Thai Science And Technology Min Focuses On Safety For Nuclear Power Use

[webfact]

Science and Technology Min focuses on safety for nuclear power use

BANGKOK, 21 May 2013 (NNT) – The Science and Technology Ministry is focusing on safety of nuclear power use while trying to minimize its impact on the environment.

The Science and Technology Ministry, in cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), has held a seminar on safety for nuclear power use as well as to promote environmental conservation.

According to Science and Technology Minister Worawat Auapinyakul, nuclear power is an alternative energy that is essential for future use.

The ministry has, therefore, held a seminar in which nuclear-power experts from other countries have shared experience and knowledge, in order to build confidence among people that the ministry can provide safety to everyone as regards the use of nuclear energy.

The IAEA nuclear power specialist has given Thai officials instructions on how to build a safety culture in the country, if Thailand should need a nuclear power plant in the future.

As nuclear power can be used in several areas, including agriculture, industry, medication, and electricity generation, the ministry has to make sure that it poses no harms or threats to the country and its people, the minister said.


-- NNT 2013-05-21

[Thai at Heart]

The IAEA nuclear power specialist has given Thai officials instructions on how to build a safety culture in the country, if Thailand should need a nuclear power plant in the future.

Love the language style. It's almost like, now the seminar has finished, that's it. Done.

[clockman]

Now iam worried!

[blabla1]

This ias a bad idea, bkk seems a good location, a sinking city...lol, what the biggest problem is as always, where do they store the waste, going by how they treat sewerage waste here, we should all run for the hills...

[clockman]

Having been an electrician all my lfe. And seen how Thai people regard electricity and safety. For these dangerous people to start talking about nuclear. Is a frightening thought!

[lee b]

OMG ! Pass on this please

[Payboy]

IAEA nuclear power specialist has given Thai officials instructions on how to build a safety culture in the country

Didn't know IAEA kept a handy stock of buddha amulets.

[Soutpeel]

This ias a bad idea, bkk seems a good location, a sinking city...lol, what the biggest problem is as always, where do they store the waste, going by how they treat sewerage waste here, we should all run for the hills...

Well you had better run now then...there already is a nuclear reactor operating in BKK and has been for many years...

Send us a post card from your hill or from under the bridge...

Edited May 21, 2013 by Soutpeel

[Soutpeel]

Having been an electrician all my lfe. And seen how Thai people regard electricity and safety. For these dangerous people to start talking about nuclear. Is a frightening thought!

Having been in engineering all my life and being involved in oil/gas in Thailand for the last 12, Thailand seems to handle O& G ok...you shouldnt be using the average Thai rice farmer as a measure of how "Thai people" regard anything....

Thailand has been running chemical plants/power plants offshore O&G sucessfully for years etc etc so not such a big step into commerical nuclear and there is not reason why they couldnt run a NPS sucessfully...so hardly frightening

[blabla1]

This ias a bad idea, bkk seems a good location, a sinking city...lol, what the biggest problem is as always, where do they store the waste, going by how they treat sewerage waste here, we should all run for the hills...

Well you had better run now then...there already is a nuclear reactor operating in BKK and has been for many years...

Send us a post card from your hill or from under the bridge...

Now i am scared, what do they do with the waste ? by the way, at the hills already lol, dont tell me they store it near Chiang mai.....

[A Member]

There was an excellent discussion about nuclear power on the old TAN network when one of the participants, a US educated lady who was a director of the station summed up the Thai situation perfectly. She said that it didn't matter how stringent the specifications were the Thai need to make money through cutting corners, corruption etc. would mean that sub-standard materials would be used, shoddy workmanship and bribes to sign off on the work meant any nuclear power stations built here would be a disaster waiting to happen.

Not a nice thought but her summation was right absolutely correct.

[tingtongfarang]

Every time the thais talk about about nuclear power i look outside at the birds nest of cables and remember things like ,

How often the power goes off without reason for hours,

How often the internet drops '' '' ''

When walking down the street trying to avoid falling into open manholes,

How often traffic accidents happen outside my door,

Red shirt riots with molotov cocktails,

groups of police standing around stealing money,

Then i get scared!

[chainarong]

One should step carefully with Nuclear energy, for if you haven't been learning about it for the past thirty years at a uni, it's a bit late to start now, you need people with nuclear physics skills in this field, believe me nuclear power is totally different from other forms of energy management, specialists in this field can only be sourced from outside at great expense

[NCC1701A]

Interesting info at these links.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fukushima_Daiichi_nuclear_disaster

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_disaster

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Mile_Island_accident

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_civilian_nuclear_accidents

This should put everyone's mind at ease about this subject.

I hear one is going in at Kata Noi beach.

[lemonjelly]

This ias a bad idea, bkk seems a good location, a sinking city...lol, what the biggest problem is as always, where do they store the waste, going by how they treat sewerage waste here, we should all run for the hills...

Well you had better run now then...there already is a nuclear reactor operating in BKK and has been for many years...

Send us a post card from your hill or from under the bridge...

maybe it's sarcasm that just flew over my head....... but there is no nuclear reactor in Thailand as of yet, let alone BKK (re: wikipedia)..... so what r u talking about peely ?

[JetsetBkk]

Interesting info at these links.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fukushima_Daiichi_nuclear_disaster

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_disaster

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Mile_Island_accident

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_civilian_nuclear_accidents

This should put everyone's mind at ease about this subject.

I hear one is going in at Kata Noi beach.

Thanks a bundle!!

[DeeMaiDee]

A great example of Thai nuclear safety:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samut_Prakan_radiation_accident

[Thai at Heart]

This ias a bad idea, bkk seems a good location, a sinking city...lol, what the biggest problem is as always, where do they store the waste, going by how they treat sewerage waste here, we should all run for the hills...

Well you had better run now then...there already is a nuclear reactor operating in BKK and has been for many years...

Send us a post card from your hill or from under the bridge...

maybe it's sarcasm that just flew over my head....... but there is no nuclear reactor in Thailand as of yet, let alone BKK (re: wikipedia)..... so what r u talking about peely ?

There is a small research reactor in rangsit , given by the USA 30 years ago. Edited May 21, 2013 by Thai at Heart

[varun]

They should worry about providing proper grounding in Thailand first, before even thinking about nuclear alternatives.

Idiots.

[Soutpeel]

This ias a bad idea, bkk seems a good location, a sinking city...lol, what the biggest problem is as always, where do they store the waste, going by how they treat sewerage waste here, we should all run for the hills...

Well you had better run now then...there already is a nuclear reactor operating in BKK and has been for many years...

Send us a post card from your hill or from under the bridge...

maybe it's sarcasm that just flew over my head....... but there is no nuclear reactor in Thailand as of yet, let alone BKK (re: wikipedia)..... so what r u talking about peely ?

go back a look at wiki again....Thailand has a research reactor and has had one for for years....marks out 10 for your in depth research 1....teacher comment...must try harder...

[Soutpeel]

One should step carefully with Nuclear energy, for if you haven't been learning about it for the past thirty years at a uni, it's a bit late to start now, you need people with nuclear physics skills in this field, believe me nuclear power is totally different from other forms of energy management, specialists in this field can only be sourced from outside at great expense

Actually nuclear physic's is the lessor skills needed...

you need:

Structual engineers

Civil engineers

Mechanical engineers

Materials engineers

electrical/instrument engineers

etc etc

All with nuclear experience....if Thailand goes ahead with this plan they will bring in the skills which are needed and it will be a foreign company that builds it, comissions it and for the first few years operates/maintains it ...the biggest Thai labour stumbling block will be getting Thai licensed reactor operators, who need to sit an international exam.

If one assumes a 40 year service life of the facility, for around the first 10 to 15 years of operation....foreign companies/personnel will be involved, full nationalisation would be many many years away

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

The IAEA nuclear power specialist has given Thai officials instructions on how to build a safety culture in the country, if Thailand should need a nuclear power plant in the future.

IMHO, there's absolutely ZERO chance of anyone building a real "safety culture" in Thailand. ZERO!!!!

This if a place where safety concerns typically rank at the bottom of list of authorities' concerns, or simply aren't a concern at all.

This a place that can't prevent bus crashes, can't keep newly built bridges from collapsing, can't keep oversized trucks from knocking down pedestrian bridges, can't prevent farmers from burning fields and causing severe and health harming air pollution, and as another poster mentioned above, can't even manage to implement electrical grounding, etc etc etc.

Even if foreign firms were brought in to build, manage and/or operate a nuclear plant, I'm sure local conditions would eventually result in a real disaster.

[Soutpeel]

IMHO, there's absolutely ZERO chance of anyone building a real "safety culture" in Thailand. ZERO!!!!

I work in Thailand in industry and the safety culture in the facility/operations is world class and infact better than some places i have worked in farangland...so in IMHO your basing your opinions watching Somchai rice famer and his approach to a real safety culture, not the people who actually work in industry...

IMHO Thailand with the assistance of foreign companies and personnel could quite easily get a Nuclear plant up and running and run it sucessfully...they have done so with refineries,chemical plants, offshore oil & gas etc and nuclear is not signifcantly different...

for example Thai welder's, the real ones...not the ones you have seen welding stuff while sitting on a bar stool, are some of the best in the world and work very safe and have a great safety culture...this is not a IMHO...as I see this every day at work...

If moving onto another project out side of Thailand, I would gladly employ any of these Thai welders over farangs doing the same job, who typically are so full of sh*t with their constant whinging ...

Edited May 21, 2013 by Soutpeel

[Robby nz]

The ministry has, therefore, held a seminar in which nuclear-power experts from other countries have shared experience and knowledge

Like from Japan and Russia, a couple of very good experiences from there.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Obviously Soutpeel, you choose to ignore the vast world that exists in Thailand of NO safety, including all the illustrative examples I listed above.

As for industry, you can add, can't manage to build and complete pharmaceutical plants, can't maintain or successfully build sewage plants, can't manage to keep raw sewage from getting dumped into the ocean, can't operate industrial estates like Map Ta Phut without severe pollution problems, exploding car manufacturing plants, etc etc.. Not to mention having a Science and Technology Minister who thinks putting propeller boats in the Chao Phraya will prevent or lessen flooding in Bangkok.

Edited May 21, 2013 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[Payboy]

A great example of Thai nuclear safety:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samut_Prakan_radiation_accident

From that article:

A response team member uses tongs to place the retrieved Co-60 radioactive source in a shielded container

See the hi-tech protective gear of the "response team member".

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Thanks for posting about that...

I remember reading the history of the Samut Prakan radiation incident in the past.... Lots of content there that says a lot about Thailand's "safety culture."

The licensing of radioisotopes and nuclear material for import, export, possession and use in Thailand is regulated by the Thai Atomic Energy Commission for Peace and its working body, the Office of Atoms for Peace (OAP), formerly known as the Office of Atomic Energy for Peace (OAEP). In principle, the licensing process would involve annual safety inspections, but due to lack of personnel and resources, such inspections were not always properly done, nor were regulatory and control protocols strictly enforced.[5]

KSE's lease of the warehouse was terminated in 1999. KSE subsequently returned the licensed unit, while moving the three unregistered units to an unused car park in Bangkok's Prawet District, which was owned by its parent company. The car park was fenced, but the fence had been breached and nearby residents regularly entered to play football in its empty areas. KSE notified the OAEP of its transfer of the licensed unit, but did not mention the other three, which remained orphan sources.[6]

Accident
The trefoil symbol failed to prevent the accident, as it was not recognized by those handling the source container. On 24 January 2000, the part of the radiation therapy unit containing the radiation source was acquired by two scrap collectors, who claimed to have bought it from some strangers as scrap metal for resale. They took it home, planning to dismantle it later. On 1 February, the two, together with another two associates, attempted to dismantle the metal part (a 97-kilogram, 42-by-20-centimetre lead cylinder held in a stainless steel casing), which was the unit's source drawer. Using a hammer and chisel, they only managed to crack the welded seam. Two of the men then took the metal piece, along with other scrap metal, to a scrapyard on Soi Wat Mahawong in Phra Pradaeng District, Samut Prakan Province. There they asked a worker at the scrapyard to cut open the cylinder using an oxyacetylene torch. As the cylinder was cut open, two smaller cylindrical metal pieces, which had held the source capsule, fell out. The worker retrieved the two pieces and kept them in the scrapyard, but was unaware of the source capsule itself. The lead cylinder was returned to the scrap collectors for them to complete the disassembly.[9]

The report I remember reading had very clear photos of the radiation burns/exposure incurred by the numbnuts who cracked open the discarded/abandoned radiation device... Really bad....

Here's a link to the formal IAEA 50+ page PDF report on the incident:

http://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/publications/PDF/Pub1124_scr.pdf

Part of that report:

The OAEP is responsible for about 650 licences for the possession and use of
radioactive materials in Thailand. Licences generally are valid for one year. The
licensing process involves the regulatory authority in determining the safety and
adequacy of the facility where the radioactive materials are intended for use and
checking that the qualifications of the users are satisfactory. The OAEP reports that
in general inspections are intended to be carried out annually. The inspection priority
is based on the level of risk the radioactive material presents, according to an
unofficial classification by the OAEP. It also depends on the availability of per
sonnel resources to accomplish this task. Moreover, the OAEP issues licences for the import
and export of radioactive materials. At the time of the accident, eight inspectors were
responsible for checking all radiation source licensees, and the OAEP reported that,
as a consequence of their workload, the annual performance inspections of licensees
could not be performed effectively.

Table showing details of the deaths and injuries:

Edited May 21, 2013 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[BrianCR]

NO! Somchai, DON'T press the red button!!

[allan michaud]

This last sentence is just bizarre

"As nuclear power can be used in several areas, including agriculture,
industry, medication, and electricity generation, the ministry has to
make sure that it poses no harms or threats to the country and its
people, the minister said."

Do these people even understand what a nuclear power plant does?

[khunken]

Response to post No27 - Tallguyjohninbkk

All the details about the scrap merchants had nothing to do with nuclear generation.

They were spent radio isotopes left lying around by a hotel & property company - from memory. Medical systems using radiation are still in use in Thailand.

There has been no serious incidents at the research reactor in Bangkok. This is a far more direct indication of Thailand's capability to manage nuclear power than the scaremongering attached to the death & injury of the scrap merchants, sad though that was.

I support Southpeel's assessment of Thai capability and nuclear power should be considered as a part of diversification of power sources in the country.

Personally, I'd live closer to a nuclear generator rather than a coal based one, given that choice.