March 19, 2014 ____________________________________________________ Nuclear Waste Repository, Finland’s Onkalo Project ____________________________________________________ In regard to the future safety of Onkalo spent nuclear fuel repository in Finland: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onkalo_spent_nuclear_fuel_repository I have just views a short video, “Into Eternity,” by Michael Madsen: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Into_Eternity_%28film%29 The purpose of the repository is alleged to keep the material stored for 100,000 years, away from the surface where it cannot be disturbed. The video information points out that there is no way of knowing if people 100, 500, or a thousand years from now will know not to enter the underground repository. It is already in production at this time. It was not stated in the film what particular radioactive materials were to be buried and what its half-life their respective half-lives were, i.e., it was not shown that 100,000 years long enough for the materials to become non-radioactive. Assumptions made by those building the repository include the claim warning markers will be sufficient to deter people from accessing the stored waste. The opposition shows that to be an unwarranted assumption. One of the proponents spokespersons also claimed that persons in the future will have knowledge of radioactivity and radioactive decay rates, radiation detection, and chemical analysis. That is unwarranted, also. Most of the people alive today do not. (Do you?) Missing from the film was a challenge to the assumption that the bedrock will stay indefinitely at the depth it is now for 100,000 years (the proposed depth of the repository is 500 meters). There is no basis for believing we can now accurately predict that the current depth of bedrock in Finland will remain stable. The decision to proceed on such a project is made by elected officials whose only qualification for office is the ability to get elected. Earth science, geophysics, and the nuclear physics would be more appropriate. The elected officials can probably cite expert opinion supplied by companies with a vested interest in construction of the repository or from academics specializing in one aspect, but not in all aspects. Such sources are far too biased to consider reliable. Following are links to background knowledge necessary to understand the predicament. __________________________ • Bedrock en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bedrock • Examples of exposed bedrock Accessed March 19, 2014 from National Geographic Education at: education.nationalgeographic/education/encyclopedia/bedrock/?ar_a=1 __________________________ Reasons why bedrock can become exposed: __________________________ • Isostasy en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isostasy • Tectonic uplift en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tectonic_uplift • Weathering: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weathering • Erosion: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erosion • Glacial erosion in particular . . . Images of glacial erosion to bedrock: https://google/search?q=glacial+erosion+to+bedrock&client=firefox-a&hs=8oO&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&channel=sb&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=k_4pU_y7IJbooASN64LYCg&ved=0CCYQsAQ&biw=1600&bih=746 Example: • “Rainfall Controls Cascade Mountains Erosion And Bedrock Uplift Patterns.” National Science Foundation, December 15, 2003. Accessed Wednesday, March 19, 2014 at: sciencedaily/releases/2003/12/031212075857.htm __________________________ The groundwater level rises as the bedrock rises; a breach in the repository if the groundwater meets the waste means radioactive groundwater: __________________________ Groundwater, accessed from United States Geological Survey (USGS) The USGS Water Science School website, Wednesday, March 19, 2014, at: water.usgs.gov/edu/earthgw.html __________________________ Related issues: __________________________ • “Radioactive Waste -- Nuclear Reactors Create Radioactive Waste That Will Remain Hazardous For 240,000 Years.” Greenpeace, accessed March 19, 2014 at: greenpeace.org/usa/en/campaigns/nuclear/safety-and-security/radioactive-waste/ • “Half Life—The Lethal Legacy of Americas Nuclear Waste.” Long, Michael E., National Geographic, accessed March 19, 2014 at: science.nationalgeographic/science/earth/inside-the-earth/nuclear-waste/ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spent_nuclear_fuel ____________________________________________________ Beyond Nuclear Waste -- Other Problems With Nuclear Power ____________________________________________________ Are nuclear reactors safe? No. The unfortunate truth is that those who build and operate nuclear power plants have a clear history of building them at convenient edge of the sea sites without any regard for the inherent danger from tsunamis or earthquakes. The propensity for human beings to put profits before people is unlikely to change any time soon. • en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_historic_tsunamis • en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fukushima_Daiichi_nuclear_disaster • en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_disposal_of_radioactive_waste • ucsusa.org/assets/documents/nuclear_power/20071204-ucs-brief-got-water.pdf Suppose a meteorite exploded over a nuclear reactor. What might happen if the reactor was breached? Without warning a meteor exploded over a Russian city in 2013. Had it breached a reactor, the result could be similar to the Chernobyl incident, perhaps worse: • en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chelyabinsk_meteor • science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2013/26feb_russianmeteor/ • en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_disaster A more likely scenario would be from terrorists like those who staged the attack on Mumbai in 2008. Such people would not hesitate to blow up a nuclear plant if they could. They are psychotic and believe they will be rewarded in some paradise forever if they die carrying out their missions: • en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Mumbai_attacks It would be just as likely from some of the dictators in this world who control a military. Greed and delusional thinking know no boundaries. There are many sites to at risk due to a variety of factors: • euronuclear.org/info/encyclopedia/n/nuclear-power-plant-world-wide.htm • theguardian/environment/interactive/2012/mar/08/nuclear-power-plants-world-map And more are on the way: • csis.org/program/proliferation-prevention • en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lists_of_nuclear_disasters_and_radioactive_incidents Commercial proliferation of nuclear reactors is linked to three problems: 1. Radioactive waste (spent fuel), 2. Contamination of food chains (ocean) and ground water, and 3. Bomb grade fuel for fission and fusion devices. How nuclear reactors works, various types: • en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_reactor
Posted on: Sat, 22 Mar 2014 19:14:30 +0000
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