One of the chief engineers of Russia's first floating nuclear power station is dismissing fears that the vessel could turn into "Chernobyl on ice," The Guardian reports.
"We're talking about totally different systems," Vladimir Irminku said. "There should always be skepticism [of new technology]. But they're going overboard. If they say there is a possibility of an accident with the reactor then they have to present evidence."
Russia is planning to dispatch the vessel, named the Akademik Lomonosov, on a 4,000-mile journey along the Northern Sea Route, as part of Russia's plans for Arctic expansion so it can provide power to remote locations. But environmental groups are worried. Greenpeace has described the floating power plant as a "nuclear titanic," and the Bellona Foundation theorized that a tsunami could toss the plant on shore, leading to a "grave" nuclear accident
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Irminku had answers for that, as well. For starters, he said, the ice-cold water beneath the reactor could be used as a coolant in the case of an accident until help arrived, while a dock constructed around the power station would mitigate damage from waves, and the reactors' emergency systems can cool them without an electricity supply for 24 hours.
Even if it's safe, though, Thomas Nilsen, the editor of The Barents Observer newspaper, described the vessel as nothing more than a "PR Project" anyway. Read more at The Guardian.
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