The Chernobyl Reminder

I'm not usually a big fan of the the Fox show "24," but this season's topic is very interesting. It is about terrorism and the nuclear plants. The show's primary character, Jack Bauer, played by Keifer Sutherland, is an FBI agent (I think) who is on the hunt for the terrorist who was planning to override the controls to a nuclear power plant. The whole incident happens within a 24-hour period, hence the show's title. Perhaps the biggest reason as to why I'm even a slight bit interested is because of a documentary that I saw not too long ago about the ongoing effects that the nuclear disaster in Chernobyl still has after almost 20 years. The documentary is called "Chernobyl hearts" and is about the people who are physically and mentally affected by the disaster.

Nuclear energy is one of the most powerful resources that the world has. It is a good source of inexpensive, clean power that may be a practical energy alternative to the use of fossil fuels (Grolier 1995). However, the radioactive material that is used to make it is hazardous to both humans and the environment. The Chernobyl disaster continues to be a devastating reminder that when tampering with a power of this magnitude, it should be carefully done.

The world’s worst nuclear disaster took place on April 26, 1986. A reactor in the Chernobyl power plant in Ukraine exploded and sent 190 tons of radioactive material into the atmosphere (Grolier 1995). Thirty-one people died immediately and many of the 600,000 people who were involved with the cleanup, called “liquidators,” are either sick or dead (World Book 2001). Wind and rain carried about 70% of the radiation to neighboring country, Belarus, in which it presently remains. According to Chernobyl Children’s Project International (CCPI), Belarusians have been exposed to radioactivity ninety times greater than that released by the Hiroshima bomb – the highest known exposure to radiation in the history of the atomic age” (2004). The incident has long-term effects that continue to plague the Belarusian people. CCPI also goes on to report that doctors identified large increases of health problems in their country, including a 250% increase in congenital birth deformities, 100% increase in the incidence of cancer, and 1000% increase in suicide in the contaminated zones (CCPI, 2004). Many children, who were born with physical deformities or mental illnesses, are abandoned by their parents who do not want to pay for medical treatment. The food and water supply are continuously contaminated as rain and forest fires move radioactive dust (CCPI, 2004). Thousands of towns and villages were bulldozed and most of the country’s farmlands are now toxic wastelands. On the economic level, Belarus spends 25% of their annual budget on the Chernobyl relief (CCPI, 2004). Suffice to say, all of Belarus is still on the slow road to recovery from a disaster that happened eighteen years ago.

The United States has the world’s largest nuclear energy program in the world (Grolier 1995). It is home to more than a hundred nuclear reactors that are spread throughout thirty-one states. After the September 11th attacks, many wondered what would have happened if the terrorists targeted the New York nuclear reactors instead and caused the same devastation as that of Chernobyl. There is a reason to think about that possibility because according to President George W. Bush in his 2002 State of the Union address, “We have found diagrams of American nuclear power plants” in the possession of the terrorists (River keeper 2004). I think that American nuclear power plants should be secured and protected. There is just so much at stake. I think that the terrorists do know the power that these plants enclose within and the devastation that it could cause if that power is disrupted. I also found it interesting that Disney parks and the Super Bowl are claimed as no-fly zones and nuclear power plants are not (King, n.d.). If we have learned anything from the Chernobyl accident, it is that nuclear energy is dangerous and millions are still suffering from its effects. The government should take action upon this matter, because regret only comes in the end.

Nuclear energy can be both beneficial and destructive. The radiation that emitted from the reactor on that unfortunate April night is still affecting millions of people, not just in Belarus, but in Ukraine and Russia as well. In the crazy world we live in, we could never be too careful as to make sure we do not have the same end.



Sources:

Chernobyl Children’s Project – International (2003). Chernobyl: The Facts. Retrieved September 24, 2004 from the CCPI website: <http://www.ccp-intl.org/facts.html>

Grolier Incorporated (1995). The Grolier Encyclopedia of Knowledge. USA: Grolier
Incorporated.

King, Rita J. (2004). Danger of nuclear plants portrayed in films. Retrieved September 26, 2004 from the North County News website: <http://www.northcountynews.com/archives_2004/9-8-04/news3.htm>

River Keeper (n.d.) Indian Point: The Facts. Retrieved September 26, 2004 from the River Keeper website: <http://riverkeeper.org/campaign.php/indian_point/the_facts/21>

World Book Inc. (2001). World Book 2001 Standard Edition. USA: World Book Inc.