reduced the subcriticality of the system.
Two 15-plate fuel assemblies were installed without the corresponding cadmium control plates. The second of these assemblies was found partially installed, suggesting that the accident occurred at this time.
All of this work was carried out without the presence of a safety officer or operations manager.

The investigation also identified deficiencies in the condition of the equipment and operating procedures, and the manner in which permission was obtained to conduct these tests without proper oversight. Another conclusion of the investigation was that self-confidence, likely due to several years of operation of the reactor without incident, may have played a role in simplifying steps and ignoring important safety factors.

August 1, 1983 (INES Class.?) NPP Pickering, ON, CAN

Release of radioactive radiation into the environment means INES-3 ...

On August 1, 1983, a loss-of-coolant accident occurred at Pickering Reactor 2 after a meter-long crack developed in a pressure pipe. The power plant was shut down, and the four reactors at Pickering A were eventually repiped at a cost of approximately $1 billion.
(Costs approx. 1009 million US$)

Nuclear Power Accidents

Ontario's nuclear facilities:

History and estimation of the lifespan of the blocks and the costs of rehabilitation

Safety Issues at the Pickering “A” Nuclear Station - Page No. 8

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

Ontario's Nuclear Generating Facilities - PDF file

August 1, 1983 - A serious "Loss of Coolant Accident" (LOCA) occurred at Pickering Reactor 2 after a pressure tube developed a meter-long crack. All four reactors at Pickering were eventually shut down over a ten-year period to be rebuilt at a cost of about $1 billion - more than the original capital cost of the plant.

Wikipedia

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

Pickering Nuclear Power Plant

Pickering Nuclear Generating Station is a Canadian nuclear power station located on the north shore of Lake Ontario in Pickering, Ontario. It is one of the oldest nuclear power stations in the world and Canada's third-largest, with eight CANDU reactors. Since 2003, two of these units have been defuelled and deactivated. The remaining six produce about 16% of Ontario's power and employ 3.000 workers...

Incidents

A serious incident occurred on 1 August 1983. Pressure tube G16 in the Pickering A Unit 2 reactor developed a 2 metre long split. The reactor was safely shut down and the damage investigated. The cause was found to be the mis-location of annulus gas spacer springs which allowed the hot pressure tube to sag and touch the inside of the cold calandria tube leading to hydrogen enrichment of the cooler areas. This created a series of small cracks which linked up and caused the long rupture. There was some local fuel damage and the reactor was safely shut down by the operators with no increase in radioactive emissions. The eventual resolution was Large Scale Fuel Channel Replacement and all the pressure tubes were replaced in all Pickering A reactors. The new pressure tubes were supported by an improved design of the annulus gas spacer springs. Since then, careful monitoring of the location of the annulus gas spacer rings has been a significant part of routine reactor inspections.

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Pickering (Canada)

The grassroots organization Sierra Club Canada protested against the lifetime extension in 2013 and called for the nuclear power plant to be shut down immediately due to aging, increasing radiation and increasing release of tritium. In June 2010, for example, unexpected beta-gamma radiation from reactors 5 to 8 was released into the water.

On March 17, 2011, 73.000 liters of water, slightly contaminated with tritium, flowed into Lake Ontario because of a sealing problem at a pump. The operator and supervisory authority described the risks as "negligible".

In January 2012, according to the Sierra Club, contaminated water leaked out of the "broken" reactor 4. The operator and regulator described the risks as "negligible" ...

June 30, 1983 (INES Class.?) NPP Embalse, ARG

The release of radioactive radiation into the environment means INES-3 ...

Wikipedia

Embalse Nuclear Power Plant

On June 30, 1983, a serious incident occurred in the nuclear power plant (overheating of the cooling circuit), which, however, could be brought under control by employees. In 1986 there was another incident when heavy water came out of the power plant. Both incidents were kept secret by those responsible for a long time, only the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was informed. The operators were obviously able to prevent an INES classification. It was only through research that the media managed to bring the incident to the public.

Up to 2007 there had been a total of ten incidents at Akw Embalse ...

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Embalse (Argentina)

Prevented GAU 1983 and other incidents

On June 30, 1983, an incident occurred that those responsible kept secret from the public: According to "Spiegel", the secondary circuit collapsed after several pumps failed and due to operating errors, the water continued to heat up, radioactive steam and hot water shot out a defective auxiliary valve. After more than three hours, all valves could be closed with improvised measures, a GAU was just prevented ...

Spiegel 17/1987

»A cold shiver runs down my spine«

SPIEGEL report on hidden nuclear power plant incidents around the world

1982

September 1, 1982 (INES-5) NPP Chernobyl, USSR

Partial meltdown - fuel channels 62-44 were destroyed, irradiation of the personnel involved in the repair of the reactor.
(Costs approx. 1100 million US$)

Nuclear Power Accidents

Wikipedia

Chernobyl nuclear power plant

On September 1, 1982, a central fuel assembly was destroyed by overheating as a result of operator error. Significant amounts of radioactivity escaped, the radioactive gases reached the city of Pripyat. During the repair, several workers were exposed to a significantly excessive dose of radiation...

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Chernobyl (Ukraine)

On September 1st or 9th, 1982 (depending on the source) the first serious incident had already occurred. The central fuel element in reactor 1 was overheated and completely destroyed due to an operator error. Radioactive substances were released into the environment and spread through the plant and the industrial zone to Pripyat: iodine, krypton, xenon, tellurium and cesium. When removing the damage, workers were exposed to increased radiation, several died ...

August 4, 1982 (INES Class.?) NPP Doel, BEL

Wikipedia

Doel Nuclear Power Plant

On August 4, 1982, after the failure of the 380 kV network and strong voltage fluctuations in the reserve network, emergency power occurred in the two oldest Doel blocks. Four diesel generators started, but due to errors they were unable to provide the supply necessary for cold start-up (see decay heat). As a final reserve, an electricity-independent cooling system powered by the steam from the decay heat came into action in both reactor blocks until the power supply was restored after about an hour (source: SKI report IRS)...

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Doel (Belgium)

SPIEGEL report on hidden nuclear power plant incidents around the world

»A cold shiver runs down my spine«

1981

October 1, 1981 (INES-3 NAMS 1,3) Nuclear factory Windscale/Sellafield, GBR

Reprocessing of fuel assemblies that had been cooled for only 27 days resulted in the release of 0,9 TBq radioactive iodine.
(Cost approx. US$ 9 million)

Nuclear Power Accidents

The nuclear chain

Sellafield/Windscale, UK

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Sellafield (formerly Windscale), UK

According to an October 2018 report, the decommissioning of Sellafield is scheduled to be completed by 2120. Estimated to cost £121bn...

There are comparable nuclear factories all over the world:

Sites for uranium enrichment and reprocessing

Slowly but surely, relevant infos about incidents in the nuclear industry is being removed from Wikipedia!

Wikipedia

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

Sellafield # Incidents

Radiological releases

YouTube 7:00

Uranium economy: Facilities for processing uranium

Reprocessing plants turn a few tons of nuclear waste into many tons of nuclear waste

6 January 1981 (INES-3) Nuclear factory La Hague, FRA

In La Hague there was a fire disaster in a waste storage facility with graphite elements and uranium metal, and a worker was exposed to increased radiation.
(Cost approx. US$ 5,4 million)

Nuclear Power Accidents

The nuclear chain

The Hague, France

The reprocessing plant in La Hague produces plutonium and uranium from spent nuclear fuel rods. Large quantities of nuclear waste and fissile materials are stored, which greatly increases the risk of plutonium proliferation. In addition, radioactive waste pollutes the sea and the atmosphere. Several studies have already shown an increased incidence of leukemia in children in the La Hague area...

EU study from 2001

See on the Pages 112 and 113

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

Graphite elements burned for 24 hours in a waste silo. The maximum level of measured air contamination, 700 Bq/m3, was reached 10 hours after the fire started. The activity released is mainly due to cesium-137 and -134 (137Cs and 134Cs) and is between 740 GBq and 1.850 GBq, i.e. 10 times the annual limit. The annual limit for the entire La Hague site is 74 GBq for cesium-137.

Strontium-90 (90Sr) was detected in stormwater and the permissible limit for surface contamination was reached 6 km from the site. One worker received the annual permissible dose of 50 mSv in one day.

No investigation into the health effects outside the site was conducted.

Slowly but surely, relevant infos about incidents in the nuclear industry is being removed from Wikipedia!

Wikipedia

La Hague reprocessing plant#Environmental impact

In 1981 there was a catastrophic fire in a waste storage facility for graphite elements and uranium metal (INES level 3), which worried many people ...

AtomkraftwerkePlag

La Hague (France)

In November 2001, a study on the possible toxic effects of the reprocessing plants in La Hague (France) and Sellafield was published by the European Parliament, written by WISE/Paris under the direction of Mycle Schneider. Their conclusion was that up to this point in time both sites had the highest human-caused release of radioactivity, comparable to a major nuclear accident every year. The release of radioactive substances was possibly twice that after the Chernobyl disaster. A significant increase in leukaemia cases has been observed in the area surrounding both sites; it is considered possible that radioactive emissions from both plants may have contributed to this. At Sellafield, significant concentrations of radionuclides have been detected in food, sediments, flora and fauna. Carbon-14, caesium-137, cobalt-60, iodine-129, plutonium, strontium-90, technetium-99, the latter with a half-life of 214.000 years...

There are comparable nuclear factories all over the world:

Sites for uranium enrichment and reprocessing

YouTube 7:00

Uranium economy: Facilities for processing uranium

Reprocessing plants turn a few tons of nuclear waste into many tons of nuclear waste

1980

September 22, 1980 (INES-3 NAMS 1,6) Nuclear factory Windscale/Sellafield, GBR

Corrosion in the B38 building Magnox storage silo resulted in the release of 2 TBq Plutonium.
(Cost approx. US$ 55 million)

Nuclear Power Accidents

The nuclear chain

Sellafield/Windscale, UK

Slowly but surely, relevant infos about incidents in the nuclear industry is being removed from Wikipedia!

Wikipedia

Sellafield

Wikipedia

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

Sellafield # Incidents

Radiological releases

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Sellafield (formerly Windscale), UK

According to an October 2018 report, the decommissioning of Sellafield is scheduled to be completed by 2120. Estimated to cost £121bn...

There are comparable nuclear factories all over the world:

Sites for uranium enrichment and reprocessing

YouTube 7:00

Uranium economy: Facilities for processing uranium

Reprocessing plants turn a few tons of nuclear waste into many tons of nuclear waste

March 13, 1980 (INES-4) NPP Saint Laurent, FRA

A faulty cooling system in the Saint Laurent A-2 UNGG reactor melted fuel together, forcing an extended shutdown.
(Cost approx. US$ 26 million)

Nuclear Power Accidents

AtomkraftwerkePlag

Saint Laurent (France)

1980: Partial meltdown in reactor A-2

The second accident at Saint-Laurent, described as the most serious in French history, occurred in reactor A-2 on March 13, 1980. A metal plate had come loose and clogged dozens of cooling tubes, after which the cooling system partially failed. Two fuel elements melted, the radioactive contamination of the cooling gas increased massively. Fortunately, the emergency shutdown worked, and the reactor was automatically deactivated ...

Wikipedia

Saint-Laurent Nuclear Power Plant#Incidents, partial meltdowns

On March 13, 1980, a fuel element melted in the other UNGG reactor A2. The damage led to contamination of the building. The reactor was then unavailable for the next two and a half years. During the cleaning work, it was noticed that several kilograms of molten material had settled in a caisson. It was flushed with water and the substances (including plutonium) ended up in the Loire. Later studies of the sediments of the river downstream of the power plant showed that the amount discharged into the river corresponded to about 0,3 g of pure plutonium. This accident was classified by the French nuclear regulator ASN as level 4 on the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES)...

Wikipedia

Translation https://www.DeepL.com/Translator

Nuclear power accidents by country#France

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