The World Beyond BetterMost > Anything Goes
Chernobyl
sparkle_motion:
Being 28 years old, I was pretty young when this happened. So, it's never been something that effected (affected? I never know which) me.
However, a few months ago, I was surfin' HBO at about 3 o'clock in the morning and caught a documentary called Chernobyl Heart. It was something that will not soon escape my memory.
The images of those deformed children were horrifying. Their parents either can't financially support them or they are dead themselves from the radiation. So, the children are placed in asylums and orphanages.
The UN says 3-4 MILLION children are suffering as a result of the Chernobyl disaster. MILLION!
Take a look at this link, y'all.
http://www.ccp-intl.org
delalluvia:
--- Quote ---That's right nic, I agree with you here. But I for one would be ready to lower my energy consumption if it could mean avoiding/reducing hazards and pollution.
And how do you get rid of the nuclear waste?! That is a tricky one to date, one we seem to keep for future generations.
--- End quote ---
I'm with Isabelle. I did a term paper in college for my microbiology class on biological remediation of nuclear waste and was appalled at the lack of sufficient resources we have for the monitoring necessary for safe storage. Some wastes will be toxic for 10,000 years. Some stored wastes need to be 'stirred' lest they develop 'hot spots' and melt through their containers!
10,000 years? There hasn't been a society on this planet that has ever lasted more than a millennia and the thinkers in this industry believe that we will be around in that many years to care for the waste products? I'll be happy to start walking to work a few days a week if we could avoid using that particular power source.
Chanterais:
Dela, 10,000 years? Are you freaking kidding me? That is insane. Just to prove how ignorant I am on this subject, can I ask how they store that shit? I'm hoping not in a wine barrel in the cellar, or something. Not in my backyard, baby. No way, nohow.
Nic, do you have to take big precautions when you travel to Chernobyl? Strap Geiger counters to every part of your body? Wear funny suits? Swallow pills? I've heard that there are some people who are taking vacations there, which seems like a really dumb idea to me. I mean, I've travelled to some strange places, but that is moronic in a really special way.
I think I've also heard of a novelist (I'm thinking Martin Amis? Peter Carey?) who's set one of his books in the abandoned region. A murder mystery, I think it is. Can you imagine all those empty houses? Schools? Whole towns? Spooooooooky. It gives me the willies just thinking about it.
I don't think I'd be one of those heroes. I'm ashamed to admit that I'd probably run as fast as my legs could carry me in the opposite direction. Though maybe when you're placed in a situation so terrible, you don't even think about what the right thing to do is. You just do.
sparkle_motion:
Check out these pictures:
http://home.cc.umanitoba.ca/~dmcmill/Pages/Villages/Villages%20thumbs.html
delalluvia:
--- Quote from: Chanterais on April 28, 2006, 04:52:39 pm ---Dela, 10,000 years? Are you freaking kidding me? That is insane. Just to prove how ignorant I am on this subject, can I ask how they store that shit? I'm hoping not in a wine barrel in the cellar, or something. Not in my backyard, baby. No way, nohow.
--- End quote ---
Chan,
Quickie quotes from Radwaste.org
Radioactive wastes are typically stored for one or more of the following reasons: to allow them to decay to lower radioactivity levels; to temporarily hold them awaiting processing (or until a processing method has been developed); or to temporariliy hold them awaiting disposal (or until a disposal facility has been constructed). Each of these reasons may impose slightly different restrictions on storage in terms of length of time, physical form of the waste, radioactivity levels, etc.
"Storage for decay" is a cost effective way to manage short lived, low level radioactive wastes. Due to the physical laws of nature, the radioactivity reduces with time. After 10 half-lives the level of radioactivity has reduced by a factor of 1024, typically to near background levels. For the short lived radioisotopes typically used in medicine and research, this storage period for complete decay may be only a few weeks to a few months. After this time, the waste is no longer radioactive and can be disposed of as conventional waste (of course, taking into account any other hazards that the waste might pose, such as biological hazards). For other wastes, such as spent nuclear fuel, the "storage for decay" period may be many hundreds of thousands of years. However, it is important to note that all radioactivity will eventually decay.
*emphasis mine
And as for storage, some states with a lot of stable desert areas tend to be dumping grounds - Nevada, Utah, Texas and there are lots of places back east as well. It may well be 'in your backyard' and you not notice. :P
Storage containers:
http://web.em.doe.gov/em30/waststor.html
--- Quote ---I think I've also heard of a novelist (I'm thinking Martin Amis? Peter Carey?) who's set one of his books in the abandoned region. A murder mystery, I think it is. Can you imagine all those empty houses? Schools? Whole towns? Spooooooooky. It gives me the willies just thinking about it.
--- End quote ---
What a great idea for a novel!
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