Floating reactors.

[Big_Spark]

Spark123, I have seen this report, but it is odd that it does not appear in the list of accidents by the Nuclear Authority and Regulator.

I am not sure that the report as quoted is accurate. I cannot find information about it on the Russian, EU, UK or US websites that deal with Nuclear Regulations, and they all list Nuclear accidents since 1945.

 

[Spark123]

IAEA, The unofficial electronic edition translated Russian report from 1989 which shows 10180 people evacuated, somewhat fewer than 250000 although still frightening.

 

[pipme]

...Near the southern Ural Mountains, in the Russian province of
Chelyabinsk, there is a Soviet nuclear facility called the Mayak
Chemical Combine. From 1948 until 1990 when the last of five
reactors was shut down, the Combine contaminated the region to such
an extent that it is now known as the most polluted area on Earth.
The region received this title due to the Combine's continuous
disregard for environmental and public safety. However, there are
three specific incidents that stand out: intentional dumping of
radioactive waste into the Techa River; an explosion at a
radioactive waste storage facility in 1957; and a 1967 wind storm
that deposited irradiated sediments from Lake Karachay onto the
surrounding province....

Source, and More on Chelyabinsk

From elsewhere :-

..Decommissioning nuclear-powered submarines has become a major task for US and Russian navies. After defuelling, US practice is to cut the reactor section from the vessel for disposal in shallow land burial as low-level waste (see the Ship-Submarine recycling program). In Russia the whole vessels, or the sealed reactor sections, remain stored afloat indefinitely.
Russia is well advanced with plans to build a floating power plant for their far eastern territories. The design has two 35 MWe units based on the KLT-40 reactor used in icebreakers (with refueling every 4 years). Some Russian naval vessels have been used to supply electricity for domestic and industrial use in remote far eastern and Siberian towns...

Let us hope that safety takes precedence, wouldn't hold my breath, they are governmentally pretty skint, tis chilly around their Urals.. Will the big business players be adequately controlled?

 

[Big_Spark]

IAEA, The unofficial electronic edition translated Russian report from 1989 which shows 10180 people evacuated, somewhat fewer than 250000 although still frightening.

Thanks for the link, very informative and I obviously stand corrected on this, it now looks as if there were two seperate incidents at this facility, or there are two facilities in the Chelyabinsk region, which is possible.

This incident is obvioulsy a Nuclear accident and I do find it odd that it is not mentioned on the Official Gov' websites, but then perhaps they are trying to make things appear better than they really are...and it also begs the question as to whether the Soviets had more accidents that they have revealed up till now...