Radioactive waste problems in Russia

Abstract

The collapse of the former Soviet Union, with the consequent shift to a market driven economy and demilitarisation, has had a profound effect on the nuclear and associated industries. The introduction of tighter legislation to control the disposal of radioactive wastes has been delayed and the power and willingness of the various governmental bodies responsible for its regulation is in doubt. Previously secret information is becoming more accessible and it is apparent that substantial areas of Russian land and surface waters are contaminated with radioactive material. The main sources of radioactive pollution in Russia are similar to those in many western countries. The Russian Federation government has plans for a rapid expansion of its atomic power industry. However, there is a strong public opposition to its development and inadequate financial resources for its sustainability. Furthermore, this plan is not backed by a sound strategy to manage the resultant radioactive wastes. The existing atomic power stations already face problems in the storage and safe disposal of their wastes. These arise because of limited on site capacity for storage and the paucity of waste processing facilities. Many Russian military nuclear facilities also have had a sequence of problems with their radioactive wastes. Attempts to ameliorate the impacts of discharges to important water sources have had variable success. Some of the procedures used have been technically unsound. The Russian navy has traditionally dealt with virtually all of its radioactive wastes by disposal to sea. Many areas of the Barents, Kola and the Sea of Japan are heavily contaminated. To deal with radioactive wastes 34 large and 257 small disposal sites are available. However, the controls at these sites are often inadequate and illegal dumps of radioactive waste abound. Substantial funding will be required to introduce the necessary technologies to achieve acceptable standards for the storage and disposal of radioactive wastes in Russia.

Review of the radioactive waste management system in Nigeria

“…There is still more to be done in the area of enforcement, possibly by involving the law enforcement agencies in the activities of the regulatory authority. Enforcement of radiation safety law has many factors militating against it in many countries (Darko andFletcher 1998, Bridges andBridges 1995). These factors include lack of close working relations between the regulatory authority and the level of corruption in the different countries.…”

“…These factors include lack of close working relations between the regulatory authority and the level of corruption in the different countries. Another serious factor is that of users who want to make excessive profits (Bridges and Bridges 1995) and hence avoid investing in waste management for radioactive waste. In this way users tend to frustrate the effort of the regulator by their non-compliance and this sometimes results in conflicts.…”