Radioactive scrap vessel sank
UPDATED: The former transport vessel for spent nuclear fuel Severka reportedly sank at the naval shipyard in Aleksandrovsk on the Kola Peninsula in late May. Officials at the shipyard confirm that the vessel went down.
The information about the sinking of the nuclear waste ship was first published by the regional portal blogger51.ru and is based on the words of what is said to be an employee at the shipyard No. 10 in Aleksandrovsk.
Also, the environmental organization Bellona comments on the fate of Severka. Head of Bellona Murmansk Andrey Zolotkov says in an article published at Bellona’s own portal: “Since Severka for a long time was used to transport spent nuclear fuel in old containers, then it is likely that there are radioactive contaminated facilities and equipment onboard and likely also small amounts of low-level liquid radioactive waste.”
Shipyard officials confirms
After the news was published on the blog-portal and by Bellona, officials at the naval yard in Aleksandrovsk confirmed that the vessel sank in late May.
Interviewed by Russia’s main TV-news Vesti on Monday, the director of shipyard No. 10 Arkadi Oganyan said: “Yes, the hull sank, but we can raise it. There are no risks of contamination, all sources were taken out, and there is nothing to be afraid of.”
Vesti also reports that data from the Murmansk Hydrometeorological shows no radioactive contamination of the water in the bay where the hull of the vessel sank. All levels are within natural radiation background.
Highly radioactive uranium fuel
Severka was one of the first vessels in the Northern fleet to transport spent nuclear fuel from submarine reactors to re-loading and storage sites along the coast of the Kola Peninsula. The vessel was built in 1957 and taken out of operation in the early 90ties.
The vessel transported the containers with spent nuclear fuel to the Sevmorput naval yard in the city of Murmansk from the Russian Northern fleet’s Andreeva Bay nuclear fuel storage in the Litsa fjord, just 55 kilometres east of Russia’s border to Norway.
Severka has since then been laidup at the shipyard in Aleksandrovsk where also many other nuclear objects are stored.
Naval yard No. 10, also named Shkval, is located in Aleksandrovsk, previously named Polyarny. Aleksandrovsk is a closed military town and has a population of more than 20,000 people. The town is located northwest of Murmansk in the outermost part of the Kola bay on the coast of the Barents Sea.
Whistle blower
The anonymous blogger that first reported about the sinking is concerned about the radiation situation: “Now I wonder what awaits us in the future,” the blogger asks.
The employee from the naval yard writing at the blog also complains about the level of expertise among the workers. “Specialists from the shipyard leaves, but almost no one teach the newcomers.” Also; “This year salaries are delayed with almost four months.”
Read also: Rusty submarine remains on the seabed
Severka was listed in a 2005 proposal from Rosatom to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on nuclear service ships in need of dismantlement based on international cooperation.
The document says dismantlement of the service vessel can be done with the same infrastructure as for dismantlement of retired nuclear powered submarines. The document also reads that such dismantlement must be based on the same safety precaution concept as for dismantlement of submarines with nuclear reactors.
Radioactive contaminated
According to a document presented to IAEA in 2005, the vessel has no longer spent nuclear fuel onboard, but parts of the vessel are radioactive contaminated.
The plan presented in Rosatom’s document to IAEA lists a three stage order of dismantlement of Severka:
First stage: liquid radioactive waste and high-level solid radioactive waste should be removed from the vessel. Non-radioactive equipment and structures should then be disassembled. Thereafter; safe storage of the vessel afloat should be carried out after the main hull and the upper deck are sealed.
Second stage: The still floating vessel should be monitored and stored awaiting the establishment of a regional facility for disposal of solid radioactive waste.
Third stage: The vessel will be dismantled and the solid radioactive waste packed and delivered to final disposal.
So far, there are no comments from the naval yard or other officials within the Northern fleet on why the information about the sinking was not made public before after two weeks.
