No Radiation Leak After ‘Contamination’ Events at Africa’s Only Nuclear Power Station
South Africa’s nuclear regulator has confirmed that no radioactive material leaked into the environment during three recent ‘contamination’ events inside Africa’s only nuclear power station, the Koeberg Nuclear Power Station.
The incidents, which occurred on June 30, July 2, and July 7, involved ‘elevated airborne radioactive contamination’ inside the Koeberg Power Station, located on South Africa’s west coast. According to the National Nuclear Regulator, the contamination events occurred when there was a loss of power to ventilation units during maintenance work.
Workers inside the power station who may have been exposed were screened and recorded radioactive contamination below the radioactivity a person is exposed to when they have a dental X-ray, the NNR said.
Although the regulator described the events as ‘contamination’ incidents, it emphasized that they did not meet the criteria for classification as a nuclear or radiological incident or emergency. The regulator also stated that the events did not result in any off-site radiological consequences.
The Koeberg plant is Africa’s only commercial nuclear power station and has been operational since the 1980s. It is operated by the national electricity company, Eskom, and has two reactors that generate around 5% of South Africa’s electricity.
The plant’s reactors were recently granted 20-year life extensions, clearing them to be operational until after 2040.
The Koeberg plant is located around 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of South Africa’s second-biggest city, Cape Town. The surrounding area is home to a significant population and has a diverse range of ecosystems, including wetlands and marine reserves.
South Africa has plans to expand its commercial nuclear capability with new stations to support its unreliable and polluting energy supply, which is struggling to provide for a growing population and heavily based on burning coal.
Other countries are also turning more towards nuclear power to meet skyrocketing energy demands despite long-held safety fears from opponents of nuclear power citing disasters like Chernobyl and, more recently, Fukushima in Japan.
Several other African nations are advancing their own commercial nuclear plans, including Egypt, which is building its first nuclear power station with four large Russian reactors that it hopes will be operational around 2030 and generate around 10% of the country’s electricity, according to the World Nuclear Association.
