CONTEMPORARY PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH THE RADIOACTIVE WASTES PRODUCED DURING URANIUM ORE PROCESSING AT THE PRIDNIPROVSK CHEMICAL PLANT

摘要

The districts, where radioactive ore processing plants are located, usually mean affected environment. In this concern Dniprodzierzhinsk City, Dnipropetrovsk region is the most harmful district at the territory of Ukraine. The old uranium processing Enterprise "Pridniprovsk Chemical Plant"(PChP) is situated within the City, on the right bank of Dnipro River. In the period from 1948 to 1991 the Plant processed uranium ore not only from Ukranian deposits but also from deposits of Germany, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and other. One of the mam problems for the City ecology is connected with numerous tailings impoundments belonging to PChP. According to rough evaluation 34 millions tons of radioactive wastes with total activity of 2800 TBq are accumulated in these impoundments. In the paper the first data about today's radiation situation at the tailings sites is presented. The problems of the radioactive wastes stabilization are considered. Possible ways for their decisions are discussed in the paper.