TNAG-0186-FCO40-222-Special-branch-reports-on-Communist-activities-1969 — Page 141

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G.F. 323

CONFIDENTIAL

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Discharging Radioactive Waste Material into Hong Kong Waters

On more than one occasion in the past U.S.

submarines have met with accidents. The year before last the "Thresher", which carried Suprock nuclear torpedoes, met with an accident and sank. In June, 1962, the "Pa Mai Tak" (phonetic) collided with a merchant ship in California Bay U.S. The "Sze Yu Ho" (phonetic) and another nuclear submarine, "Sea Dragon", which had visited Hong Kong once almost collided in the North

These incidents show clearly that it is not impossible for submarines to have accidents.

Even if a submarine does not have an accident she is still danger at anchor, because on "getting up steam" she must discharge a large amount of radioactive water into the sea, and this radioactive waste will contaminate Hong Kong waters.

Submarine's Atomic Pile Even More Dangerous

Even Dr. Taylor, the "Father of the Hydrogen Bomb" in the U.S. cannot deny that it is dangerous for a nuclear submarine to be stationed in a harbour close to dense population. In his letter to 'Ma Yan' (phonetic) Chairman of the Atomic Energy Committee, he said

..I believe that the atomic pile in a submarine is even more dangerous than an ordinary atomic pile. Apart from all the accidents that can happen to an atomic pile on land, in a submarine a pile generates more striking power and can have accidents which are beyond human control".

Furthermore the safety regulations concerning the installation of an atomic pile greater than 100,000 kilowatts, as announced by the U.S. Atomic Energy Committee provides:

(1) with the atomic pile as the centre, there

should be no inhabitants within a distance of 300 meters;

(2)

(3)

with the atomic pile as the centre, there should not be any village or town with a population between 2,000 to 3,000 people within a radius of 3.5 kilometers; and

with the atomic pile as the centre, there should not be any area with a population of more than 25,000 within a radius of 4.7 kilometers.

The heat energy generated by an atomic pile in a U.S. submarine is not less than 100,000 kilowatts. Therefore how can it be said that the mooring of the "Permit" off Shamshuipo will not cause any harm to the residents of Hong Kong and Kowloon?

/If...

CONFIDENTIAL