Nuclear Power Stations - Is There a Military Action Zone?

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The zaparisian nuclear power station, when it's fully operational, all six reactors, contribute something like 25 % of electricity to the ukrane. So you could understand that perhaps russia politically motivated not to allow that electricity to be used by the ucranians. And in terms of international pressure, there is actually a part of the geneva convention which states that there should be no military action around any nuclear installations. That would be the first immediate step to take. The second would be to try and get people as far away from that reactor as possible.

Last week, a team of inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) arrived at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. The plant was seized by Russian forces in early May and has recently been the target of sustained shelling, increasing the risk of a nuclear disaster. The head of the IAEA, Rafael Grossi, who is leading the inspection team, has reported that the integrity of the plant has been violated several times. Ian Sample speaks to Prof Claire Corkhill about what this could mean for Zaporizhzhia, what the risks are if the plant loses external power, and how a nuclear meltdown can be avoided. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod