Radiation Pollution: Causes, Effects and

Solution

Prepared by-

Name: Raja Kumar

Roll no: 2005395
Sec: B-8(CSE)

Under Guidance of-

Biswabandita Kar

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 Contents
Topics Page No.

1. INTRODUCTION 3

2. OBJECTIVE 4

3. LITERATURE REVIEW 5

4. CASE STUDIES 7

5. ADVANCEMENT 9

6. HIGHLIGHTS 10

7. CONCLUSION 12

8. REFERENCES 13

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 Introduction
Radioactive Pollution is defined as the increase in the
natural radiation levels caused by human activities. It is
estimated that about 20% of radiation we are exposed to is due to
human activities. The human activities that can release radiation
involve activities with radioactive materials such as mining,
handling and processing of radioactive materials, handling and
storage of radioactive waste, as well as the use of radioactive
reactions to generate energy (nuclear power plants), along with
the use of radiation in medicine (e.g. X-rays) and research.
Radioactive pollution refers to the release of ionizing
radiation into the environment as a result of human activity.

Ionizing radiation is the form of radiation that has a short

wavelength and a high frequency. In short, it's the form of
radiation that's commonly thought of as being high energy and
thus harmful to living things. Ionizing radiation includes x-rays
and gamma rays.

Many forms of "radiation" are encountered in the natural

environment and are produced by modern technology. Most of them
have the potential for both beneficial and harmful effects. Even
sunlight, the most essential radiation of all, can be harmful in
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excessive amounts. Most public attention is given to the category
of radiation known as "ionizing radiation." This radiation can
disrupt atoms, creating positive ions and negative electrons, and
cause biological harm. Ionizing radiation includes x-rays, gamma
rays, alpha particles, beta particles, neutrons, and the
varieties of cosmic rays.

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 Objectives
After reading this work, you will be able to :
 list various radioactive sources;
 account for the release of radioactive products
resulting from nuclear waste and nuclear accidents;
 enumerate the ill-effects of radioactive radiation on
human body;
 list the various preventive measures of radioactive
pollution and
 list the various regulations regarding safety measures
for radiation exposure.

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 Literature Review
Radioactive contamination and radiation exposure could occur if
radioactive materials are released into the environment as the result of
an accident, an event in nature, or an act of terrorism. Such a release
could expose people and contaminate their surroundings and personal
property.

Types of Contamination

Internal Contamination External Contamination

Internal contamination occurs when people
swallow or breathe in radioactive materials, or
when radioactive materials enter the body
through an open wound or are absorbed
through the skin. Some types of radioactive
materials stay in the body and are deposited in
different body organs. Other types are
eliminated from the body in blood, sweat,
urine, and faeces.
External contamination occurs when
radioactive material, in the form of dust,
powder, or liquid, comes into contact with a
person’s skin, hair, or clothing. In other words,
the contact is external to a person’s body.
People who are externally contaminated can
become internally contaminated if radioactive
material gets into their bodies.

Radioactive Contamination
Radioactive contamination occurs when
radioactive material is deposited on or in an
object or a person. Radioactive materials
released into the environment can cause air,
water, surfaces, soil, plants, buildings, people,
or animals to become contaminated. A
contaminated person has radioactive materials
on or inside their body.
Radiation Exposure
Radioactive materials give off a form of energy
that travels in waves or particles. This energy is
called radiation. When a person is exposed to
radiation, the energy penetrates the body. For
example, when a person has an x-ray, he or
she is exposed to radiation.
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Nuclear Waste Management

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 Case Studies

1.Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Disaster

The March 11, 2011, Great East

Japan Earthquake and tsunami
sparked a humanitarian disaster in
north-eastern Japan and initiated a
severe nuclear accident at the
Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.
Three of the six reactors at the
plant sustained severe core damage and released hydrogen and radioactive
materials. Explosion of the released hydrogen damaged three reactor
buildings and impeded on-site emergency response efforts.

At the time of the Fukushima Daiichi accident, the Blue Ribbon Commission
on America's Nuclear Future
was completing an assessment
of options for managing
spent nuclear fuel and high-
level radioactive waste in
the United States. The
Commission recommended that
the National Academy of
Sciences (NAS) conduct an
assessment of lessons
learned from the Fukushima Daiichi accident. This recommendation was taken

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up by the U.S. Congress, which subsequently directed the U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission to contract with NAS for this study.

2.Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster

On April 25 and 26, 1986, the worst
nuclear accident in history unfolded in
what is now northern Ukraine as a reactor
at a nuclear power plant exploded and
burned. Shrouded in secrecy, the incident
was a watershed moment in both the Cold
War and the history of nuclear power.
More than 30 years on, scientists estimate
the zone around the former plant will not be habitable for up to 20,000 years.

The disaster took place near the city of Chernobyl in the former USSR, which invested
heavily in nuclear power after World War II. Starting in 1977, Soviet scientists
installed four RBMK nuclear reactors at the power plant, which is located just south
of what is now Ukraine’s border with Belarus.

On April 25, 1986, routine maintenance was scheduled at V.I. Lenin Nuclear Power
Station’s fourth reactor, and workers planned to use the downtime to test whether the
reactor could still be cooled if the plant lost power. During the test, however,
workers violated safety protocols and power surged inside the plant. Despite
attempts to shut down the reactor entirely, another power surge caused a chain
reaction of explosions inside. Finally, the nuclear core itself was exposed, spewing
radioactive material into the atmosphere.

Fire-fighters attempted to put out a series of blazes at the plant, and eventually
helicopters dumped sand and other materials in an attempt to squelch the fires and
contain the contamination. Despite the death of two people in the explosions, the

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hospitalization of workers and fire-fighters, and the danger from fallout and fire, no
one in the surrounding areas —including the nearby city of Pripyat, which was built
in the 1970s to house workers at the plant—was evacuated until about 36 hours after
the disaster began.

The impact of the disaster on the surrounding forest and wildlife also remains an area
of active research. In the immediate aftermath of the accident, an area of about four
square miles became known as the “Red Forest” because so many trees turned reddish-
brown and died after absorbing high levels of radiation.

Advancements
(1) Radiation Exposure Protection:
The three principles of radiation protection are distance, time to
exposure and shielding. The exposure decreases with the square of distance
from the source. The time of exposure should be kept as low as possible to
accomplish a particular task.

(2) Radiation Contamination Protection:

Radioactive particles are particularly hazardous if inhaled. They
irradiate in body continuously until eliminated. This can be minimised by
using laboratory hoods, air filters and exhaust systems, eliminating dry
sweeping, wearing protective clothing and radiation indicators (to see the
total amount of radiation to which one has been exposed), using
respirators where indicated and prohibiting smoking and eating where
radioactive material is used.

(3) Controlled Area:

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Areas which cause or permit exposure to radiation are required to have
controlled accessibility and should be marked ‘ Restricted Area! or
‘ Radiation Zone ’ etc. Level of radiation pollutant should be regularly
checked in the high risk areas. Radiation resistant cases or walls should
be constructed for screening workers from radioactive materials.

(4) Collection, Storage and Disposal:

Radioactive wastes should be changed into harmless form or stored in deep
layers of the lithosphere where their gradual harmless decay can take
place. Liquid and solid wastes may originate in radioscopy laboratories,
chemical processing plants, nuclear reactors etc.

Solid wastes of low activity are collected in paper or plastic lined

containers and disposed in approved manner (incineration or land disposal).
High activity solid wastes are placed in shielded containers. Low level
liquid and gaseous wastes are usually diluted or dispersed to maximum
allowable limits before disposal.

Highlights

What Is Nuclear Waste?

Nuclear waste is much different from

what you might think.

When most people talk about

nuclear waste, they ’ re referring

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 to fuel that’ s been used in a reactor once. Most of the radioactivity associated
with nuclear power remains contained in the fuel in which it was produced. This is
why used fuel is classified as high-level radioactive waste. Nuclear fuel is used to
produce electricity for about five years. Then, it ’ s removed and safely stored
until a permanent disposal site becomes available. Nuclear plants also produce low-
level radioactive waste which is safely contained and stored and then routinely
disposed of at various sites around the country.

It is a solid. Nuclear fuel is solid when it goes in a reactor and solid when it
comes out. It is arranged in fuel assemblies: sets of sealed metal tubes that hold
ceramic uranium pellets. The radioactive by-products of nuclear reactions remain
inside the fuel. No green goo anywhere.

There is not that much of it. All of the used fuel ever produced by the
commercial nuclear industry since the late 1950s would cover a football field to a
depth of less than 10 yards. That might seem like a lot, but coal plants generate
that same amount of waste every hour.

It can still be used for energy. Used fuel has only exhausted part of the
potential energy in the uranium pellets after five years in a reactor. Some
countries like France reprocess and recycle nuclear fuel, extracting elements still
capable of generating energy for use in new fuel and encasing the radioactive by-
products in solid glass logs for permanent disposal. The United States currently
does not, but some advanced reactor designs in development would be able to run on
used fuel.

Is Nuclear Waste Handled Safely?

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 Once removed from a reactor, used fuel assemblies initially cool down in a
storage pool. The concrete and steel pool and the water shield workers from
radioactivity.

When cool enough that it no longer needs to be stored underwater—typically for 2

to 5 years after removal from the reactor — used fuel is transferred and stored in
dry casks, which are large steel-reinforced concrete containers. These casks are
designed for long term storage until a site is available for permanent disposal.
They’re safe enough to walk up to and touch.

The U.S. nuclear energy industry has safely transported used fuel without any
harmful release of radioactivity, injuries or environmental damage. In fact, after
7,000 shipments total of used fuel by the worldwide nuclear industry since 1970,
there have been no leaks of radioactive material or personal injuries.

What Happens to Nuclear Waste?

The nuclear industry handles nuclear waste safely and in compliance with the stringent
requirements of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the U.S. Department of Energy
and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The NRC divides waste from nuclear plants into two categories: high-level and
low-level. High-level waste is mostly used fuel. Low-level waste includes items like
gloves, tools or machine parts that have been exposed to radioactive materials and
makes up most of the volume of waste produced by plants.

Some low-level waste can be stored at the plant until its stops being radioactive
and is safe to be disposed of like normal trash. Otherwise, low-level waste is
collected and transported safely to one of four disposal facilities in South
Carolina, Washington, Utah or Texas.

A permanent disposal site for high-level waste has been planned for Yucca
Mountain, Nevada, since 1987. Whether it is at Yucca Mountain or some other location,
DOE will transport and dispose of all U.S. commercial used fuel. All major nuclear
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 countries in the world are pursuing similar disposal sites. Finland is in the lead
with a site licensed and under construction. Consolidated interim storage sites also
have been proposed so that used fuel can be more efficiently managed until a
disposal site becomes available.

Conclusion

Radioactive waste disposal practices have changed

substantially over the last twenty years. Evolving environmental
protection considerations have provided the impetus to improve
disposal technologies, and, in some cases, clean up facilities
that are no longer in use. Designs for new disposal facilities
and disposal methods must meet environmental protection and
pollution prevention standards that are stricter than were
foreseen at the beginning of the atomic age.

Disposal of radioactive waste is a complex issue, not only

because of the nature of the waste, but also because of the
stringent regulatory structure for dealing with radioactive waste.
India has achieved self-reliance in the management of all type of
radioactive waste. Decades of safe and successful operation of
our waste management facility stand testimony to international
standards. An ongoing effort to upgrade technology to minimize
radioactive discharge is also on.
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 References

 https://www.britannica.com/event/Fukushima-accident

 https://www.ceh.ac.uk/case-studies/case-study-
radiation-environment

 https://www.nios.ac.in/media/documents/313courseE/L36.p
df

 https://www2.lbl.gov/abc/wallchart/chapters/15/0.html

 https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/radiation/emergencies/contamin
ation.htm

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