![]() Three Mile Island (USA 1979) where the reactor was severely damaged but radiation was contained and there were no adverse health or environmental consequences.In the 60-year history of civil nuclear power generation, with over 18,500 cumulative reactor-years across 36 countries, there have been only three significant accidents at nuclear power plants: In avoiding such accidents the industry has been very successful. Those responsible for nuclear power technology in the West devoted extraordinary effort to ensuring that a meltdown of the reactor core would not take place, since it was assumed that a meltdown of the core would create a major public hazard, and if uncontained, a tragic accident with likely multiple fatalities. This naturally gave rise to concerns about accidents and their possible effects. However, with nuclear power, safety depends on much the same factors as in any comparable industry: intelligent planning, proper design with conservative margins and back-up systems, high-quality components and a well-developed safety culture in operations. The operating lives of reactors depend on maintaining their safety margin.Ī particular nuclear scenario was loss of cooling which resulted in melting of the nuclear reactor core, and this motivated studies on both the physical and chemical possibilities as well as the biological effects of any dispersed radioactivity. In the 1950s attention turned to harnessing the power of the atom in a controlled way, as demonstrated at Chicago in 1942 and subsequently for military research, and applying the steady heat yield to generate electricity. Harnessing the world's most concentrated energy source The novelty value and hence newsworthiness of nuclear power accidents remains high in contrast with other industrial accidents, which receive comparatively little news coverage. ![]() The few accidents have been spectacular and newsworthy, but of little consequence in terms of human fatalities. With nuclear power, the high energy density makes the potential hazard obvious, and this has always been factored into the design of nuclear power plants. ![]() There is wide public acceptance that the risks associated with these industries are an acceptable trade-off for our dependence on their products and services. In the chemical industry and oil-gas industry, major accidents also lead to improved safety. The lessons from nearly one hundred years’ experience mean that reputable airlines are extremely safe. In civil aviation, there are accidents every year and each is meticulously analysed. No industry is immune from accidents, but all industries learn from them. It concerns mainly materials and equipment in relation to rogue governments (see information page on Safeguards to Prevent Nuclear Proliferation).
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