Russian nuclear power plants pose no more risk

-The neighboring nuclear power plants no longer pose an environmental risk. Indeed, their standards are now internationally very high, says Jukka Laaksonen at STUK, interviewed by YLE.

Finland has, like Norway and Sweden, supported safety improvements at both Kola nuclear power plant and Leningrad nuclear power plant since the mid-90ties. The three countries have cooperated together on projects at both Kola and Leningrad NPP.

Kola NPP operates four pressured water cooled reactors of the VVER-440 type, while Leningrad NPP operates four graphite moderated reactors of the RBMK-1000 type, similar to the one that exploded in Chernobyl in 1986.

Both the VVER-440 and RBMK-1000 reactors design were earlier considered by European experts to lack satisfactory safety mechanisms. In order to improve the safety standards, Norwegian and Finnish experts have worked in close cooperation with their Russian colleagues.

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Finland is now reducing their funding to nuclear safety project at Russian nuclear power plants, according to YLE.

Nuclear safety co-operation have been omitted from expenditure earmarked for local regional purposes and Laaksonen says this could lead to an end to joint site inspections.

One of the international experts that have been researching and monitoring Russia’s nuclear safety cooperation with other countries in the north is Bellona’s Igor Koudrik. He dislike Finland’s reduced funding:

- It is a pity that Finland stops safety cooperation with Russia. The reactors that operate in Leningrad and Kola nuclear power plants are far from safe and incidents prone. Information about the incidents is very scarce. Finninsh cooperation with Russian nuclear plants gave an insight among other things into the conditions at the plants, which it will no longer have, says Igor Koudrik to BarentsObserver.

Earlier this year, The Norwegian Government presented a White Paper to the Parliament saying that Norway’s cooperation with Russian on nuclear safety in the north has a long-term approach.

With funding from the Foreign Ministry, Norway has over the last 15 years spent some NOK 1.5 billion (€ 190 million) on different projects to improve the radiological situation, mainly within the Russian part of the Barents Region.

- This is one of our most important areas of cooperation with Russia, Norway’s Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said when the Wite Paper was presented.

- But Russia still has the main responsibility for solving the challenges connected to nuclear safety. We see that Russian authorities are making progress in improving both legislation and systems for ensuring the safety, the minister said.

Also the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority says they will continue with cooperative safety projects with the two nuclear power plants in Northwest-Russia.

- In Sweden we made the assessment that the Russian nuclear power plants from its design had in-built safety lacks. Worst were the RBMK-reactors. In large, the safety lacks can be corrected, but not eliminated, says Lars van Dassen, head of Section on Coooperation and Development with the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority in a comment to BarentsObserver.

- Another challenge is that this nuclear power plants are becoming older for every day. Cooperation with Kola and Leningrad nuclear power plants is something we consider important because it will influence the safety itself, and not least our Russian partners understanding of safety, says Lars van Dassen.