Hello Tunza Readers!

Today I will be talking about nuclear waste: what is it, and the effects it has on the environment. Nuclear waste is what nuclear fuel becomes after it has been reacted in a reactor. It might appear similar to the fuel before being input into the reactor, but due to the nuclear reactions the content of the fuel is not the same. The waste left behind is dangerously radioactive and remains this way for thousands of year. To illustrate the toxicity of this waste, if you were to come across this waste newly reacted and unshielded, you would receive a lethal dose in a few seconds and die of acute radiation sickness within a few days.

Due to the toxicity and danger of nuclear waste what is actually being done to protect ourselves from it? The fuel remains  underwater for a few years until the radiation decays to levels that can be shielded by concrete. Other options for disposal include deep geologic storage and recycling.

Handling nuclear waste has potentially catastrophic environmental and health impacts. Areas for nuclear waste is disposed of has the chance of contaminating the surrounding environment for hundreds of thousands of years if the barriers of the nuclear storage facility fail. These effects can include cancerous growths or causing genetic problems for future generations of animals and plants.

Hopefully after reading this report you will be able to understand more about this issue and the negative effects it can have on our environment!