We use radioactive isotopes in medicine.
We use them for nuclear energy.
We use nuclear radiation for non-destructive testing in engineering, and in many fields
of scientific research, such as radioisotope labelling, and neutron or X-ray diffraction.
We are also surrounded by natural radiation every day from the Earth's crust and from
the Sun.
And fortunately, small amounts of radiation are harmless.
But large amounts of radiation can very dangerous.
Added to this is possibility that nuclear technology can be diverted to non-peaceful
purposes.
What do we do to ensure that our safety and our security are not compromised by the promise
of nuclear technology, and how do we guarantee that nuclear materials are used only for peaceful
purposes?
1.
Nuclear Safety.
Harm from radioactive materials can occur as a result of direct exposure to ionizing
radiation, and it can occur from ingestion of radioactive contamination.
In large enough doses, ionizing radiation causes extremely dangerous radiation burns
by killing cells.
This is also what happens, intentionally, in radiotherapy.
With lesser radiation doses, there is a possibility of causing damage to cells' DNA.
In this case, a cell may die harmlessly, or it may repair itself.
However, the third possibility is that it remains viable, but reproduces with genetic
errors, thus increasing the risk of cancer.
Because radiation is potentially hazardous, the risk of using any nuclear technology is
assessed against the ethical benefit.
This justification is the first step in assessing nuclear safety.
Take climate change.
For tackling climate change, while preserving biodiversity, there are strong benefits in
nuclear technology.
A working nuclear power plant is clean.
Its power output is decoupled from the carbon cycle, and is only weakly coupled to land
usage.
The high energy density fuel and reliable output provide energy security to the countries
that generate nuclear electricity.
The waste is captured at the point of generation and has a very small volume.
But, irradiated nuclear fuel is unquestionably dangerous to living organisms, so any nuclear
reactor comes with a risk of harming the people who operate these nuclear facilities, and
the risk of harming the surrounding environment by releasing radiation.
Because we understand how these risks originate and because we know how to control them, we
justifiably opt for the benefits of using nuclear technology, and around the world nuclear
energy is used to provide energy security, while mitigating CO2 emissions that would
otherwise contribute to climate change.
The full responsibility for safety rests with the engineers, that is with us and the leaders
of our organisations, because as engineers we are the people responsible for facilities
and activities that could give rise to significant radiation release.
To provide safety, we restrict the likelihood of events that might lead to a loss of control
over a nuclear reactor core, nuclear chain reaction, radioactive source or any other
source of radiation.
We prepare to mitigate the consequences of such events if they were to occur.
Both people and the environment, in the present and in the future, must be protected against
radiation risks.
This is challenging, because the likelihood of serious accidents in a single nuclear facility
must often be reduced to below chances of once in thousands of years, and no individual,
or automated system can achieve this on their own.
Therefore, for the prevention of accidents, our primary measure is defence in depth.
Properly implemented, defence in depth ensures that no single technical, human or organizational
failure could lead to harmful effects.
Pursuing nuclear safety objectives, we make use of independent regulatory bodies, making
these a part of the legal and governmental framework for safety, in each of our states.
We build structured organisations of individuals, who work together, guided by principles of
leadership and management for safety.
With these factors we ensure that we create the appropriate operational environments for
highly reliable decision-making.
The fundamental nuclear safety objective is to protect people and the environment from
the harmful effects of ionizing radiation.
2.
Security.
The need for nuclear security comes about because there are people with malicious intentions.
Radioactive materials unavoidably form the target of some of these malicious intentions
because they can be inherently dangerous if used in certain ways, and because the illicit
transfer in fissile nuclear materials may further the proliferation of nuclear weapons.
Nuclear security firstly is the prevention of criminal or intentional unauthorised acts
involving radioactive material, such as theft, or sabotage.
Ultimately, the State of jurisdiction for a nuclear facility is responsible for the
security of its radioactive sources and nuclear materials.
The State maintains this responsibility to provide adequate protection during international
transport of its radioactive sources and nuclear materials, all the way until responsibility
is properly transferred to another State.
Nuclear Security includes preventing sabotage or malicious action against the nuclear facilities,
as well as the radioactive materials, as this could cause equal harm.
An example would be sabotage of safety systems in a nuclear facility.
Beyond prevention, nuclear security includes ensuring the detection of, and the response
to, criminal or intentional unauthorised acts involving radioactive materials.
Nuclear security measures may be physically manifested in the obvious presence of guards
with guns, and heavy gates that you see will see protecting nuclear facilities, and this
is one aspect, called physical security.
But nuclear security also includes the information, electronic and personnel security measures
that back up the same objectives of prevention, detection and response to malicious activities.
The potentially severe consequences of failures, and the need to ensure success in nuclear
security, means that just as for nuclear safety, we encounter similar organisational structures,
defence in depth design principles, and legislative and administrative systems governing nuclear
security.
Nuclear security is the prevention of, detection of, and response to, criminal or intentional
unauthorised acts involving or directed at nuclear material, other radioactive material,
associated facilities or associated activities.
3.
Nuclear Safeguards.
In the 1950's and 1960's the United States, the Soviet Union, France, the United Kingdom
and China repeatedly tested nuclear explosives and became nuclear weapons states.
The cost and other barriers to acquiring nuclear weapons was falling for all States.
On March 21, 1963, U.S. President John F. Kennedy's words reflected the mood, when he
said, "I see the possibility in the 1970s of the president of the United States having
to face a world in which 15 or 20 or 25 nations may have nuclear weapons.
I regard that as the greatest possible danger and hazard."
Potentially, more and more states would soon possess nuclear weapons.
How could the states of the world reduce the risk that nuclear weapons would be used, and
reduce the risk of actual nuclear war from spiralling out of control?
Against this backdrop, the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, was created.
It defined the states of the world as nuclear weapons states and non-nuclear weapons states.
The nuclear weapons states agreed to pursue eventual nuclear disarmament.
The non-nuclear weapons states agreed to forgo any attempt to develop or acquire nuclear
weapons.
All signatories are granted an inalienable right to the development of nuclear technologies
for peaceful purposes, including the sharing of civil nuclear technologies and helping
each other in trade, in advice and in other collaborative work to facilitate peaceful
uses.
Much of these activities form the work of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
The nuclear Non-proliferation treaty entered into force in March 1970 and was indefinitely
extended in 1995.
It is one of the most successful arms agreements, ever, with near-universal membership.
By way of enforcing the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, the non-nuclear weapons
states agreed to accept International Atomic Energy Agency Safeguards.
This is what we mean by nuclear safeguards.
Certain fissionable nuclear materials such as enriched uranium, and plutonium can be
used to fuel either reactors, or weapons.
Therefore some parts of the nuclear fuel cycle, such as enrichment and reprocessing have duel
uses—they apply to civilian, and to military purposes.
The purpose of nuclear safeguards is to verify that all the nuclear materials in a state
are being used for peaceful purposes.
Safeguards consist firstly of reporting, by the state, to the International Atomic Energy
agency, of the inventory and the location of all nuclear materials.
Secondly, the International Atomic Energy agency will conduct inspections in the nuclear
facilities of the State, to ensure that what states report is in fact true.
This might be through physical verifications by IAEA inspectors, or remote surveillance.
This allows States to demonstrate their adherence to commitments, to the international community,
that they made under the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.
Nuclear Safeguards are the obligations of signatories to the Treaty on the Non-proliferation
of Nuclear Weapons.
They include the processes, the nuclear material accounting systems and associated logical
and legal frameworks, used by the International Atomic energy agency, to demonstrate that
nuclear materials are being used for peaceful purposes.
Today, the nations of the world rely significantly on radioactive materials and on radiation
for a growing range of peaceful applications.
Taken together, nuclear safety, nuclear security and nuclear safeguards unlock the potential
of nuclear technology so that we can reap the considerable benefits, while maintaining
the safety of people and other species, preserving our security, and safeguarding nuclear materials
so they cannot be diverted to produce nuclear weapons.