Current Radiation Levels at Chernobyl Not as High as Feared
WASHINGTON — The nuclear radiation situation at Chernobyl is not currently one that poses great danger to the environment or to people, according to International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi upon his return from a visit to the nuclear reactor site to conduct radiological assessments and restore safeguard monitoring systems.
The site, although no longer a working power station, still requires constant management.
Seized by Russian forces in the earliest days of the Ukraine invasion, toxic soil disturbances from carving trenches and bunkers worried IAEA about the possibility of extraordinary exposure to radiation. Ukraine also recently informed the IAEA that Chernobyl’s analytical laboratories for radiation monitoring were destroyed, and analytical instruments were stolen, broken, or otherwise disabled.
“I have been insisting that we were given the opportunity to [visit Chernobyl] because we were missing some important connectivity to the site and we also needed to have an assessment of the radiation situation on site,” Grossi told reporters at a press conference held at IAEA headquarters in Vienna.
Despite warnings, Russian forces used bulldozers and tanks to dig into the ground and camp in a radioactive forest.
“Quite clearly, it’s not a place to have a picnic or excavate,” Grossi quipped. “I wouldn’t recommend anybody to start excavating a place that’s known to have been subject to high doses of radiation, but… this is a decision taken by some kind of military force. I don’t know under what circumstance or with what kind of protective equipment.”
Still, it does not appear that the situation is as dire as was feared.
Levels of radiation determined after IAEA’s assessment were “three times or more lower” than authorized levels for workers in areas exposed to radiation, Grossi confirmed.
“There was an increase, but this increase is still significantly below the authorized levels for workers in an environment with this type of radiation,” he said.
During his visit, Grossi and his team also took the opportunity to deliver what he called a “substantial amount” of protective equipment, like spectrometers and radiation detectors.
He also confirmed that IAEA is working on verification activities at a number of Ukraine’s other operational reactors. The country has a total of 15, at four separate nuclear power plants. Seven are currently connected to the grid, the remaining eight are shut down for regular maintenance or held in reserve.
However, IAEA has been unable to do inspections or safeguards at two of Ukraine’s operational reactors located in what is now Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhya NPP.
“Quite clearly the situation in and around Zaporizhzhya is not only a matter of nuclear safety, security, or safeguards, it’s a matter of profound political implications,” Grossi said, admitting that he had discussed these implications at length with Ukrainian President Zelensky, and that consultations continue “first and foremost with Ukraine, but also with Russia.”
Grossi stated that the remaining nuclear facilities in Ukraine do not currently have urgent situations demanding action or reaction from IAEA.
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