The Radioactive Material Release Accident at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute Was a 'Man-Made Disaster'... Due to Operational Inexperience

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] The recent radioactive material release accident at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute in Daejeon has been determined to be a 'man-made disaster.' It was revealed that radioactive contaminated water overflowed outside the facility due to the operator's operational negligence.

The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission Secretariat reported the 'Interim Investigation Results of the Radioactive Material Release Incident at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute' to the commission at the 114th meeting held on the 31st.

Earlier, on the 22nd, the NSSC announced that an accident occurred at the natural evaporation facility within the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, releasing artificial radioactive nuclides such as Cesium-137, Cesium-134, and Cobalt-60 to the outside. The natural evaporation facility is a building where extremely low-level radioactive liquid waste (below 185 Bq per liter) generated by the institute is stored and then evaporated.

The NSSC tentatively concluded that the accident occurred at the natural evaporation facility within the institute. This conclusion was based on the investigation conducted by the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety (KINS) incident investigation team dispatched to the site. In the soil near the closest manhole to the facility, doses of Cesium-137 at 31,839 Bq/kg, Cesium-134 at 101 Bq/kg, and Cobalt-60 at 192 Bq/kg were confirmed.

These artificial radioactive nuclides originate from facilities handling nuclear fuel; however, no related materials were released from the research reactor 'Hanaro' or the radioactive waste treatment facilities within the institute.

The NSSC identified the direct cause of the contaminated water leakage from the facility as 'operator's operational negligence.' After replacing the filter, the operator started the facility without checking the valve status, causing contaminated water to overflow onto the floor and be released outside the facility.

The NSSC also confirmed during this investigation that approximately 50 liters of contaminated water leaked each time the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute replaced the filter in the natural evaporation facility. Assuming the filter was replaced 13 times every two years over the past 30 years, a total of about 650 liters of contaminated water would have been discharged.

However, despite this accident, the NSSC Secretariat explained that soil and river water samples collected from Deokjincheon, Gwanpyeongcheon, and Gapcheon, which flow outside the institute, maintain normal radiation concentration levels.

Chairman Eom Jae-sik of the NSSC stated, "There was an overflow of (contaminated water) at the natural evaporation facility, and the contaminated water is believed to have gone to the underground storage tank before being released outside," adding, "We will further investigate and thoroughly understand these matters."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.