The impact of Chernobyl on nuclear power safety in the Soviet Union

Abstract

The accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power station on April 26, 1986, has had a profound effect on the nuclear power industry in the Soviet Union and abroad. Almost without exception, national nuclear energy programs have been subjected to increased public and scientific scrutiny. This attention generally has reinforced the public’s reservations about the safety of nuclear power and, in a number of instances, has led to the contraction or outright cancellation of certain nuclear power programs. The Soviet Union has not been immune to these developments. Despite its longstanding enthusiasm for and faith in nuclear power, The Soviet political leadership has been compelled to reassess the nation’s nuclear power program in light of both intensified scientific-expert criticism and an increasingly assertive grass roots antinuclear movement. The purpose of this article is to analyse the extent to which the reassessment prompted by Chernobyl has led to actual changes in the Soviet Union’s approach to nuclear safety.’ Particular attention is given to the implementation of‘both organizational and technical measures. An effort also is made to discern the extent to which the nuclear safety lessons that have been learned from Chernobyl represent a tactical change in behavior or a more fundamental reordering of values.