Towards solving a scientific controversy - The effects of ionising radiation on the environment

Abstract

First paragraph: Human use of radioactivity is increasing in fields such as nuclear power generation and nuclear medicine. Nuclear power continues to be a part of many countries’ energy portfolios and may increase dramatically in some Asian countries and Russia, with up to 300 new reactors are currently proposed; other countries without existing nuclear power programmes are beginning to develop them (e.g. some African nations and Persian Gulf states). Worldwide there are c.450 operating nuclear power plants (NPPs) and 60 under construction (World Nuclear Association, 2019). The continued use of nuclear power is considered, by some, as essential in the transition to low-carbon economies (e.g. Liu et al., 2013; Gibon et al., 2017). At the same time, many nations face having to develop long-term strategies, and consequent infrastructure, to manage high-level radioactive waste (as arising from nuclear power production); other nations are challenged with legacy issues associated with, for instance, large-scale accidental releases or past and on-going uranium mining/processing industries.