(December 22, 1989) In September, an Indian newspaper, The Independent, reported that a survey by a team of scientists from the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) found an unusually high concentration of radioactive iodine in marine algae near the Tarepur Atomic Power Station (TAPS).
(323-324.3242) WISE Amsterdam - Researchers G.R. Doshi and S.N. Doshi from BARC's health physics division, who conducted the survey, found Iodine-129 in marine algae near Tarapur at 740 times the normal concentration. They published their findings in the Indian Journal for Marine Sciences, creating what The Independent described as "a flutter among top nuclear scientists".
According to The Independent, Scientists at the Indian Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB), the agency in charge of safety aspects of nuclear energy in India, said marine algae had been selected for the survey because they are regarded as indicator organisms which have a tendency to accumulate iodine. The scientists said the high concentrations indicate an obvious lapse of environmental safety precautions. The Independent also quoted them as saying, "If the concentrations of Iodine-129 were so immensely high in these organism, one shudders to think of those organisms where the concentrations of radioactive wastes cannot be so easily traced", but went on to say they requested anonymity. Citing the BARC scientists' report which said that "variations of this magnitude of Iodine-129 in the environment cannot be attributed to increased iodine uptake, but only to the releases from the reprocessing plant", the AERB scientists interviewed by The Independent said the study clearly indicated the need for increased monitoring and surveillance of the discharges from the reprocessing plant.
Iodine-129, which is one of the wastes generated in the reprocessing plant and the waste immobilization units at Tarapur, has a half-life of 17 million years (1) and is therefore virtually indestructible. It would create a potential health hazard if it were to become part of the food chain. Thus it is not only "top nuclear scientists" who are in "a flutter". Surendra Gadekar, editor of Anumukti (an Indian journal dedicated to creating a non-nuclear India), points out that it is just one of the hundreds of radionuclides produced in the nuclear energy generation process. Leaving aside other radionuclides, he says, "the iodines alone come in half a dozen different radioactive isotopes. Most of the other isotopes of iodine have a short half-life (ranging from hours to 8 days), but they, especially Iodine-131 are produced in much larger quantities. Since all radioisotopes are chemically identical, there is no way that a system that allowed the dispersal of Iodine129 could have prevented the escape of Iodine-131 as well. Radioactive iodine tends to accumulate in the thyroid and causes cancer of the thyroid."
Anumuktl's editor also points that accumulation of radio-iodine in the thyroid causes greater harm in young children. This is because their thyroids are smaller, thus the dose per gram of the organ is consequently greater. In addition, because the cells in children are dividing more rapidly, damage is potentially greater as damage to cellular material caused by radiation are more likely to be inherited by daughter cells. For all these reasons, he says, it is imperative that a health survey especially of children around Tarapur be conducted at once so that remedial action can be taken without delay.
Meanwhile, the head of BARC's health physics division, Dr. K.C. Pillai, told an Independent reporter that despite the findings of his two juniors, there was no cause for worry. "The reason why such an unusually high concentration was reported was because the technique used to measure these concentrations was very sensitive," he said. "In fact the entire objective of the study was to show the efficiency of this technique, know as neutron activation analysis..."
According to Anumukti's editor, Dr. Pillai's attitude seems typical of many other nucleocrats, and not just in India. "Their first priority," he says, "seems to be the preservation of the nuclear enterprise rather than the preservation of the species. Therefore, the primary objective of measuring levels of radioactivity in flora and fauna is no longer that the information so obtained may be of use to populations at risk, but is merely to demonstrate the 'efficiency' of some technique. While defending nuclear technology they get so carried away that one begins to wonder what kind of 'scientists' are these who think that the sensitivity of a technique results in large values for the measurements."
Sources:
- Anumukti (India), Oct. 1989
- (1) "Radiation and Human Health", Gofman, John W., M.D., Ph.D., Sierra Club Books, San Francisco, 1981, p.245.
Contact: Anumukti, Sampoorna Kranti Vidyalaya, Vedchhi via Valod, Dist. Surat 394641, India.