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Decades ago, several countries disposed of barrels of nuclear waste in the middle of the Atlantic. Where exactly they are was unclear for a long time - now a team of researchers has located around 3,350 barrels.
dpa/Flotte Océanographique Française
Decades ago, several countries disposed of barrels of nuclear waste in the middle of the Atlantic. Where exactly they are was unclear for a long time. An expedition is now uncovering them.
According to preliminary findings by researchers, some of the nuclear waste drums disposed of decades ago in the north-east Atlantic are broken. According to the French research organization CNRS, some of the barrels have leaked unknown material, probably the binding agent bitumen, following an initial inspection of photos. The international team has returned from a search mission for nuclear waste drums. However, the group has not yet detected any increased radioactivity levels.
The team from the NODSSUM (Nuclear Ocean Dump Site Survey Monitoring) project reportedly located a total of around 3,350 barrels over an area of 163 square kilometers. To do this, they also used a submersible robot equipped with a camera for 3D images and a sonar system for locating objects, among other things. The researchers also analyzed around 50 photographed barrels and took a number of samples of water, soil and animals.
Some surfaces of the examined barrels were rusted and colonized with anemones, according to the press release. The condition of the containers varied - intact, deformed or torn open.
The radiation measuring instruments showed values at the level of the natural ambient background noise, the CNRS continues. "Fine radioactivity measurements in the laboratory on sediments, water and fish will require several months of work," the research organization said. Between the 1950s and 1980s, several countries disposed of nuclear waste in the ocean. At least 200,000 barrels are believed to be in the north-east Atlantic alone - at depths of 3,000 to 5,000 meters.
The Ulyx diving robot, which experts are using to search the North-East Atlantic for barrels of nuclear waste that were disposed of there decades ago.
dpa/Flotte Océanographique Française
The group of 21 researchers spent four weeks traveling with their ship "L'Atalante" in an area in the Western European Basin of the Atlantic. Half of the waste is believed to have landed in the area. The experts investigated where the barrels are located and what impact they have on the local ecosystem.
Project manager Patrick Chardon assumes that the radioactivity in the vast majority of nuclear waste in the North Atlantic will have virtually disappeared after around 300 to 400 years. However, the barrels were designed to withstand the pressure of the depths, but not to actually trap the radioactivity. The nuclear physicist suspects that radioactivity could have been escaping from the containers for some time.
