0
None as far as I know, but that is because it is very well controlled and contained. There are tales of things that happened in Soviet Russia, in the 50's and 60's, but little is known for sure. I don't class Chernobyl as nuclear waste, that was a damaged operating reactor.
Wiki User
∙ 15y ago
Wiki User
∙ 14y agoAccording to a book, "It's Getting Better All The Time: 100 Greatest Trends of the Last 100 Years", by Stephen Moore and Julian L. Simon; from 1975 - 2000 there was not a single accident from a nuclear power plant (the book was published in 2000). Furthermore, the possibility of contracting cancer from radiation (not dying from it) for those who live in the immediate vicinity of a Nuclear Power Plant is approximately 1 in 70,000. In short, the death toll from Nuclear Power Plants and nuclear waste is very very small.
Add your answer:
Earn +20 pts
What chemical can destroy nuclear waste?
Nuclear waste has three different types: alpha, beta and gamma. Alpha (helium nucleus) and beta (electron or positron) are subatomic particles, meaning they are pieces of atoms. Gamma is an energy wave. Gamma is the most dangerous type of radioactive waste, although all nuclear waste is potentially hazardous. When a nuclear reaction happens, pieces of atoms fly off and release the energy that held them together, producing gamma radiation as well as the energy we convert into electricity at nuclear power plants. Because nuclear waste is made up of "broken" atoms, it will require a nuclear reaction to get rid of them, essentially putting the atoms back together and reabsorbing the gamma radiation. Unfortunately, chemicals alone are not strong enough to get rid of nuclear waste. Chemicals, or rather radioactive metals, combined with a powerful "reverse" nuclear reactor may work. Scientists have been working on a solution for a few years now. Check out this article: (See related Link)
What is the plan for long term storage of nuclear waste?
Currently, nuclear waste is stored in large, radiation resistant containers underground in remote locations around the world. There have been discussions about how governments will be dealing with nuclear waste in the future, but no definitive answer has been concluded. There were once talks of launching it into our sun, but some scientists believed this to be a catastrophicly bad idea. So to sum it all up, if you think of a good plan be sure to let your government officials know :)
Where do people dump nuclear waste?
High level nuclear waste is carefully controlled, so the idea of 'dumping' it is wrong. For one thing it would kill anyone stupid enough to try. Hopefully in various countries using nuclear power there will be final repositories built. At present in the US it is simply stored without processing on the power station sites where it is produced. In the US the spent fuel has been stored on site in water filled ponds. Plans have been made for an underground store in Nevada but it has not been started as yet. In the UK the spent fuel is transported to Sellafield where some has been separated to obtain plutonium, but if not processed chemically it has to be stored under water as on power station sites. So there is at present no long term storage in operation.
Where has nuclear fission been used?
Nuclear fission has been used in nuclear bombs and is currently being used in every nuclear power plant on the earth.
What is the chemical makeup of radioactive waste derived from nuclear fission?
The most active and dangerous part is the spent fuel itself, because it contains very active fission products. Less active arisings come from contaminants in the reactor primary system water circuit (crud). The least active category will be clothing and cleaning materials which have been used in slightly contaminated areas of the plant.
Where does the US send nuclear waste?
For now nuclear waste is stored on site where the waste was generated. In a few years US will begin to store nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain, Nevada but no official date has been set.
What has been done with nuclear waste?
The honest answer is the USA has been producing a great deal of nuclear waste and ignoring the problem of what to do with it. President Obama wants more nuclear power plants, but, has not said what to do with nuclear waste. A lot of waste is stored in nuclear power plants, but, they are getting filled up fast, and that is not really a good idea. The possibility of an accident or theft is very real.
Is nuclear energy the clenest form of energy?
Not quite. The problem of getting rid of the nuclear waste has not been satisfactorily solved.
What does nuclear waste have to do with Nevada?
There was a proposal to build a long term waste store at Yucca Mountain in Nevada but this seems to have been abandoned, waste is to be stored on the power plant sites as it has been ever since they were built.
What is the problem with storing nuclear waste material?
The challenge of making nuclear power safer doesn't end after the power has been generated. Nuclear fuel remains dangerously radioactive for thousands of years after it is no longer useful in a commercial reactor. The resulting waste disposal problem has become a major challenge for policymakers.
Why don't they take all the nuclear waste products and put it in a rocket and shoot it toward the sun than it would burn up?
First off, taking all nuclear waste products and putting it in a rocket and shooting it toward the sun so then it would burn up could cause problems with out atmosphere. The way the nuclear waste products are handled now is what has been studied and found to be the best possible disposal of the waste products without causing further damage to the people, surrounding areas, and the atmosphere.
How safe is the transportation of nuclear waste?
If done properly it can be as safe or safer than other transportation, especially if the plutonium and other transuranics have already been recycled to new fuel. But this is likely to get censored as many anti-nuclear people don't want it known.
What chemical can destroy nuclear waste?
Nuclear waste has three different types: alpha, beta and gamma. Alpha (helium nucleus) and beta (electron or positron) are subatomic particles, meaning they are pieces of atoms. Gamma is an energy wave. Gamma is the most dangerous type of radioactive waste, although all nuclear waste is potentially hazardous. When a nuclear reaction happens, pieces of atoms fly off and release the energy that held them together, producing gamma radiation as well as the energy we convert into electricity at nuclear power plants. Because nuclear waste is made up of "broken" atoms, it will require a nuclear reaction to get rid of them, essentially putting the atoms back together and reabsorbing the gamma radiation. Unfortunately, chemicals alone are not strong enough to get rid of nuclear waste. Chemicals, or rather radioactive metals, combined with a powerful "reverse" nuclear reactor may work. Scientists have been working on a solution for a few years now. Check out this article: (See related Link)
Nuclear reactors produced radioactive waste Find out what happens to the waste products How are they disposed of?
I don't think any country has yet been able to permanently dispose of high level nuclear waste, it needs a permanent repository to be built and no government has been willing to tackle this in the face of public resistance. In the US the waste has simply been kept on the power station sites, in the UK and France it has been transported to a central site and some fuel has been chemically separated to extract useful uranium and plutonium, but the radioactive waste is still stored in 'temporary' facilities, which in some cases have been in use for 50 years, since power production started (1956 in the UK). Look up 'Sellafield' in Wikipedia.
How has China benefited from and been harmed by it's main geographic feature's?
China has been benefited from and been harmed by its main geographic features by its river valley... It harmed them in many flood waters and also helped them with rich soil for food and plants to survive.
Is Japan's nuclear waste affecting Aruba?
So far nuclear waste from Japan's March 11, 2011 earthquake has not been reported to affect Aruba.Specifically, Aruba is sheltered from immediate impact by its location in the Caribbean Sea. Japan is in the Pacific Ocean. Aruba also lies in the shelter of South America.
What is the percentage of people and animals that have been harmed by Genetically Modified Foods?
0%, since there are no confirmed reports of any damage at all.
