Filenews 11 March 2022 - by Vassos Vassiliou
If yesterday morning there had been an explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant or some other nuclear power plant in Ukraine in a few days' time, Cyprus would also be affected to some extent, due to the transport of radioactive particles to the Eastern Mediterranean region through the air.
If the explosion occurs some other day, the effect will be different, depending on the airflow. The above results from a preparedness exercise of the state services involved of the Republic of Cyprus.
As the Senior Meteorological Officer at the Department of Meteorology of Cyprus, Mr. Philippos Tombios, told "F", speaking in his personal capacity, the competent services involved are monitoring the issue, so that they have a picture at any time. Mr. Tombios said that according to the data available at the moment (yesterday around noon), in a hypothetical escape of radioactive material from Chernobyl yesterday morning and for the next 3 days, the areas in the south of Chernobyl (within Ukraine) would be seriously affected, since the flow near the reactor was moving to the southwest of the reactor. As he explains, the radioactive fallout would reach the Balkans and proceed eastwards having been cut off from the main flow of radioactive particles from the reactor, which would then move to central Europe. In the eastern Mediterranean, traces of the cloud would reach, at a sufficient height from the surface. In other words, there would be an effect but little effect. Mr. Tombios explains, at the same time, that the transport of the radioactive cloud is affected by the meteorology of the area and with tomorrow's conditions (and provided that an accident would occur) the picture is different and for this reason the experiment is repeated every time the local conditions change.
The issue with radioactive contamination is, continues Mr. Tombios, that once they enter the atmosphere, through atmospheric circulation, they will reach and pollute in the long term the entire planet, some places more and some places less.
The positive, as Mr. Tombios observes, is that the radioactive particles are heavy and will quickly fall to the earth, while at the same time the bad thing is that their radiation remains high and anything that falls to the ground will remain radiating for many years to come.
In the event of a nuclear explosion in Ukraine, as a result of the war, the bad times for Cyprus lies in the fact that these days our region is affected by cold air masses, which come from Eastern Europe.
In response to a question, Mr. Tombios said that if a nuclear accident occurred at Chernobyl in the first days of the war, Cyprus would not be affected, because the direction of the winds coming from the region of Ukraine did not favour their passage through Cyprus.
In response to another question, Mr. Tombios said that from a possible explosion at Chernobyl, under certain conditions there is a greater possibility that Greece will be more affected. He added, however, that taking into account that the phenomena affecting Greece more or less affect Cyprus, then there is the possibility that Cyprus will also be affected, although the energy it will reach will obviously be weakened.
What happened at Chernobyl in 1986
The Chernobyl nuclear accident took place on 26 April 1986 at reactor No. 4 of the Nuclear Power Plant when an explosion occurred during risk control tests from the operation of the plant.
Based on the information from the internet, the explosion is estimated to have affected the health of hundreds of thousands of people due to the radioactive burden on the environment. The percentage increases in cancers (over time) were more than 15% in the populations exposed, with thousands of deaths from cancer and leukaemia linked to the accident.
The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant is located in the now abandoned town of Pripyat. Due to its evacuation for years, it is also known as ghost town. The plant, named after the city of Chernobyl, came into operation in 1977 as a model nuclear power plant.
According to what was transmitted, the flora and fauna in the area were significantly affected after the accident. Pine forests in the area were destroyed by radioactivity, while there were also reports of mutations in animals, with the only scientific record being partial albinism in swallows. In recent years there have been reports that wildlife in the region is experiencing particular growth due to the lack of the human factor, while there is also the opposite view, according to which the levels of radioactivity have a significant impact on wild animals and plants.
Rarely accidents says professor
Speaking to the CNA, Professor of Risk Assessment at the European University, George Boustras, commenting on the interruption of the Chernobyl power supply, estimated that he does not see the possibility of a nuclear accident. He explained that a nuclear plant, if properly maintained, in accordance with international standards, does not pose a particular risk. A nuclear plant in normal use, 99.9% will not present problems, he added.
He clarified, however, that "all these plans do not take into account the case of war." Possible losses at a nuclear plant could have an impact, create a nuclear accident," he said.
In the same statements, Mr. Boustras said that in case there is an attack on a nuclear power plant, the potential of the winds should definitely be examined.
He noted that Cyprus is quite far from Ukraine, but recalled that the cloud from the Chernobyl accident in 1986 had been transferred, due to the winds, to the Atlantic Ocean.
He also noted that nuclear power plants are being built to the highest standards and it is highly unlikely by their design that they will have an accident.
He added that the major accidents in America in 1978, in the Soviet Union later and in Kozloduy in Bulgaria later, are minimal, compared to the number of stations and their history over time. "But there can be," he added.
