Radioactive Wasp Nest Found and Destroyed at US Nuclear Facility
A radioactive wasp nest was discovered and destroyed at a nuclear facility in South Carolina, where components for nuclear bombs are produced, though officials say there is no danger to the public.
Workers at a nuclear facility in South Carolina, which produces critical components for nuclear bombs, discovered a radioactive wasp nest near tanks storing liquid nuclear waste. According to a report by the U.S. Department of Energy, the nest was found on July 3 during routine radiation checks at the Savannah River Site near Aiken.
Officials stated that the nest had radiation levels 10 times higher than the federal regulatory limit. Workers sprayed the nest with insecticide, removed it, and disposed of it as radioactive waste. No wasps were found in the nest.
Source of Contamination:
The report indicated that there was no leakage from the waste tanks and that the nest likely became radioactive due to “in-situ radioactive contamination” from residual radioactivity left over from when the site was fully operational.
The watchdog group Savannah River Site Watch criticized the report as “incomplete at best,” noting that it lacked details on the source of contamination, how the wasps came into contact with it, and whether there could be other radioactive nests. Tom Clements, the group’s executive director, emphasized the importance of identifying the type of wasp, as some build nests from soil while others use materials that could help trace the source of contamination.
No Danger Outside the Facility:
According to Savannah River Mission Completion, the organization currently overseeing the site, the tank farm is within the site’s boundaries, and wasps typically fly only a few hundred meters from their nests, posing no danger outside the facility. If the wasps had been found, they would have had much lower radiation levels compared to their nest.
History of the Facility:
The facility was opened in the early 1950s during the Cold War to produce plutonium pits for nuclear bombs. It now focuses on fuel production and cleanup activities for nuclear reactors. According to Savannah River Mission Completion, over 625 million liters of liquid nuclear waste have been produced at the site, with the amount reduced to about 129 million liters through evaporation. Of the underground storage tanks, 43 are still in use, while 8 have been closed.
Discover more from Kokcha News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
