94Ha Viewpoint
To put it bluntly, if an incident similar to Fukushima occurs, it will be devastating for Singapore. As of now, Singapore is still closely following the development of global nuclear energy technology and has not made a final decision on the construction of a nuclear power plant.
Indonesia plans to build its first nuclear power plant on Graça Island, more than 400 kilometers north of the capital Jakarta. Once approved, it will become the first nuclear power plant in Southeast Asia. In Singapore, many people are not concerned about the construction of a nuclear power plant in Indonesia, but are worried that if an emergency occurs at the nuclear power plant, it will pose a threat to Singapore, because Graça Island is only more than 500 kilometers away from Singapore. After all, everyone is still worried about the nuclear leak in Fukushima, Japan.
Some people say that the distance of 500 kilometers is already very far, and even if a nuclear power plant leaks, the impact on Singapore will be minimal. Having said that, if you look at the scope of the Fukushima nuclear leak, you will understand that this worry is not groundless.
After the Fukushima nuclear leak, the Japanese government initially designated a mandatory evacuation zone with a radius of 20 kilometers, requiring all residents to evacuate; it was then expanded to 30 kilometers and established as a recommended refuge area. Even beyond 30 kilometers, if the cumulative radiation dose in some areas exceeds the annual dose limit (20 millisieverts), they will be designated as evacuation areas. For example, residents in areas over 40 kilometers away are also required to evacuate.
In nuclear accidents, the actual danger does not strictly depend on distance, but on radiation dose. According to the international guidance standards for nuclear accident emergencies formulated by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the area with a radius of 50 kilometers from the nuclear accident area is a long-term monitoring area, and long-term risks are assessed by monitoring environmental radiation levels. There is no absolutely fixed distance to determine the “safe zone” around a nuclear power plant, but it is determined according to the severity of the nuclear leak, the range of radiation diffusion and environmental conditions, such as wind speed, terrain, etc.
For example, after the Fukushima nuclear leak, radioactive substances (such as iodine-131 and cesium-137) were spread by wind to Tokyo, 300 kilometers away from the nuclear power plant. Although the radiation level is relatively low, it has an impact on the water and food supply chain; subsequently, trace amounts of iodine-131 were also detected in California, USA, and extremely low levels of radioactive cesium were detected in Europe. After the Fukushima nuclear power plant discharged cooling water into the ocean, radioactive substances were spread to the Pacific Ocean through ocean currents, and even detected on the west coast of North America. Although the concentration is extremely low and the risk to public health is extremely small, it is difficult to eliminate public concerns.
Looking back, if an accident occurs at the Indonesian nuclear power plant 500 kilometers away, the impact on Singapore cannot be ignored. On the one hand, Singapore is located downwind of the southwest monsoon, and radioactive substances are very likely to be blown from Indonesia to Singapore through the monsoon; on the other hand, Singapore has a direct ocean connection with Indonesia’s Graca Island, and it is believed that it is only a matter of time before radioactive substances flow to Singapore through ocean currents.
Perhaps some people will say that nuclear power technology is currently quite mature and has been widely used in the United States, France, China, South Korea and other places. Indonesia’s nuclear power uses relatively advanced Korean technology, and nuclear reactors will also be transported from South Korea to Indonesia by sea in 2028. Since the technology is mature, is it too much to worry about building a nuclear power plant in Indonesia?
Whether it has the ability to maintain it for a long time remains to be seen
Not really. If you have a little knowledge of geography, you will know that Indonesia is located in the Pacific Ring of Fire and Seismic Belt, where earthquakes and volcanic activities are quite frequent. This has always been the biggest challenge for Indonesia to build a nuclear power plant. At the same time, the design, construction and operation of nuclear power plants require a high level of technology and management capabilities. Whether Indonesia has the ability to maintain nuclear power plants for a long time remains to be seen. Therefore, I believe that many Singaporeans are worried about this.
Speaking of this, let’s extend it. Is Singapore suitable for building a nuclear power plant? In terms of demand alone, there is no doubt that nuclear power is a good solution for Singapore, which has a small land and a large population, but whether nuclear power can be implemented depends on many factors, and it is not that simple.
In fact, the discussion about nuclear power plants in Singapore began as early as the 1990s. Experts and scholars have conducted research on nuclear energy many times, including feasibility analysis of nuclear power plants; the Singapore Energy Market Authority and other relevant agencies have also conducted technical, economic and environmental impact assessments.
In general, Singapore has the technical and economic capabilities to develop nuclear energy, but faces challenges in site selection, public acceptance and safety assurance. For example, it can explore building small modular reactors (SMRs) on artificial islands. This small reactor can be prefabricated in factories and assembled on site. It can increase or decrease modules according to demand. It has the advantages of high safety, strong flexibility and short construction period; but in terms of technical maturity, economy and long-term operating costs, the commercial application of SMRs still needs further verification. In addition, Singapore is small in size and lacks sufficient space for nuclear waste storage and treatment facilities, which makes nuclear waste management a difficult problem.
In March 2014, when attending the Nuclear Security Summit in The Hague, the Netherlands, then Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong stated that Singapore has a small land area and if an accident occurs in the construction of a nuclear power plant, the consequences may be catastrophic. He mentioned the lessons of the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan, emphasizing that if Singapore encounters a similar situation, residents will have nowhere to evacuate. In addition, Singapore is geographically close to Malaysia and Indonesia, and nuclear accidents may pose risks to neighboring countries and the Strait of Malacca.
To put it bluntly, if an incident similar to Fukushima were to occur, it would be devastating for Singapore. So far, Singapore is still closely following the development of global nuclear energy technology, especially advanced nuclear technology suitable for Singapore’s national conditions, and has not yet made a final decision on building a nuclear power plant. I believe that in the near future, more advanced and mature nuclear energy technology will enter Singapore and benefit Singapore from it. We look forward to that day.
