Question

Why should we give special attention to nuclear waste management?

Answer 1

• Low level nuclear waste includes all those items that have been contaminated with radioactive material or have become radioactive through exposure to neutrons.
  
• This waste typically consists of contaminated protective shoe covers and clothing, wiping rags, mops, filters, reactor water treatment residues, equipment and tools, luminous dials, medical tubes, swabs, injection needles, syringes, and laboratory animal carcasses and tissues.
  
• Contaminated cleaning equipment, contaminated reactor water, contaminated clothing are low level nuclear wastes.
  
• High level nuclear wastes include those items which are inside the nuclear reactor vessel and hence spent fuel rods fall under this category.
  
• Radioactive waste is usually the byproduct of nuclear power generation. These radioactive elements are highly hazardous chemicals. Radioactive elements have half-life which means the time required for half of its atoms to disintegrate and become non-radioactive.
  
• Radioactive elements have longer half-life and hence takes very long time to disintegrate. This is the unique problem posed by radioactive elements apart from adverse impacts on ecosystems, contamination of groundwater and toxicity to humans.