The worst we’re looking at is sub-Fukushima – and Fukushima caused no discernible health effects
Concern and rhetoric have ramped up ever since the Ukraine war broke out regarding the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Powerplant – so much so that it now has an English acronym, ZNPP. The fear is that one side or the other might seek to cause a dangerous release of radiation or radioactive materials. Realistically the side damaging the plant would be Russia, no matter what Putin might claim.
This is causing a lot of arm-waving around the world, far too much to list here: but a flavour of the commentary is offered by Ireland’s RTE, which speaks this week of Russia “holding Ukraine and the rest of Europe hostage to a nuclear catastrophe at Zaporizhzhia”, adding that “Ukraine’s war is increasingly becoming existential for all of us”.
Wow – “nuclear catastrophe” which is “existential for all of us”. That sounds bad.
Fortunately it’s a case of ridiculous media overhyping, as is pretty much always the case with nuclear powerplant “disasters”. So what could actually happen at ZNPP?