I hate to say it, but a much of what the writer said is fiction.
This is with reference to Pervez Hoodhbhoy’s article of March 22 titled “Pakistan can’t handle Fukushima”. I hate to say it, but a much of what the writer said is fiction, or that the facts presented have been done in a most selective manner.
The fact of the matter is that in Japan the nuclear power plants survived the unprecedented earthquake and the Fukushima plant’s standby external power generation capacity was affected by the tsunami. Pakistan’s coast has no historical evidence of it being affected by tsunamis except in 1945 when a three-metre-high wave was recorded. As for the Karachi Nuclear Power Plant (KANUPP), it is located on a rock about 12 metres above the sea surrounding it. This means that in the unlikely eventually were a tsunami to hit Karachi, Kanupp would be untouched by the wave.
As for hazards from earthquakes to reactors in Pakistan, reactors worldwide (and this applies in our case as well) are designed to withstand earthquakes of a very high magnitude, as much 9 on the Richter scale. So far, no fallout from Fukushima has affected any medium or large city in Japan and small towns within a radius of 20 kilometres were evacuated. On a scale of one to seven, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) considers the Fukushima incident a Level 5 accident. To put things in perspective, Chernobyl was Level 7 and America’s Three Mile Island was Level 6 — and both were manmade disasters.
The writer also made an unrealistic comparison of a nuclear bomb with a nuclear reactor. Unlike a bomb, in a nuclear reactor most of the fission products are retained inside the plant. The points raised about safety and physical security of plants are understandable. One should also look at Pakistan’s excellent record in safety and security since such facilities were built four decades ago. Furthermore, the Pakistani Atomic Energy Commission has a strong safety culture which has been verified by international experts from the IAEA.
The writer’s point about fusion reactors is a good one but this can only happen if technology advances. Meanwhile Pakistan must use its existing sources of hydroelectric, thermal and nuclear energy in an optimal manner. It can and must, develop larger nuclear power reactors after learning from Fukushima. Pakistan could use its coal reserves in Thar and if it does that, it will not have to rely on external help. A nuclear physicist must give tangible solutions to the society, instead of misleading it and scaring the living daylights out of readers.
Zahir Kazmi
Strategic and Nuclear Studies Department
National Defence University
Islamabad
Published in The Express Tribune, March 24th, 2011.
