It’s been 30 years since an obscure Soviet-era nuclear station in Ukraine entered the world’s popular lexicon and conscience under the single word ‘Chernobyl’. The images of the devastated concrete hulk spewing smoke and radiation became a watchword for the very horrors of nuclear power, the nightmare meltdown scenario that environmentalists had warned of since the power of the atom was harnessed to generate electricity for homes, factories, cities and submarines. Atomic power, for all of its benefits, carried risks that if not properly controlled, could result in a territory ravaged by radiation.
Putting Chernobyl into historical context, it used nuclear technology and safety standards that were peculiar and unique to Soviet-era stations, where maintenance was slipshod, oversight poor and transparency non-existent. The regulatory framework was based on the hierarchy of Communist Party officials and the environment was there to be exploited for whatever means suited the leadership of the politburo. And thankfully, all of those factors that contributed to the terrible error of Chernobyl were unique.
In a modern context, the international community has put in place a series of rigorous standards, checks and balances to ensure that incidents like Chernobyl don’t happen again. And for nations that choose to walk the path of nuclear power, those checks and balances are now paramount in ensuring that the full potential of splitting the atom is positive, safe and secure, and that new safeguards are put in place to totally minimise risk. When any event occurs that poses new challenges, those lessons are learnt, best practices modified, plants re-engineered and the regulatory framework is further tightened.
In Japan, when a tsunami washed ashore five years ago and caused the catastrophic failure of the safety systems tied into the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, nuclear safety and administrative agencies put in place reviews and altered best practices, regulations and standards to ensure the set of circumstances — or anything similar — would not endanger future plants.
The UAE’s first nuclear power plant at Barakah is likely to come online in 2020 and will meet a quarter of the UAE’s electricity needs when it’s fully operational. Authorities at the UAE’s Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation are closely examining all aspects of the plant, making sure every facet meets the most rigorous and exacting safety standards. It’s not all about engineering and construction, it’s about building a foundation based on the principles of safe and secure power. And the UAE is making sure that happens.
