Nuclear incidents

Gull, 1990, An Analysis of Nuclear Incidents resulting from Cognitive Error, 11th Advances in Reliability Technology Symposium, University of Liverpool, Elsevier, April... 

EPA, Manual of Protective Action Guides and Protective Actions for Nuclear Incidents, EPA 400-R-92-001, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., 1992. 

A sample from a suspected nuclear incident is processed by gamma-ray spectral analysis. The sample does not contain any "Mo, or at least none is observed. Also, the sample contains large amounts of 60Co and 137Cs but no other radionuclides detectable by gamma-ray emission. What do you conclude ... 

Unintended release in the course of human activities (e.g., nuclear incidents, mining operations, shipwrecks, and fires)... 

Xe-133 was the main radionuclide released during nuclear incidents such as the Chernobyl and Three Mile Island nuclear accidents. In these accidents, the Xe that was built up as a fission product was released. Because of the unreactive nature of the noble gases, the Xe was hard to contain and hence was released into the environment. 

Houts PS, Miller RW, Tokuhata GK, et al Health-Related Behavioral Impact of the Three Mile Island Nuclear Incident (Report), Part I 1980. Pennsylvania Department of Health, 1980... 

EPA Manual of Protective Action Guidelines and Protective Actions for Nuclear Incidents 1992 400R92001. 

Note The information contained in this section is taken pantly from the literature Distribution and Administration of Potassium Iodide in the Event of a nuclear Incident" (National Research Council of National Academies, 2004). 

Distribution and Administration of Potassium Iodine in the Event of Nuclear Incident. The National Academies Press, Washington, DC. 

How a nuclear incident might cause thyroid damage... 

Reactor confinement facilities vere Installed to control the release of radioactive material from the reactor building in the event of a nuclear incident. The instrumentation monitors the pressure and air balance in various sections of the building and the radiation level and spectrum of the air exhaust. 

Furthermore, any nuclear incident tends to result in renewed examination of all aspects of the nuclear power and nuclear fuel systems, from fuel supply through reactor operation and transport of irradiated materials to radioactive waste management. Although this has certainly been the case with the Chernobyl accident, this review of international responses mainly restricts itself to issues arising from the possibility of an incident at an operating reactor and does not cover areas such as radioactive waste management or transport of materials. However, the discussion of... 

Notification of international nuclear Incidents and provision of emergency assistance... 

The Early Notification Convention requires signatories to provide immediate information to the IAEA following a civil nuclear incident and voluntarily directly to potentially affected outside states. It specifies the type of information required and further requires signatories to agree to requests for additional information from affected states. The IAEA will also provide monitoring assistance to non-nuclear member states bordering on non-member states with a nuclear power programme. 

Consequently, it is not surprising that the Chernobyl accident has provoked considerable disqniet abont the adequacy and scope of international liability arrangements for third-party compensation after nuclear incidents. 

The effectiveness of European Community activity in the nuclear incident field can perhaps best be summarised in the words of the Commission itself ... 

UK PREPAREDNESS FORA NUCLEAR INCIDENT OCCURRING OUTSIDE THE UK... 

A Prime Ministerial Parliamentary statement made on 18 December 1986 acknowledged a need to improve arrangements for responses to events outside the UK. It was also stated that the lead role in coordination of responses to all nuclear incidents occurring outside the UK would be with the Department of the Environment, whereas the Department of Energy is responsible for domestic civil incidents (the Scottish and Northern Ireland Offices have responsibilities within their respective countries). On the completion of the review, which was coordinated by the Cabinet Office as a special application of its more general civil emergency responsibilities, a further statement was promised. By the time of the anniversary of the Chernobyl accident at the end of April 1987, some concern was expressed in the press that this statement had yet to be made. A... 

Also, Chernobyl showed that nuclear incidents could have impacts over distances equivalent to those separating the UK from reactors in the eastern USA and Canada. Fiowever, the main focus of concern is likely to be the UK s southern and eastern coasts. There... 

There is an Ireland/UK Contact Croup on Nuclear Matters, through which the Irish Republic is informed of all nuclear incidents in the UK which are reported to the Department of the Environment. 

However, many of the international agreements necessary for an effective incident control and response system are still wanting nearly two years after the accident at Chernobyl. It remains a fact that even if these were to be put into place in the near future, the efficacy of international arrangements for nuclear incidents would only be established when tested by occurrence of a real world incident. 

Commission of the European Communities, Proposal for a Council Regulation (Euratom) laying doum maximum permitted radioactivity levels for foodstuffs, feedingstuffs and drinking water in the case of abnormal levels of radioactivity or of a nuclear incident, COM(87) 281, Brussels, 16 June 1987. 

In the very unlikely event that a major nuclear incident took place in the UK, it seems that the Nil would be able to prosecute the corporate body responsible for failures in statutory duty, and individuals for negligence. Presumably, this would follow a full technical enquiry by the Nil. 

Source terms associated with nuclear incidents and environmental consequences... 

Nuclear safety responsibility is set forth in the Nuclear Safety clause of the DOE Contract. It states that "Sandia Laboratories recognizes that the activities under this contract involve the risk of a nuclear incident which, while the chances of its occurrence are remote, could adversely affect the public health and safety. In the conduct of its activities hereunder, Sandia Laboratories will exercise a degree of care commensurate with the risk involved."... 

The confinement system provides for confining the fission products that might be released from a reactor during a nuclear incident. It is important to note that this is a confinement rather than containment system. The familiar total containment sphere is not utilized. The confinement approach is necessary because of the massiveness of the Hanford Production Reactors and the fact that containment vessels must be built before or with the reactor. 

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