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Hard copies of this book available for sale at http://www.ieer.org/ Plutonium.: Deadly Gold of the Nuclear Age Contributing authors (alphabetically): Alexandra Brooks, IEER Bernd Franke, IEER Milton Hoenig, IEER Howard Hu, IPPNW Arjun Makhijani, IEER Scott Saleska, IEER Katherine Yih, IPPNW Reviewers (alphabetically}: Thomas Cochran, Natural Resources Defense Council, USA Charles Forsberg, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, USA Rebecca Johnson, Greenpeace UK John H. Large, Large & Associates Consulting Engineers, UK Robert Morgan, Washington University in St. Louis, USA Alan Phillips, Canadian Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War Joseph Rotblat, Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs Kathleen M. Tucker, Health & Energy Institute, USA Frank von Hippe!, Princeton University, USA Book and cover design: Nick Thorkelson, IPPNW Financial support: W. Alton Jones Foundation John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation New-Land Foundation Simons Foundation Svenska Llikare Mot Karnvapen (Swedish Physicians Against Nuclear Weapons) Deadly Gold ofthe Nuclear Age by a special commission of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and The Institute for Energy and Environmental Research Prepared under the direction of: Howard Hu, M.D., M.P.H., Sc.D. Director, IPPNW Commission Arjun Makhijani, Ph.D. President, IEER Katherine Yih, Ph.D. Coordinator, IPPNW Commission International Physicians Press Cambridge, Massachusetts Copyright © 1992 International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research Second printing with corrections: April 1995 International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War 126 Rogers Street Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142-10961 USA Telephone: (617)868-5050 Fax: (617)868-2560 Institute for Energy and Environmental Research 6935 Laurel Avenue Takoma Park, Maryland 20912 1 USA Telephone: (301)270-5500 Fax: (301)270-3029 ISBN 0-9634455-0-2 Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 92-74930 Table of Contents LIST OF FIGURES .................................................................................... ix LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................... x PREFACE ...................................................................................................... xi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ..................................................................... xiv Chapter 1 NUCLEAR GOLD OR NUCLEAR POISON? ..................................... 1 Nuclear Gold .................................................................................................... 1 Properties of Plutonium .................................................................................. 4 Radiation from Plutonium .............................................................................. 6 Nuclear Poison ................................................................................................. 8 Introduction ................................................................................................ 8 Carcinogenic Mechanisms .......................................................................... 9 Routes of Exposure and Biokinetics ........................................................ .10 The 1945 Plutonium Injection Experiment on Humans ................... 13 Carcinogenicity of Plutonium: Animal Studies ..................................... .14 Carcinogenicity of Plutonium: Human Studies ..................................... .15 Environmental Regulatory Considerations ................................................. 18 Summary ........................................................................................................ 20 Chapter 2 PLUTONIUM PRODUCTION AND USE ......................................... 21 Plutonium as Fissile Material. ....................................................................... 22 Plutonium Production Technology .............................................................. 25 Nuclear Reactors and Plutonium Grades ................................................. 25 Reprocessing Plants ................................................................................... 28 Military Plutonium ........................................................................................ 30 United States ............................................................................................. 31 Soviet Union .............................................................................................. 33 United Kingdom ........................................................................................ 35 France ........................................................................................................ 36 vi Plutonium: Deadly Gold of the Nuclear Age China .......................................................................................................... 37 Israel ........................................................................................................... 38 India ........................................................................................................... 38 Pakistan ...................................................................................................... 39 Summary of Military Plutonium Production, by Country ................... .41 Presently-Civilian Plutonium ...................................................................... .41 Breeder Reactors ........................................................................................ 42 Japan's Nuclear Power Program ............................................................... 46 Fabrication of Weapons from Plutonium ................................................... .48 Processes .................................................................................................... 48 Hazards ...................................................................................................... 49 Routine Hazards ................................................................................... 49 Accidental Criticality ........................................................................... 50 Plutonium-Induced Fires ...................................................................... 50 Chapter 3 RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM PLUTONIUM PRODUCTION .......................................................................................... 52 Wastes and Hazards from Reprocessing ...................................................... 53 Waste Categories ....................................................................................... 53 Reprocessing Wastes ................................................................................. 53 Releases during Reprocessing ................................................................... 56 Explosions during Reprocessing ............................................................... 57 High-Level Waste from Reprocessing .......................................................... 58 General Background .................................................................................. 58 Management and Storage of High-Level Waste ...................................... 59 Locations and Amounts of High-Level Waste ............................................. 61 United States ............................................................................................. 61 Hanford and Savannah River ............................................................... 62 Idaho National Engineering Laboratory and West Valley ................. 63 Soviet Union .............................................................................................. 65 Chelyabinsk-65 ..................................................................................... 65 Tomsk-7 ................................................................................................ 66 Krasnoyarsk-26 ..................................................................................... 66 United Kingdom ........................................................................................ 67 France ......................................................................................................... 68 China .......................................................................................................... 70 Summary and Explanation ofVariations ................................................ 72 High-Level Waste: Discharges into the Environment ................................ 72 Table of Contents vii Leaks to the Environment ........................................................................ 72 Waste Discharges in the U.S.: Hanford .................................................. .72 Waste Discharges in the Soviet Union: T echa River and