Why Is Radioactive Waste an Environmental Issue?

The harmful effects of nuclear weapons get much coverage for their death and destruction, but the waste from radioactive generation often gets overlooked. Radioactive waste leaks radiation like any other radiation-emitting substance. The radioactive waste from industry sometimes gets dumped and then leaks into the environment, causing reverberations that come back to affect humans.

History

• The history of radioactivity goes back as far as the beginnings of the universe itself. However, the discovery of radioactivity goes back a little more than 100 years, according to The National Health Museum. In 1895, Antoine Henri Becquerel discovered radioactivity by accident when he left uranium crystals next to photographic plates. The plates and uranium were kept in a dark drawer, but images were still developed. Although Becquerel did not pursue this phenomenon, others who did revolutionized the world.

Time Frame

• Radioactive waste would not be such a threat to the environment if not for most dangerous radioactive materials' extremely long half-lives. The term "half-life" describes how long it takes for a radioactive material to decay. When an atom of a radioactive substance decays, it emits radiation and changes into a different type of atom (a different isotope or element). Different radioactive materials decay at different rates; some decay in a matter of seconds or minutes, while others take millions of years. For example, the isotope francium-233 has a half-life of 22 minutes, which means that if you have 10 grams of francium-233, after 22 minutes, you will have 5 grams. The challenge of disposal of radioactive isotopes with long half-lives---such as uranium-238, which has a half-life of 4.46 billion years---is a major problem associated with the protection of people and the environment.

Effects

• If radioactive waste enters water sources, it can damage or contaminate marine life---marine life that fishermen might catch and sell on the market. Radioactive waste can also cause changes in the environment fairly quickly. Contamination from radioactive waste can travel many miles past its dumping ground through water, animal and soil migration. The University of Southern California reports that the Chernobyl accident in the Ukraine contaminated agricultural products throughout North Europe.

Considerations

• International attention has focused on the dangers of radiation pollution and radioactive waste in recent years due to the nuclear accident at the Chernobyl power plant in the Ukraine that killed several people and damaged the local environment. Although the Chernobyl incident happened outside of the U.S., the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is now much more involved in the handling and disposal of radioactive waste and radioactive materials in this country.

Misconceptions

• While the danger of radioactive waste is certainly very real, most of the radiation people and the environment are exposed to comes from natural sources. For instance, 55 percent of potentially harmful ionizing radiation comes from radon gas typically found in homes. Only 0.5 percent of radioactive exposure comes from waste due to nuclear testing and nuclear plants.