Kyshtym disaster
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (April 2022) |
The Kyshtym disaster, sometimes referred to as the Mayak disaster or Ozyorsk disaster in newer sources, was a
The disaster is the second worst nuclear incident by radioactivity released, after the
The disaster spread hot particles over more than 52,000 square kilometres (20,000 sq mi), where at least 270,000 people lived.[6] Since Chelyabinsk-40 (later renamed Chelyabinsk-65 until 1994) was not marked on maps, the disaster was named after Kyshtym, the nearest known town.
Background
After
Environmental concerns were secondary during the early development stage. Initially Mayak dumped high-level
A storage facility for liquid
Explosion
In 1957, the Mayak plant was the site of a major disaster, one of many other such accidents, releasing more radioactive contamination than the Chernobyl disaster.[citation needed] An improperly stored underground tank of high-level liquid nuclear waste exploded, contaminating thousands of square kilometers of land, now known as the Eastern Ural Radioactive Trace (EURT).[13] The matter was covered up, and few either inside or outside the Soviet Union were aware of the full scope of the disaster until 1980.[citation needed]
Before the 1957 accident, much of the waste was dumped into the
On September 29, 1957, Sunday, 4:22 pm, an explosion occurred within stainless steel containers located in a concrete canyon 8.2 m (27 feet) deep used to store high-level waste. The explosion completely destroyed one of the containers, out of 14 total containers ("cans") in the canyon. The explosion was caused because the cooling system in one of the tanks at Mayak, containing about 70–80 tons of liquid
The workers at Ozyorsk and the Mayak plant did not immediately notice the contaminated streets, canteens, shops, schools, and kindergartens. In the first hours after the explosion, radioactive substances were brought into the city on the wheels of cars and buses, as well as on the clothes and shoes of industrial workers. After the blast at the facilities of the chemical plant, dosimetrists noted a sharp increase in the
There were no immediate reported casualties as a result of the explosion, however, and the scope and nature of the disaster were covered up both internally and abroad.
In the next ten to eleven hours, the radioactive cloud moved towards the north-east, reaching 300–350 km (190–220 mi) from the accident. The
In a memo addressed to the
Evacuations
Village | Population | Evacuation time (days) | Mean effective dose equivalent (mSv) |
---|---|---|---|
Berdyanish | 421 | 7–17 | 520 |
Satlykovo | 219 | 7–14 | 520 |
Galikayevo | 329 | 7–14 | 520 |
Rus. Karabolka | 458 | 250 | 440 |
Alabuga | 486 | 255 | 120 |
Yugo-Konevo | 2,045 | 250 | 120 |
Gorny | 472 | 250 | 120 |
Igish | 223 | 250 | 120 |
Troshkovo | 81 | 250 | 120 |
Boyovka | 573 | 330 | 40 |
Melnikovo | 183 | 330 | 40 |
Fadino | 266 | 330 | 40 |
Gusevo | 331 | 330 | 40 |
Mal. Shaburovo | 75 | 330 | 40 |
Skorinovo | 170 | 330 | 40 |
Bryukhanovo | 89 | 330 | 40 |
Krivosheino | 372 | 670 | 40 |
Metlino | 631 | 670 | 40 |
Tygish | 441 | 670 | 40 |
Chetyrkino | 278 | 670 | 42 |
Klyukino | 346 | 670 | 40 |
Kirpichiki | 160 | 7–14 | 5 |
Aftermath
Because of the secrecy surrounding Mayak, the populations of affected areas were not initially informed of the accident. A week later, on 6 October 1957, an operation for evacuating 10,000 people from the affected area started, still without giving an explanation of the reasons for evacuation.
Vague reports of a "catastrophic accident" causing "radioactive fallout over the Soviet and many neighboring states" began appearing in the Western press between 13 and 14 April 1958, and the first details emerged in the Viennese paper Die Presse on 17 March 1959.[19][21] But it was only eighteen years later, in 1976, that Soviet dissident Zhores Medvedev made the nature and extent of the disaster known to the world.[22][23] Medvedev's description of the disaster in the New Scientist was initially derided by Western nuclear industry sources, but the core of his story was soon confirmed by Professor Lev Tumerman, former head of the Biophysics Laboratory at the Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology in Moscow.[24]
The true number of fatalities remains uncertain because radiation-induced cancer is very often clinically indistinguishable from any other cancer, and its incidence rate can be measured only through epidemiological studies. Recent epidemiological studies suggest that around 49 to 55 cancer deaths among riverside residents can be associated with radiation exposure.[25] This would include the effects of all radioactive releases into the river, 98% of which happened long before the 1957 accident, but it would not include the effects of the airborne plume that was carried north-east.[26] The area closest to the accident produced 66 diagnosed cases of chronic radiation syndrome, providing the bulk of the data about this condition.[3]
To reduce the spread of radioactive contamination after the accident, contaminated soil was excavated and stockpiled in fenced enclosures that were called "graveyards of the earth".[27] The Soviet government in 1968 disguised the EURT area by creating the East Ural Nature Reserve, which prohibited any unauthorised access to the affected area.
According to Gyorgy,[28] who invoked the Freedom of Information Act to gain access to the relevant Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) files, the CIA had known of the 1957 Mayak accident since 1959, but kept it secret to prevent adverse consequences for the fledgling American nuclear industry.[29] Starting in 1989, several years after the Chernobyl disaster, the Soviet government gradually declassified documents pertaining to the incident at Mayak.[30][31]
Current situation
The level of radiation in Ozyorsk, at about 0.1 mSv a year,[32] is harmless,[33] but a 2002 study showed the Mayak nuclear workers and the Techa riverside population are still affected.[26]
See also
References
- Gazeta.ru(in Russian). Retrieved 15 January 2022.
- ^ "Kyshtym Nuclear Disaster – 1957". Retrieved 15 January 2022.
- ^ a b Gusev, Guskova & Mettler 2001, pp. 15–29
- ^ Lollino et al. 2014 p. 192
- ^ Kostyuchenko & Krestinina 1994, pp. 119–125
- ^ Webb, Grayson (12 November 2015). "The Kyshtym Disaster: The Largest Nuclear Disaster You've Never Heard Of". Mental Floss. Retrieved 21 May 2017.
- ^ Schlager 1994
- ^ a b Lenssen, "Nuclear Waste: The Problem that Won't Go Away", Worldwatch Institute, Washington, D.C., 1991: 15.
- ISBN 9781614808787.
- ^ a b c "Chelyabinsk-65".
- ^ "Conclusions of government commission" (in Russian). Archived from the original on 21 January 2013. Retrieved 21 April 2009.
- .
- ISSN 0806-895X
- ISBN 978-1317263968. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
Lake Karachay, a shallow pond about 45 hectares in area.
- ^ "Kyshtym disaster | Causes, Concealment, Revelation, & Facts". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 26 November 2017.
- ^ Melnikova, N. V.; Artemov, N. T.; Bedel, A. E.; Voloshin, N. P.; Mikheev, M. V. (2018). The History Of Interaction Between Nuclear Energy And Society In Russia (PDF). Translated by Govorukhina, T. V. Ekaterinberg: Ural University Press. Retrieved 22 September 2021.
- ^ ISBN 5-7691-1021-X.
- ^ Newtan 2007, pp. 237–240
- ^ a b Soran & Stillman 1982.
- ^ Kabakchi & Putilov 1995, pp. 46–50
- ISBN 978-1-135-55396-8.
- ^ Medvedev 1976, pp. 264–267
- ^ Medvedev 1980
- Esquire Magazine. 26 April 1978.
- ^ Standring, Dowdall & Strand 2009
- ^ a b Kellerer 2002, pp. 307–316
- ^ Trabalka 1979
- ^ Gyorgy 1979
- ^ Newtan 2007, pp. 237–240
- ^ "The decision of Nikipelov Commission" (in Russian).
- ^ Smith 1989
- S2CID 26682900.
- millisievertsper person per year, ...
Bibliography
- Lollino, Giorgio; Arattano, Massimo; Giardino, Marco; Oliveira, Ricardo; Silvia, Peppoloni, eds. (2014). Engineering Geology for Society and Territory: Education, professional ethics and public recognition of engineering geology, Volume 7. ISBN 978-3-319-09303-1.
- Schlager, Neil (1994). ISBN 978-0-8103-8908-3.
- Kabakchi, S. A.; Putilov, A. V. (January 1995). "Data Analysis and Physicochemical Modeling of the Radiation Accident in the Southern Urals in 1957". Atomnaya Energiya (1). Moscow. S2CID 93225060. Archived from the originalon 3 April 2015.
- Dicus, Greta Joy (16 January 1997). "Joint American-Russian Radiation Health Effects Research". United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Retrieved 30 September 2010.
- Kostyuchenko, V.A.; Krestinina, L.Yu. (1994). "Long-term irradiation effects in the population evacuated from the East-Urals radioactive trace area". PMID 8178130.
- Medvedev, Zhores A. (4 November 1976). "Two Decades of Dissidence". New Scientist.[permanent dead link]
- Medvedev, Zhores A. (1980). Nuclear disaster in the Urals translated by George Saunders. 1st Vintage Books ed. New York: ISBN 978-0-394-74445-2. (c1979)
- Pollock, Richard (1978). "Soviets Experience Nuclear Accident". Critical Mass Journal.
- Soran, Diane M.; Stillman, Danny B. (January 1982). An Analysis of the Alleged Kyshtym Disaster (Technical report). OSTI 5254763. LA–9217–MS – via UNT Digital Library.
- Standring, William J.F.; Dowdall, Mark; Strand, Per (2009). "Overview of Dose Assessment Developments and the Health of Riverside Residents Close to the "Mayak" PA Facilities, Russia". PMID 19440276.
- Kellerer, AM. (2002). "The Southern Urals radiation studies. A reappraisal of the current status". S2CID 20154520.
- Gusev, Igor A.; Guskova, Angelina Konstantinovna; Mettler, Fred Albert (28 March 2001). Medical Management of Radiation Accidents. ISBN 978-0-8493-7004-5. Retrieved 11 June 2012.
- Trabalka, John R. (1979). "Russian Experience". Environmental Decontamination: Proceedings of the Workshop, 4–5 December 1979, Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Oak Ridge National Laboratory. pp. 3–8. CONF-791234.
- Gyorgy, A. (1979). No Nukes: Everyone's Guide to Nuclear Power. ISBN 978-0-919618-95-4.
- Newtan, Samuel Upton (2007). Nuclear War I and Other Major Nuclear Disasters of the 20th century. AuthorHouse. ISBN 9781425985127.
- Smith, R. Jeffrey (10 July 1989). "Soviets Tell About Nuclear Plant Disaster; 1957 Reactor Mishap May Be Worst Ever". The Washington Post. p. A1. Archived from the original on 6 November 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
- Rabl, Thomas (2012). "The Nuclear Disaster of Kyshtym 1957 and the Politics of the Cold War". Environment and Society Portal (20). Arcadia: Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society.
External links
- Focus on the 60th anniversary of the Kyshtym Accident and the Windscale Fire
- An Analysis of the alleged Kyshtym Disaster
- Der nukleare Archipel Archived 23 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine (in German)
- Official documents Archived 21 January 2013 at the Wayback Machine pertaining to the disaster (in Russian)