Chernobyl teaches a lesson in N-safety

On April 26, 1986, the Chernobyl disaster left a trail of destruction. The worst nuclear accident was blamed on human error triggered by flawed Soviet reactor technology. Fukushima was another rude awakening in March 2011 when the world discovered similar challenges. Human error was again detected after the world felt it had drawn lessons from Chernobyl to avoid nuclear disasters.
Dr Kiyoshi Kurokkawa, chairman of the National Diet (Parliament) of Japan Fukushima Accident Independent Investigation Commission (NAIIC), said, Fukushima was “a man-made disaster” and “made in Japan” because Japan’s nuclear industry failed to absorb the lessons learned from Three Mile Island and Chernobyl nuclear accidents.” The view was earlier stated by the World Nuclear Association, that the Chernobyl accident was due to “the violation of
operating procedures and the absence of a safety culture”.
Thirty years ago, the evacuation operations were substandard as Moscow did not rise to the occasion. In fact, the Soviet authorities sent 600,000 “liquidators” with little or no protective gear to put out a fire that raged for 10 days. Thanks to Sweden for detecting and raising the alarm about the rising level of the
radiation on April 28, 1986.
After the disaster, the world moved on to improve the atomic safety and reassure the public. One of the most important steps was the 1989 creation of the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO). It carried out peer reviews of 430 reactors around the world to detect problems. Of course, the disaster brought the world closer to cooperate to avert potential risks. This was echoed by WANO chief executive Peter Prozesky, when he said, “The industry has undoubtedly learned the lesson that we are stronger together.”
Other factors such as the end of the Cold War and the collapse of erstwhile Soviet Union cemented the international cooperation, as many eastern European countries have been helped to update their Soviet-built plants. Of the 17 RMBK reactors in operation in 1986, six have been permanently shut down.
The disaster has also enhanced the role of the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency. IAEA expanded and revised the safety standards and member states were required to report swiftly any incidents with potential cross-border effects. Moreover, a number of international agreements were signed, notably the IAEA Convention on Nuclear Safety (CNS). Others
covered nuclear waste and early warning systems for accidents.
Unfortunately, this technical nuclear progress was erased in a minute by the tsunami that knocked out the power supply and cooling systems of three reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant on March 11, 2011. The complacency over nuclear safety was a huge mistake that caught the world off guard. The Fukushima disaster was a bitter lesson that pushed the world forward to maximise international cooperation and agreements.
Despite advanced nuclear technologies, dangerous risks remain, notably, the risk of human error — the common factor at Chernobyl and Fukushima. Therefore, the safety culture should be espoused with other technical nuclear safety measures. As the world observes the 30th anniversary of Chernobyl, it is
necessary to take an integrated nuclear approach that takes into account
full-fledged culture of safety.