High risk of an accident at Zaporizhzhya NPP

At the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP, Russian troops damaged a diesel fuel tank necessary for the operation of emergency generators.

Experts believe that the damage to the tank at the Zaporizhzhia NPP may be a preparation for transferring the station to the Russian energy system.

This was reported by Olga Kosharna, co-founder of the NGO "Anti-Crisis Expert Nuclear Center of Ukraine" in a comment for "Espresso".

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will verify information about damage to a diesel tank at the Zaporizhia NPP.
This is stated in the agency's press release, Ukrinform reports.

It is noted that the IAEA is aware of the news about a possible spill of fuel stored in diesel tanks at the Zaporizhia NPP.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has asked the IAEA to assess the consequences of a possible accident at the Zaporizhia NPP and is awaiting the agency's response.

A water leak from a pulse line has been detected at Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), and repair work is underway.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a statement that on Tuesday, October 29, it received information about a water leak in the coolant system of one of the reactors at Zaporizhzhia NPP. After assessing the situation, experts began repair work. Radiographic inspection of welds is currently underway to ensure their reliability.

"The Agency will continue to closely monitor this issue. However, we do not see any immediate problems for nuclear safety," said Director General Rafael Grossi.

Greenpeace calls on IAEA to investigate Zaporizhzhya NPP fire

“The dramatic new footage of smoke billowing from the cooling tower is likely a Russian arson attack and is pathetic. As long as the Russian military believes they can get away with such actions, they will continue to do so. The IAEA should not simply issue another blanket warning to both Ukraine and Russia – there is only one threat to nuclear security in Ukraine and that is the Russian military. The IAEA should demand that its team be given immediate access to the cooling tower where they can investigate this latest event and expose Russia’s actions,” said Sean Burney, senior nuclear specialist at Greenpeace in Ukraine.

The International Atomic Energy Agency reported that unmanned aerial vehicles attacked a substation near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

This is stated in a statement by IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi. According to him, as a result of this, Zaporizhia NPP workers were injured, and forest fires also occurred. "These repeated drone attacks pose a threat to nuclear security and human life and must be stopped," it said.

It is noted that on the day of the incident, IAEA experts saw thick smoke and heard explosions from the switchgear.
The substation is located outside the ZNPP site itself, so there were no consequences for it. The statement said the only 750 kV transmission line remaining at the plant supplies the electricity needed to cool the six reactors during the cold shutdown.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported the destruction of the external radiation monitoring station of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which is currently under Russian occupation.
As Ukrinform reports, this was stated by Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi, according to the IAEA website.

Grossi stated that the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) has informed the IAEA that the external radiation monitoring station was destroyed by shelling and fire this week, further reducing the effectiveness of its off-site capabilities to detect and measure any radioactive releases during an emergency. 

He emphasized that this further reduces the ability to detect and measure any radioactive releases during a possible accident at the Zaporizhia NPP.

The IAEA noted that of the 14 radiation monitoring stations in a 30-kilometer zone around the plant, four were completely disabled, and some others were not operational at various times due to damage.

Grossi noted that the operation of external radiation monitoring equipment is an important part of nuclear safety throughout the world.

“The loss of one radiation monitoring station does not have a direct impact on the safety of the Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant, but is part of a continuing decline in the wartime safety package, which remains a source of deep concern,” he said.

According to the AEA, attack drones targeted Unit 6 of the power plant. Russian troops attempted to shoot down the drones but were unsuccessful. Fortunately, there was no evidence of any structural damage to the systems, and nuclear safety was not compromised. However, the AEA considers these strikes to be a major threat to nuclear safety.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has reported the discovery of mines in the buffer zone between the inner and outer fences of the power plant's territory, which is not in line with IAEA safety standards. It was found that these mines were previously removed in November 2023.

According to the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine GUR, the Russians mined the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, and a cooling reservoir was also mined.

The Russian occupiers placed equipment with explosives in more than 4 out of 6 power units of the Zaporizhzhya NPP. Russia has completed preparations for a terrorist attack

The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi, said that according to intelligence, Russia had prepared everything for a terrorist act with the release of radiation.

The Ministry of Health has already published instructions on the emergency.

As a result of periodic shelling by the occupiers, three of the four lines connecting the Zaporizhzhya NPP with the energy system of Ukraine were damaged.

According to Tetyana Tymochko, up to 18,000 fuel assemblies are stored in the six reactors of the Zaporizhzhya NPP, as well as in the spent nuclear fuel storage (that is, ten times more than at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant).

Accordingly, the consequences will be much worse than after the disaster at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant

The area of ​​the exclusion zone around the Zaporizhzhya NPP can be about 30,000 square meters. km This is almost 10 times larger than the Chornobyl exclusion zone.

• The area of ​​potentially contaminated territories can reach 2 million square meters. km That is, it is an unprecedentedly large territory. For comparison, after the accident at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant, potentially contaminated areas spread over 200,000 square meters. km

• Almost the entire territory of the Zaporizhzhia region may become uninhabitable within a hundred years.

• About 1 million people may be affected by radiation (after the Chernobyl disaster, there were 600,000). And the number of dead can exceed the number of victims of the disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant by ten times.

• There may be a significant release of radioactive cesium-137, which will pose a danger to the health of citizens, the state of water bodies and soils. This element is intensively absorbed by the soil and bottom sediments, contaminates food products.

• Radionuclide contamination will spread to the Dnipro, Black and Azov seas.

Scientist of the Institute of Environmental Radioactivity of Fukushima University and former Chernobyl liquidator Mark Zhelezniak talked about the potential threat that the release of radioactive substances can cause.

Some estimates come from the fact that if there was an explosion of one reactor in Chornobyl, then the explosion of six reactors of the Zaporizhzhya NPP will lead to the pollution of much larger areas - 5, 6, 10 times. Of course, we have a real threat. Any nuclear accident is a threat to the population, but let's look soberly, without exaggerating the danger or underestimating it.

What will happen if six barrels explode at once? In the center will be the most intense pollution. Therefore, it is incorrect to imagine that the radius of contamination from the explosion of six reactors will be greater than if it were one. The risk that exists is approximately the scale of contamination at the Chornobyl accident.
Either way, it could be a series of explosions. Where it will fly depends on the direction of the wind. And where it will fall depends on the rains. The picture that came out in one of the March scenarios, when it rains more on the Kuban than on the Zaporizhia region, is connected with the fact that during this period there were very heavy rains in the Kuban. Therefore, the general answer is this: we cannot predict in advance exactly where it will fall, but we still see that in the zone of about 300-400 kilometers around the station in certain regions where the rains will fall, they fall into the risks of using countermeasures.

The Russian occupiers are provoking a nuclear catastrophe on a global scale!
The All-Ukrainian Environmental League demands more decisive measures from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for joint actions in overcoming the aggressor and nuclear terrorist - the Russian Federation. The first priority is to close the territory of nuclear facilities in Ukraine from shelling!

Russian occupiers once again fired rockets at the ZNPP and the city of Energodar. They hit the site of the ZNPP directly next to the stationary dry storage of spent nuclear fuel (SSFWAP), these are 174 containers, each of which contains 24 assemblies of spent nuclear fuel! Also, three radiation monitoring sensors were damaged around the SSVYAP ZANP site. Therefore, timely detection and response in case of deterioration of the radiation situation or leakage of radiation from containers of spent nuclear fuel is currently impossible. About 800 sq m of window surfaces in various buildings of the station were damaged due to numerous small fragments from the explosions.

Russian military shelled the Zaporizhzhya NPP. The occupiers hit the high-voltage communication line "330 kV VRP of the autotransformer of the ZANP - Zaporizhzhya TPP". The projectiles also hit the site of the nuclear plant, near one of the power units where the nuclear reactor is located. The nitrogen-oxygen station and the auxiliary building were seriously damaged.

The fact of capturing and maintaining nuclear power plants can be catastrophic not only on the scale of the country, but also of the entire European continent. Experts now believe that the highest risks may be associated with human errors due to the emotional stress of workers and the movement of military equipment.

When attacks on energy facilities, oil and petroleum product storage facilities occur, toxic substances are released into the air. They pollute the environment and affect the surrounding population. Over time, these toxic particles settle, remain on the surface of the soil and enter the water. This is an influence invisible to the eye, with the consequences of which we will live for a long time.

As of May 2022, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine recorded 231 environmental crimes most likely committed by Russia.

Russia's control over Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZAEP) is becoming an increasingly acute security issue, said Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Nuclear Energy Agency (IAEA).
According to Grossi, the Ukrainian personnel of the nuclear plant are under serious pressure. "With every day that this state of affairs persists, the risk of an accident or violation of safety techniques increases."
The inspectors of the international agency have not been able to inspect the ZNPP since February 24. Russian troops took control of the station four months ago, but Ukrainian personnel still work there.

Military equipment and vehicles require energy that usually comes from oil, and the CO2 emissions of numerous military formations are greater than many countries in the world combined.
A Brown University study found that the U.S. military's greenhouse gas emissions are higher than those of countries like Portugal, Denmark and Sweden.

Once a full-scale invasion begins, the dangers increase and the damage becomes much more obvious.

According to the State Atomic Energy Regulatory Commission, two power units are in operation, two reactors are undergoing scheduled repairs and two are in reserve. Officially, the station is managed by the Ukrainian NEC "Energoatom". Ukrainian workers who manage the ZNPP remain there. The station itself is still connected to the Ukrainian power system.

"If all the power units stop, we can get a situation where the invaders will turn off the power supply from the grid and we will not be able to meet our own needs of the nuclear power plant. In fact, what happened at Fukushima is severe damage to the fuel. We can also get it if there is no power supply." , - explains acting Head of the Chief State Inspector for Nuclear and Radiation Safety of Ukraine Oleg Korikov.

The International Atomic Energy Agency was called upon to assist in the immediate withdrawal of Russian troops from Energodar.

The situation is aggravated by constant missile attacks on the territory of Ukraine by Russia.

During the shelling of the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant, the Russian invaders damaged a number of objects on its territory.

The current capacity of the Zaporizhzhya NPP power units is quite sufficient for the full-fledged life of the population and the operation of industrial facilities of Ukraine. The NPP operates in compliance with nuclear, radiation, and environmental safety standards. On the territory of the industrial site and the surveillance zone, the ecological, fire-fighting, and radiation conditions are within the norm.

The radiation background at the industrial site is 9 micro-roentgen per hour, in the sanitary protection zone - 8-12 micro-roentgen per hour, which corresponds to the natural radiation background at the location of the station.

The territory of the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant is occupied by Russian troops, they control the administrative buildings and the entrance to the plant.

The military forces of the Russian Federation shelled the site of the Zaporizhzhya NPP, as a result of which a fire broke out on the territory of the ZNPP. The fire at the site was extinguished by the forces of the units of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.

No change in the radiation state after the fire in the educational and training building of the ZNPP was recorded.

The loss of the ability to cool nuclear fuel will lead to a significant radioactive release into the environment. In terms of consequences, such an event could exceed all previous nuclear power plant accidents, including the accident at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant and the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

At about 5 o'clock in the morning Kyiv time. Russian troops entered the territory of Ukraine from Russia, Crimea and Belarus, and the troops of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) and the Lugansk People's Republic (LPR) also joined the fighting.