THE OUTCOME OF THE ACCIDENT
Given the nature and severity of the accident, the description of the outcome and consequences given by the Russians seems reasonable. Thirty-one people have died as á result, so far. Some thousands of people in the USSR have received quite high doses of radiation which will, in a proportion of cases, shorten their lives and thousands of square kilometers of Soviet territory have been rendered radioactive.
It will
The Russians are decontaminating their land and buildings and rehoused a proportion of the 135,000 Russians who were evacuated. They are drilling new wells and filtering water supplies in the neighbourhood of the stricken reactor. be a year or so before life begins to return to normal in this part of Russia and even then it will probably not be possible to live and work close to the power station, although special precautions will probably be taken to make it safe to resume the operation of the other three reactors on the site.
FUTURE INTERACTIONS WITH THE RUSSIANS
The Russians have shown themselves willing to continue the discussions and interactions at future meetings and "Workshops". They recognise that the West has something to offer and we, on our side, wish to help ensure that this never happens again. Of the various items agreed for the future, three were touched upon by Lord Marshall in discussions with the Head of the Soviet delegation: a workshop on the man-machine interface, a meeting on decontamination and collaboration on medical matters, Workshops and discussions will also occur, concerned with other issues including movement of radioactivity in the environment, the effects upon man, and emergency measures such as fire fighting.
CONCLUSIONS
Thirteen areas of international collaboration were agreed at the Plenary Session, as follows:
1.
Severe accident scenarios and phenomenology
2.
The man-machine interface: ergonomics display etc
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information
3.
4.
The balance between automation and operator action
Exchange in experience in operator training procedures and management, IAEA to consider international accreditation of operators
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