IAEAInternational Atomic Energy Agency
High School
Topic B - Nuclear Waste Disposal
Introduction to the Committee The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is a secondary organ of the
United Nations. This international agency aims at promoting the peaceful,
secure and safe management of nuclear energy and nuclear material around the
world. The creation of this agency came in 1957 after United States President
Dwight Eisenhower proposed it to the General Assembly in 1953.
Figure 1-Logo IAEA
The IAEA is constituted of a 35-member Board of Governors and a General
Conference constituted of all member states. The agency essentially monitors
the peaceful usage of nuclear science and technology in aim of being an active
organ in maintaining international security and contributing to the economic,
social and environmental development agenda of the world.
Introduction to the Topic
In the year 600 A.D, the global
population was estimated to be
roughly half a billion. In 1800 A.D,
one thousand and two hundred years
later, the population only doubled to a
billion. Following relatively recent
advancements in medicine and general
wellbeing, the population skyrocketed
to 7 billion in the 21st century, within
a 200 year period. Alongside the
industrial revolution in the late 1700s,
the exponential growth of human
existence has led to a drastic increase
of air, marine, and terrestrial
pollution. As the population increases,
pollution tends to increase as well, and severely harms 100 million individuals
every year.
To sum up this observation, traditional energy production sources have been
causing a great threat to the environment as a whole. In response to this
alarming issue, new sources of energy production had to be introduced to the
world. As an attempted result, the electricity era welcomed the most
controversial method of energy production, nuclear power plants. A nuclear
power plant, by definition, is a facility that uses atomic fusion, in which heat is
produced using a nuclear reactor. Similar to all conventional thermal power
stations, the resulting heat is used to generate steam, which then drives a steam
turbine that produces electricity. On June 26 1954, the world’s ever first nuclear
power plant came into existence. It is located in Obninsk, Russia, and dubbed
by the name of APS-1. As of July 2015, thirty nations across the globe operate
438 nuclear reactors, along with 67 ones planned in fifteen countries. Nuclear
power plants provided 10.9% of the world’s electricity production, according to
the most recent statistics.
Despite being relatively more environment-friendly than fossil fuel burning,
nuclear power poses a tragic threat in the event of a reactor failure, or failing to
maintain its radioactive waste. Nuclear power is the only electricity production
technology that takes full responsibility for its wastes and hazards. It is of
crucial importance to monitor nuclear
power plants to avoid fatal
malfunctions, and to regulate their
wastes to avoid radioactive contamination.
Ever since the discovery of nuclear atomic power, there have been around 25
disastrous accidents and incidents in various parts of the globe. To begin with,
the first deliberate disaster, killing around 200,000 individuals, happened during
the end of World War II in 1945, when the United States released two nuclear
bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Nuclear waste and contamination linger in
the two Japanese cities till this day, causing massive biological complications
and malformations among hundreds of thousands of local civilians. Moving on
to irresponsible contamination incidents, in the Ural mountains of Eastern
Russia exists Lake Karachay, better known as the most polluted spot on the
planet. The lake was used as a dumping zone for the Soviet Union’s nuclear
Percentage Ranks of Nuclear Energy
facilities. Cancer and birth defects escalated in the nearby inhabited districts.
Moreover, an exposure to the lake of less than an hour is enough to kill an adult
human being. Also in the same region, the Techa River suffers from
contamination for the same reasons. The nuclear facility behind the
contamination of these two natural elements, Mayak, malfunctioned on
September 29 1957, and resulted in the world’s third biggest nuclear tragedy,
known as the Kyshtym disaster. The majority of nuclear contamination events
evolve around military equipment testing. Some major examples are the United
State’s Hanford Site, Operation Plumbbob, and Operation Fishbowl. Russia’s
include the Totsyoke nuclear exercise. There were also two incidents involving
the explosion of nuclear military submarines; the Soviet Union’s K-19 and K84.
Last but not least, the two most notable nuclear pollution crises were 1986’s
Chernobyl disaster and 2011’s (also most recent) Fukushima Daiichi disaster.
Since nuclear accidents totally annihilate the ability to control radioactive
contamination, the only solution is to prevent the erroneous situations in the
first place. Concerning the nuclear waste that coagulates over time in perfectly
functional nuclear power plants, there have been several approaches to handling
them in the safest and most beneficial ways.
History of the Topic:
Two of the most recalled accident-induced radioactive contaminations are the
Chernobyl and Fukushima disasters.
Major Disasters: Chernobyl Fallout
On April 26, 1986, a massive
system failure occurred at Unit
4 of the nuclear energy facility
at Chernobyl, the former
USSR.
The operating engineers were
conducting an experiment to
test whether the turbines would
produce enough power to keep the cooling pumps active in the event of a power
loss, until the backup diesel generators were powered on.
To avoid any interference with the power of the Unit, the safety systems were
intentionally turned off. To implement the experiment, the reactor was powered
down to 25% of its capacity. This process did not sequence according to plan
and the power level of the reactor dropped to less than 1%. The power,
therefore, had to be slowly turned up. However, 30 seconds after the first test
run, there was an unanticipated power surge. The reactor's emergency shutdown
system, which should have seized an atomic chain reaction, malfunctioned.
The reactor's radioactive components scattered and there was a massively
violent explosion. The reactor building’s 1000-tonne sealing cap was
completely blown off. At extreme temperatures higher than 2000°C, the
metallic rods melted instantly. The reactor was covered with graphite, which
caught fire. The graphite flamed up for nine consecutive days, emitting deadly
and destructive amounts of radioactive material into the vast surrounding
environment. The disaster emitted more radiation than the intended release of
the nuclear bomb on Hiroshima. Chernobyl and a nearby city, Pripyat, remain
abandoned human habitats up to this day.
The Fukushima Daiichi Disaster
The disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant was prompted by the
Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, on March 11 2011. The earthquake
broke down AC power to the plant and the tsunami flooded sectors of the plant
area. The tsunami washed out critical reactor equipment, which caused the
persistent failure of onsite DC and AC electricity, which then resulted in the
loss of reactor control, cooling, and monitoring systems in multiple units. Three
reactors, Units 1, 2 and 3, underwent serious core destruction. In addition three
reactor buildings were destroyed by hydrogen explosions, and extensive
emissions of radioactive waste contaminated the environment in Fukushima and
many neighboring areas. The catastrophe provoked widespread evacuations of
local inhabitants and national panic among the Japanese citizens, drastic
economic decline, and the consequent halting of all other nuclear power plants
in Japan.
Nuclear Waste Disposal: Used Fuel Management
Until governments of nuclear-
powered countries establish an
agreement on the techniques
and whereabouts of nuclear
waste disposal, all
commercially used up nuclear
fuel is safely and securely
stored in reactor areas, in
metallic-lined concrete pools
filled with water, or in vacuum
steel containers. This temporary storage technique is one of many approaches to
resolve nuclear waste.
Federal governments have committed on their legal obligations to handle used
nuclear fuel from power reactors since 1998. The industry of nuclear energy is
determined to work, in collaboration with international federal governments,
along with their state leaders and administrating, on establishing protocols that
ensures the safety, sustainability, and efficiency of nuclear power plants.
Used Nuclear Fuel Storage
Utilized atomic fuel comprises of little uranium pellets stacked inside
compound fuel rods. All of the utilized atomic fuel generated by the atomic
power industry in the last 50 years, if stacked together, would spread out a
territory the size of a football field, and to a depth of approximately 10 meters.
The Nuclear Energy Institution (NEI) encourages the enhancement of a unified
facility for the impermanent stockpiling of utilized atomic wastes, in a willing
and determined nation. Meanwhile, significant advancements may be
constructed to ensure the temporality of the storage approach.
Transportation
The IAEA gives the facilities of nuclear energy the full responsibility to
displace utilized nuclear waste from nuclear power plant sites to impermanent
storage areas and repositories. Transportation will be implemented using road
and rail. The radioactive waste will be stored in sealed massive containers that
qualify for strict security and safety requirements.
Nuclear Disposal
Nuclear resources may be used more than once to generate energy. No matter
how many times it is used, it is of utmost importance to dispose its high-level
radioactive remains permanent geological repositories.
The key to achieving a sustainable management program is the establishment of
facilities that specialize in mechanisms of underground disposal. The industry
of nuclear energy highly encourages the Nuclear Regulatory Commission of
building permanent repositories in various secluded areas on the globe.
Recycling Used Nuclear Fuel
An alternative to the disposal of radioactive wastes in underground repositories
is the recycling of the used nuclear resources. The industry is conducting
extensive development, research, and demonstrations of enhanced fuel recycling
technologies. However, recycling cannot completely substitute underground
disposal, and thus the presence of repositories is vital in all cases. Fortunately,
recycling may potentially decrease the toxicity, heat, volume and pollution of
byproducts deposited in repositories.
Low-Level Radioactive Waste
Low-level waste usually refers to the byproducts of radioactive sources used in
the medical industry, specifically in radiology. There have been numerous
nuclear-related accidents in medical facilities that have killed dozens of
patients. Two examples are 1996’s San Juan Dios radiotherapy accident, and
1990’s clinic of Zaragoza. Therefore, it is crucial for these medical institutions
to take full precautions in handling nuclear material and monitoring their
equipment.
International Actions
The following resolutions were established by the IAEA concerning the agenda
“Measures to Strengthen International Co-operation in Nuclear Radiation and
Waste Safety”:
GC(44)/RES/16
GC(44)/RES/15
GC(44)/RES/14
GC(44)/RES/13
GC(44)/RES/12
GC(44)/RES/11
GC(45)/RES/10
GC(46)/RES/9
GC(47)/RES/7
The resolutions mainly revolve around the following internationally agreed
upon initiatives:
• Assessment of disposal programmes within the guidelines of an
integrated international nuclear waste disposal infrastructure
• Establishment of near surface and geological management facilities,
including deep holes of storage for disused and sealed radioactive
material
• Dissemination and preservation of enhancement, operational and post-
operational research on nuclear waste disposal
• Enhancement of near-surface storage repositories
• Implementation of training in the field of waste management
technological mechanisms and improving intercommunications between
experts in nuclear waste disposal via the use of Networks, DISPONET
and URF
• Assessing institutional, socio-political, scientific, and technical issues
using the aid of stakeholder involvement to boost investment confidence
• Investing the use of regional and internationally shared waste
management facilities (multi-national solutions).
Other international efforts include:
• Initiating a “Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident” in
1986
• “International Conference on Issues and Trends in Radioactive Waste
Management”- Vienna (2002)
• “International Conference on Safe Decommissioning for Nuclear Activities:
Assuring the Safe Termination of Practices involving Radioactive
Materials” - Berlin (2002)
• “The Convention on Nuclear Safety (CNS)” - United States (2011)
Recommendations:
• Delegates are expected to fully acknowledge the direct threat that nuclear
wastes pose on the international community.
• Countries that are not involved in nuclear activities can collaboratively and
voluntarily conduct research on nuclear waste management, and address
proposals to the IAEA council.
• Countries that are not involved in nuclear activities may also offer resources,
if available, to the directly involved states.
• Delegates are also expected to determine the best technique of handling
wastes, in terms of finance, efficacy, and safety.
• It is crucial to strengthen a coordinated response to emergency nuclear-
related disasters.
• The agenda is always open to financial funds.
Questions to Consider:
1) Is your country involved with nuclear power production? If not, are there
any future plans?
2) Is your country financially capable of contributing funds to international
research facilities on nuclear waste management?
3) In return for financial rewards, is your country willing to donate
resources, most importantly secluded land, for the implementation of
nuclear waste repositories?
4) How would you enhance research about the topic in your country?
5) Would it be possible to restrict military testing of nuclear equipment?
6) How would you ensure international cooperation in the event of a
misfortunate nuclear accident?
References
1) "Atoms for Peace."Atoms for Peace. Web. 29 Jan. 2016.
<https://www.iaea.org/about>.
2) "Timeline: Nuclear Plant Accidents - BBC News."BBC News. Web. 29
Jan. 2016. <http://www.bbc.com/news/world-13047267>.
3) "Nuclear Quotes."BrainyQuote. Xplore. Web. 29 Jan. 2016.
<http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/nuclear.html>.
4) "What Happened in Chernobyl?"Greenpeace International. Web. 29 Jan.
2016.
<http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/nuclear/nomorec
hernobyls/what-happened-in-chernobyl/>.
5) "International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)."IAEA Safety Standards:
Radioactive Waste Management. Web. 29 Jan. 2016. <http://www-
ns.iaea.org/standards/documents/topics.asp?sub=170>.
6) "Nuclear Energy."Nuclear Power Plant Definition. Web. 29 Jan. 2016.
<http://nuclear-energy.net/definitions/nuclear-power-plant.html>.
7) "Nuclear Power Plants, World-wide."Nuclear Power Plants, World-wide.
Web. 29 Jan. 2016.
<https://www.euronuclear.org/info/encyclopedia/n/nuclear-power-plant-
world-wide.htm>.
8) "World Nuclear Association."Radioactive Waste Management. Web. 29
Jan. 2016. <http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/nuclear-fuel-
cycle/nuclear-wastes/radioactive-waste-management/>.
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