113

Anniversary

June 16, 2014

Dr. Eunuse Akon

The major stages during the lifetime of a Nuclear Power Plant(NPP) are: siting, design, con-

struction, commissioning, operationand de-commissioning. The safety of aNuclear Power Plant depends upon anumber of factors- intrinsic and exter-nal to the plant. Proposed site shall beadequately investigated with regard toall the site characteristics that could besignificant to safety in natural andhuman induced external events. An im-portant stage for the development of aNuclear Power Plant (NPP) is the selec-tion of a suitable site by studying vari-ous site characteristics to establish thesite-related design inputs for the plant.

Safety of a NPP is very much dependenton the characterization of the site whichinclude geological, seismological, geot-echnical, engineering, hydrological,meteorological and other relevant as-pects. The methodology of site evalua-tion consists of systematically collectingall the relevant information on each par-ticular characteristic of the site. It is nec-essary first to study each aspect ingeneral for the whole region, then in de-tail for the site vicinity and the site itself.There are different national, interna-tional and IAEA standards which are ap-plicable for siting. The responsibleorganization needs to have sufficientcompetence and expertise to direct theinvestigations complying the applicablestandards especially in the areas of: Ge-ology(expertise in tectonics of the qua-ternary), seismology, soil mechanics,flooding, hydrology(expertise in evalu-ation of extreme events and in disper-sion in water) meteorology(expertise inevaluation of extreme events and in dis-persion in air), emergency planning, ra-diological protection, nuclear safety,environmental and ecological effects.Like any other facilities, nuclear powerplants are also designed to withstand theloading effects due to hazards from ex-ternal events. The magnitude of suchloads for design of NPP is termed as de-sign basis which is derived based onmore stringent criteria compared toother conventional facilities. Siting is theprocess of selecting a suitable site in-cluding appropriate assessment and der-ivation of the related design bases.Siting process involves two basic stages— site survey and site evaluation Activi-ties during site survey stage are identifi-cation of prospective locations,collection of information/data related tofactors affecting site selection. Site eval-uation involves demonstration of ac-ceptability of the site using the relatedinformation/data and satisfying estab-lished criteria for selection of NPP sites.

The aim of this article is to present therequirements and characteristics for thenuclear power plant site selection.Safety of the plant personnel, public andthe environment from radiological haz-ard is the most important considerationfor siting of nuclear power plants. Es-

cape of radioactive material largely de-pends on site characteristics .The designand operation of nuclear power plantsaims to diminish the likelihood of acci-dents, and avoid major human conse-quences when they occur. Siting factorsand criteria are important in assuringthat radiological doses from normal op-eration and postulated accidents will beacceptably low. The site characteristicsinvestigation is mandatory for obtaininglicense from the nuclear regulatorybody for siting and construction of NPP.

Physical Characteristics of NPP SitePhysical characteristics such as geolog-ical, hydrogeological, seismological, ge-otechnical (engineering) andmeteorological data of the site have abearing on the consequences of an es-cape of radioactive material from the fa-cility. These site characteristics must beinvestigated in sufficient scope and de-tail to provide adequate information tosupport evaluations to arrive at esti-mates of the effects of surface faulting,effects of vibratory ground motion thatmay affect the design and operation ofthe proposed nuclear power plant; andadequate basis for selection of an Oper-ating Basis Earthquake (OBE) and SafeShutdown Earthquake (SSE); and to per-mit adequate engineering solutions toactual or potential geologic and seismiceffects at the proposed site; providingreasonable assurance that a nuclearpower plant can be constructed and op-erated at a proposed site without unduerisk to the health and safety of the plantpersonnel and public. If vibratoryground motion exceeding that of theOperating Basis Earthquake occurs,shutdown of the nuclear power plantwill be required.

The characteristics of the site need to beinvestigated are: regional geology andsite geology, physiography, topographicfeatures, site foundation materials, geo-logic history & stratigraphy, structuralgeology & tectonic settings comprisingfolds, faults ( any part of which is within400 Kms of the site and which may beof significance in establishing the SafeShutdown Earthquake, determination ofwhether these faults are to be consid-ered as capable faults), relationship of

the fault to regional tectonic structures;fault geometry and slip rates, surfacefaulting concerning the nature, amount,and geologic history of displacementsalong the fault, particularly the esti-mated amount of the maximum Quater-nary displacement related to any oneearthquake along the fault; non-tectonicdeformation, lineaments, earthquakerecurrence rates, maximum magnitude,correlation of epicentres or locations ofhighest intensity of historically reportedearthquakes with capable faults greaterthan 1000 feet long, any part of whichis located within 5 miles of the site;maximum earthquake potential, lique-faction potential, vibratory ground mo-tion, peak ground motion, groundmotion attenuation; the size of seismi-cally induced floods and water wavesthat could affect a site from either lo-cally or distantly generated seismic ac-tivity; potential for slope instability suchas land and rock slides that could affectthe safety of the plant. Investigations onengineering (geotechnical) propertiesshould include: drilling and sampling ofbore-holes CPT soundings, SPT blowcount values, static and dynamic soilproperties of the site, compressibilityand strength characteristics, soil grada-tion, plasticity, consistency, moisturecondition, dry density, P and S wavesuspension logging tests, shear modulus,material damping ratio with shearingstrain amplitude in order to determinethe response of the site to the SSEground motion, expected maximumseismically induced shearing stresses,resonant column and torsional sheartests, extent of liquefiable (non-cohe-sive) materials and methods for groundimprovement (excavation, back filling &others).

The safety of the plant depends amongothers on seismic ground motion. Thevarious uncertainties and randomnessassociated with the occurrence of earth-quakes and the consequences of theireffects on the NPP components andstructures call for a Probabilistic SeismicRisk Assessment (PSRA). Deterministicapproach considers the maximumearthquake on the fault at the nearestplace to the site producing the maxi-mum vibratory acceleration at the site

114June 16, 2014

shall be des-ignated theSafe Shut-down Earth-quake (SSE).M e t h o d sthat includea combina-tion of deter-ministic andprobabilisticconsidera-tions arealso used,and arecalled com-bined ap-p r o a c h e s .The designbasis groundmotion of asite is gener-ally speci-fied in terms of the peak groundacceleration (PGA), ground motion re-sponse spectral shapes and ground mo-tion time history. The maximumvibratory ground acceleration of theOperating Basis Earthquake (OBE) shallbe at least one-half the maximum vibra-tory ground acceleration of the SafeShutdown Earthquake. The seismic de-sign for values above approximately0.26g is very expensive and the cost in-creases more than linearly with theseverity of the ground shaking. For thisreason, sites are preferred where theground motion against which the planthas to be protected (design basis earth-quake) is less severe. A complete studyof the seism tectonics of the region, toidentify the structure causing the earth-quakes and collection of historical dataon past earthquakes, and instrumentaldata referring to more recent times arerequired for determining the DesignBasis Earthquake (DBE).

Where unfavourable physical character-istics of the site exist, the proposed sitemay nevertheless be found to be accept-able if the design of the facility includesappropriate and adequate compensat-ing engineering safeguards.

Meteorological Characteristics: The ex-treme values of the meteorologicalevents like tornadoes, cyclones, wind

speed, precipitation, waterspout, light-ning, drought, sandstorm, air tempera-ture, storm surges, tsunami, sea waterlevel over a minimum period of 50years in the region shall be investigatedby analysis to be basis in the proposeddesign of the plant. A region with the ra-dius of 150 km should be considered fordata collection purpose for tornadoesand waterspouts. The design basis phys-ical parameters should be identified.

Release of Radioactivity: The radioactiv-ity released from the plant in normaland accidental conditions should beevaluated. For this reason it is necessaryto take into account the site character-istics regarding dispersion of radioactiv-ity in the atmosphere and in surface andgroundwater. It can then be establishedwhether the engineering safety featuresof the plant are adequate for the popu-lation distribution around the plant. Anappropriate model for the diffusion ofairborne material at the site has to bedeveloped. To evaluate the possible im-pact of the plant regarding release in thehydrosphere, the water uses near theplant have to be analysed and the char-acteristics of the site for dispersion of ra-dioactive material in water have to beassessed. Investigation are required toevaluate a suitable model for dispersionin surface and groundwater. Special pre-cautions should be planned if a reactor

is to be lo-cated at asite where as ign i f icantquantity ofradioactivee f f l u e n tmight acci-dentally flowinto nearbystreams orrivers. Emer-gency plan-ning zone isrequired tobe such sizethat an an in-dividual as-sumed to belocated atany point onits boundarywould not

receive an effective dose in excess of 10mSv over 2-day period.

FloodingIn principle, the site should not be inareas where the flood is susceptible tooccur. A nuclear power plant has to beprotected against floods due to severeprecipitation, failure of water retainingstructures like dam, dyke, embankmentsor combination of events. At the start ofthe site survey, usually maps showinghistorical floods in the region are usedto identify the areas which were partic-ularly affected by simplified and empir-ical methods; the sites less affected byfloods may be identified. A nuclearpower plant has to be protected fromthe static and dynamic effects of flood-ing. Therefore, an appropriate designbasis flood has to be evaluated for thesite.

External Human Induced EventsPotential impacts to the plant should bedetermined with regard to the facilitiessuch as chemical plants, oil refineries,mines, military facilities, ports, docksand airports, oil and gas pipelines etc.within 10 km or even more of the sitewhere certain activities with strong ex-plosives, ammunitions, chemicals or liq-uids and gas fuels may represent risksthrough chemical explosion, drifting ofpoisonous or explosive gas mixture, air

115June 16, 2014

crashes. Other impacts of the eventssuch as missile impacts on plant shouldbe taken into account for potential cir-cumstances. The region is to be investi-gated to identify installations andhuman activities to ensure that the siteof the nuclear power plant is not withindangerous distance.

Population DistributionIt is difficult to establish the criteria forevaluating the suitability of the popula-tion distribution around a site. They dif-fer from country to country. Duringassessment, the general level of socio-economic development, and the trans-portation and communicationsystems(important in an emergency),overall population density of the regionare considered in addition to the char-acteristics of the reactor and of the site.The population distribution around anuclear power plant should be such asto allow a workable emergency plan tobe established. It would be difficult toput an emergency plan into action if alarge number of people have to be evac-uated in a short time. So, the preferenceis given for areas of low population den-sity and for sites at a considerable dis-tance from main towns.

Site EvaluationThe regulatory authority establishes thestandards for site characteristics (geol-ogy, seismology, hydrology, capable &surface faulting, meteorology etc.) andthe design bases for Operation BasisEarthquake, Safe Shutdown Earthquake& various extreme events according towhich the site will be Evaluated and re-viewed. The site evaluation group col-lects all relevant information, performsa critical analysis, develops the designbasis for the critical events and the mod-els for dispersion in air and water, per-forms all special studies and obtains allthe results and data needed for evaluat-ing the site. All results are included in asite report to be presented to the regula-tory authority. The regulatory authorityreviews the applicant’s site report andissue the site approval. A check shouldbe made to ensure that no relevantsafety-related site characteristics havebeen overlooked. Before approving thesite, the regulatory authority might re-quire additional studies or information

from the applicant.

The site is deemed unsuitable if certainsite characteristics are identified whichcannot be compensated by means ofdesign features and protection measuressuch as the deficiencies with respect to- the effects of natural and human in-duced external events on the proposedsite area; presence of characteristicsthat could influence escape of radioac-tive material to the people and environ-ment; population distribution andintensity, and other site characteristicswhich may affect implementation ofemergency measures. In the analysis todetermine the suitability of the site, con-sideration shall be given to additionalmatters relating to safety such as thestorage and transport of input and out-put materials, fresh and spent fuel andradioactive wastes. Other characteristicsrelated to socio-economic or culturalaspects; effects on the archaeological oraesthetic conditions of the site areaneed to be considered.

Basic RequirementsThe basic requirements for sitting of anuclear power plant are: Integration ofthe plant to the electric grid, assuranceof cooling water supplies and servicewater availability. A nuclear powerplant needs to be as close as possible toload centres in order to minimize onelectricity transmission costs and to re-duce power losses. The nuclear powerplant requires adequate and reliablestart up power, which is another factorto be taken account.Assurance of ade-quate cooling water supply for emer-gency and long-term shutdown decayheat removal shall be considered in thedesign of the nuclear power plant. Con-sideration of river blockage or diversionor other failures which may block theflow of cooling water and failure ofdams and similar structures shall be in-cluded in the evaluation where appro-priate. In addition, water quality andtemperature are also to be considered.The quantity of water required will de-pend mainly upon the system of coolingadopted (once-through cooling or recir-culation with cooling towers and/orcooling ponds.), the heat output of theplant to be dissipated, and the ambientconditions. Adequate communication

links should be available at the site.Transportation routes are necessary forconveying the large and heavy equip-ment of the nuclear power plant to thesite. In this context, the existing andplanned roads, waterways and railroadshave to be available with respect to ad-equacy for the sizes and weights of theplant equipment to be transported fromthe manufacturing plants or from theport of entry into the country.

NPPs have demonstrated their robust-ness and ability to withstand some be-yond design basis severe natural eventsand then be able to return to operation.The magnitude of some beyond designbasis severe natural events were muchgreater than expected. It is time to rede-fine the nuclear regulatory process anddevelop a more effective approach forassuring that nuclear safety functionscan be accomplished so that nuclearpower plants can cope with events andcombinations of events that exceed thetraditional design basis.

Status of Nuclear Powerin BangladeshBangladesh Atomic Energy Commission(BAEC) is entrusted with the responsibil-ity to implement the nuclear power pro-gram in the country. Necessity forbuilding a Nuclear Power Plant was firstperceived in 1961 and the Rooppur siteon the eastern bank of the river Padmain Pabna district about 160 km north ofDhaka was selected for the NPP in1963. Since then, several feasibilitystudies have affirmed the techno-eco-nomic viability of the NPP project.Bangladesh government expressed itsfirm commitment to build Rooppur Nu-clear Power Plant in 1999. Bangladeshhas framework agreements for peacefulnuclear energy applications with theUS, France and China. More recently, in2001 Bangladesh adopted a nationalNuclear Power Action Plan. On 24 June2007, Bangladesh's government an-nounced plans to build a nuclear powerplant to meet electricity shortages. Rus-sia, China and South Korea had earlieroffered financial and technical help toestablish nuclear power. In March 2009Russia made a formal proposal to builda nuclear power plant in Bangladesh.

116June 16, 2014

In May 2010,Bangladesh signed acivilian nuclearagreement with Rus-sia providing a legalbasis for nuclear co-operation in areassuch as siting, de-sign, construction,operation, decom-missioning of nu-clear reactors; andradioactive wastemanagement. InFebruary 2011Bangladesh signedan agreement withRussian state nuclearcompany Rosatom,for two 1000 MWe class reactors tomeet rapidly increasing electricity de-mand. Rosatom's AtomStroyExport di-vision will act as the contractor, whilethe Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commis-sion will be the customer. Russia is tobuild Bangladesh's first nuclear powerplant at Rooppur, Pabna under an inter-governmental cooperation agreementsigned in Dhaka on 02 November 2011which is estimated to cost more thanUS$2 billion, and expected to start op-erating by 2020. All nuclear fuel will beprovided by Rosatom, and all the usedfuel is to be repatriated to Russia, in linewith standard Russian policy for non-nuclear-weapons states.

In February 2012 the Ministry of Sci-ence and Technology signed an agree-ment with Russia's Rostechnadzorrelated to regulation and safety and theprovision of advisory support to theBangladesh Nuclear Regulatory Com-mission on regulation, licensing and su-pervision.

During a state visit to Russia byBangladesh's Prime Minister, SheikhHasina, in January 2013, an agreementwas signed with Russia to provide $500million to finance the preparatory worksuch as site surveys, detailed designdocumentation, personnel training inthe fields of nuclear energy, feasibilitystudies and environmental impact stud-ies of Bangladesh's first nuclear powerproject at Rooppur. A future loan of

about $1.5 billion is committed. TheIAEA continues its close involvementwith the project. In June 2013, NIAEP-AtomStroyExport signed a contract withBAEC to prepare documentation relatedto construction and environmental im-pact assessment for the plant; and pro-vide necessary engineering studies.NIAEP-AtomStroyExport was estab-lished in March 2012, bringing togetherpower plant designer Nizhny NovgorodAtomenergoproekt with AtomStroyEx-port, the Russian state company respon-sible for overseas construction ofnuclear power plants. Another agree-ment for major site works to prepare forfirst concrete is expected. On 29 May2013 Bangladesh's prime minister de-clared that a nuclear power plant willalso be constructed in southern regionof the country in an inland river island.The foundation stone for the Rooppurnuclear power plant has been laid byBangladesh Prime Minister SheikhHasina in presence of Rosatom HeadSergei Kiryenko on 03 October 2013.Bangladesh Atomic Energy RegulatoryAuthority (BAERA) an independent reg-ulatory body has been established in2012 to ensure the safety measures inall the activities related with the Instal-lation of NPP in conformity with the in-ternational standards.

An Integrated Nuclear Infrastructure Re-view (INIR) mission from the Interna-

tional Atomic En-ergy Agency (IAEA)to Bangladesh in2011 concluded thatthe country hadmade notableprogress in its nu-clear infrastructuredevelopment, andrecognised thecountry's strong ex-pertise in safe-guards, security andradiation protection.Bangladesh has hada safeguards agree-ment in force withthe IAEA since1982, and an Addi-

tional Protocol in force since 2001.Thecountry has worked steadily towards thegoal of using nuclear power to helpmeet its rapidly increasing energy de-mand and reduce dependence on natu-ral gas.

Advantages to Nuclear PowerNuclear power does have advantages.One of the main characteristics of thenuclear power generation is that a hugeamount of energy can be obtained outof a little fuel which is easier to handleinvolving less transportation hassle.Uranium Ore is used as nuclear fuel forpower generation by the Nuclear PowerPlant (NPP) through the process of re-finement, conversion, enrichment andfabrication. Most nuclear power plantsuse uranium-235 as their fuel, in a con-centration of around 4% to 5% enrich-ment, in combination withuranium-238, at 96% to 95%. Nuclearpower generation has the advantage ofusing uranium as fuel repeatedly whichis not possible in case of fossil fuels. Thefuel which is burnt in the reactor (spentfuel) is reborn as fuel through reprocess-ing, which is called “ the nuclear fuelcycle”. They offer a reliable source ofpower that does not cause pollution likefossil fuels do. As the fuel is not burned,nuclear energy doesn't release green-house gases into the environment, how-ever it has its own nuclear waste to dealwith. The waste is relatively compact,and can be recycled to a great extent. A1000 MW nuclear plant will produce

117June 16, 2014

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina & others officers prayer after laying the foundation stone of the Roop-

pur nuclear power plant. Photo: PID

about 20 tons of waste a year, while a1,000 MW coal power plant will pro-duce about 5,330,000 tons of carbondioxide a year. Once built, the fuelcosts are lower than for fossil fuels andmore stable over a period of years. Nu-clear power plants don't require a lot ofspace. Modern reactors have two to tentimes more efficiency than the old gen-eration reactors. New reactor types havebeen designed to make it physically im-possible to melt down. As the core getshotter the reaction gets slower, hence arun-away reaction leading to a melt-down is not possible. Nuclear powerhas a much better safety record thanthose of fossil fuelled plants.

Disadvantages to Nuclear PowerNuclear Power Plant is more expensivethan any other source of energy widelyused commercially (although not com-pared to the cost per energy unit pro-duced).There are safety concerns if theplant is not operated correctly or condi-tions arise that were unforeseen whenthe plant was developed, as happenedat the Fukushima plant in Japan; thecore melted down following an earth-quake and tsunami. The plant was notdesigned to handle such situation de-spite the world's strongest earthquakecodes. The hazardous waste is danger-ous if it escapes into the environment.The same applies to any release of con-tamination through accident or designflaws. The waste and by-products repre-sent a threat to world safety if obtainedby terrorists. Nuclear power can be usedto build nuclearbombs. The spentfuel is highly ra-dioactive and has tobe carefully storedfor many years afteruse. The cost of de-commissioning anuclear plant isenormous.

Emerging NuclearEnergy CountriesCurrently, 434 nu-clear power reactorswith a total capacityof 374348 MWe areoperable (con-nected to the grid)

in 33 countries of the world ; 72 reac-tors are under construction (176338Mwe gross; and 173 reactors (188755Mwe gross) are planned (approvals,funding or major commitment in place,mostly expected in operation within 8-10 years;) which includes two reactorsof 2000 Mwe capacity in Bangladesh.Reactors which are being constructedand planned not only in the developedcountries but also in the developingcountries like Argentina, Belarus, Brazil,Egypt, Vietnam, Turkey. It is completelywrong to say nuclear power program issuitable only for the developed and ad-vanced country. Nuclear power is underserious consideration in over 45 coun-tries ranging from sophisticatedeconomies to developing nations in-cluding Bangladesh which do not cur-rently have it. Bangladesh is nowrecognized as one of the Emerging Nu-clear Energy Countries who has signedcontracts and developing legal & regu-latory infrastructure. According to theIAEA’s assessment by its Integrated Nu-clear Infrastructure Review (INIR) mis-sions in different countries newcomerseven countries namely Lithuania, UAE,Turkey, Belarus, Vietnam, Poland, andBangladesh appear likely candidates tolaunch nuclear programs in the nearterm.

ConclusionIncreasing access to electricity and atthe same time reduction in carbon diox-ide emission has become a great chal-lenge of our time which is the result of

unmindful energy use by the rich threat-ening global climate. The risk arisingout of global climate change and rapiddepletion of global fossil fuels is realand substantial. As a solution to thisproblem nuclear power with its im-mense energy potential is an inevitableoption to meet the global energy re-quirements in a non-polluting and sus-tainable manner. It is ironic that in spiteof its large energy potential with the ca-pability to meet the worldwide energyneeds sustainably and without any sig-nificant real environmental impact, theunfounded misconceptions still domi-nate and have become impediments tosustainable development. All of usshould recognize our responsibility inthis regard. The share of nuclear energyas a clean energy source is possible andfeasible in a manner that satisfies the im-peratives of nuclear safety and security.For the new entrants to the nuclear in-dustry which are moving towards fuelloading in their first reactor, the WorldAssociation of Nuclear Operators(WANO) offers pre-startup peer reviewsas part of its peer review program, par-ticularly to address the situation of newplants in countries and organizationswithout previous nuclear power experi-ence. WANO’s goal is to do a pre-startup review on every new nuclearpower plant worldwide. The reviewsseek to evaluate how each operating or-ganization is prepared for startup andmake recommendations for improve-ments based on the collective experi-

ence of the worldindustry.

Recognizing the im-portant role of nu-clear power inmeeting the longterm energy needs of160 million peopleof Bangladesh, highpriority has been at-tached by the gov-ernment for thedevelopment of nu-clear power plant inthe country. Govern-ment has rightfullydecided to set upthe Nuclear Power

119June 16, 2014

Image of a Nuclear Power Plant built by Russia

Plant of 1000 Mw at Rooppur, Pabnawith the support of Russian Federation.Another NPP in the southern part ofBangladesh is under active considera-tion of the govt. after the implementa-tion of Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant.The power program of Bangladesh withthe objective of large scale deploymentof nuclear power is designed to cater tothe long term energy needs of the coun-try. Bangladesh intends to reach a totalnuclear capacity of 4000 MWe by theyear 2030. Power starved Bangladeshneeds to switch over from its tremen-dous dependence on natural gas andimported petroleum for electricity gen-eration to alternative sources of energy.Nuclear energy is definitely a better al-ternative due to the advantages as men-tioned and other factors such as—nuclear power is clean with no green-house gases; and rate of nuclear powertariff with a reactor’s life of ~40 years ismore or less the same as that from coalbased thermal power stations. The firstNPP will be constructed meeting all thesafety requirements and precautions. Itwill meet all the international post-

Fukushima requirements. The plant willfeature double containment, a passiveheat removal system as well as othersafety features. Bangladesh will gainconfidence to achieve self-reliance innuclear fuel cycle through the imple-mentation of the first nuclear powerplant and the further growth of nuclearenergy programme in the country. Con-structive discussion regarding any po-tential risk for implementing NPP isalways welcome to augment the accept-ability of country’s first NPP, but the neg-ative propaganda and misleadinginformation are undesirable.

It is far from truth as some says that peo-ple will become insecure if NPP is es-tablished at Rooppur, Pabna. Therehave been three major reactor accidentsin the history of civil nuclear power -Three Mile Island, Chernobyl andFukushima. Among them only the Cher-nobyl accident caused the death of 57people. Even the Fukushima Daiichi se-vere accident did not cause any directdeath which is due to the advancementof capabilities to manage nuclear emer-

gencies now. In fact thousands got killedin other energy related accidents suchas hydroelectric dam failure, oil & gasexplosion, methane explosion, coalmine accidents and so on. Today regu-latory requirements have been madesuch that even if there is any accident itmust be confined to the plant itself. Thesafety positions now include a series ofphysical barriers between the radioac-tive core and the environment.

Bangladesh with significant nucleartechnological background is preparedto implement nuclear power program tomeet its energy needs and it will defi-nitely succeed in this glorious endeav-our; and thus the long cherished dreamto become a Nuclear Energy Countrywill be fulfilled.

Dr. Eunuse Akon;Teacher (part time), Geology Depart-ment, Dhaka University& Former Chief Geologist & Director,Nuclear Minerals Unit,Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission

120June 16, 2014

EP