(342.3423) WISE Amsterdam - Ignalina lies 600 km south-east of Stockholm, Sweden; 1000 km south-east of Oslo, Norway; 575 km south of Helsinki, Finland; 875 km east of Copenhagen, Denmark; 1750 km east of Hamburg, FRG; 485 km north-east of Warsaw, Poland; and 180 km north of Vilnius, the capital of the Republic of Lithuania.
Ignalina was built in 1973. At present, it has two uranium-graphite channel-type reactors (series RBMK-1500), each with a capacity of 1,500 MW. The first unit started up in December 1983 and the second in 1985. Construction of a third block was successfully halted following the mass demonstrations and actions against the plant organized by the Lithuanian Reform Movement "SAJUDIS" and the Lithuanian Greens. In one action in September of 1988, about 20,000 people linked hands in a human chain around the plant. Anti-nuclear activists collected about 750,000 signatures protesting the construction of the third block.
Ignalina is part of an ambitious Soviet program to build nuclear plants in the fuel-deficient European part of the USSR. The commitment to nuclear energy in part is an admission that because of distance and transportation problems, the enormous energy resources of the Asiatic USSR cannot cover the growing demand in the European USSR. Moreover, the use of nuclear energy will reduce the demand for oil and natural gas in the electric power industry and will make these fuels available for export to the West or for use as a raw material in the chemical industry. Ignalina daytime use of electricity in the 1970s was twice as high as nighttime. In order to use the electricity which will become available at nighttime, Soviet planners decided to build a 1.6 MW pumped storage station at Kaisiadorys. This station will be one of the first and largest installations of its kind in the Soviet Union and Europe. Construction began in 1977, and the projected completion date was 1985, but the first two units will start to operate sometime in 1990. There are already many environmental, economic, and energy supply problems at the station.
Construction practices and procedures at Ignalina raise some serious questions. Shortage of labor at the facility has resulted in the employment of many people with no training or experience and has necessitated the on-site training of 2,500 workers.
The construction of Ignalina and its satellite, the Kaisiadorys pumped storage station, signals the beginning of a new phase of industrial development in Lithuania. The dramatic increase in the availability of electrical power will attract energy intensive industries and strengthen the present tendency to expand existing industrial enterprises.
The decision to build Ignalina was made at the all-Union level, without any input from Republic authorities. Although possible dangers from nuclear power are a source of concern, construction began without public opposition due to the Republic's elite. And although the last few years and the controversy surrounding the third reactor have changed matters, the long-standing request by the Lithuanian people for an independent international commission to investigate conditions at Ignalina has not been fulfilled.
There are indeed many dangers related to the siting of Ignalina, including:
Lithuania do not operate at night, is to have four reactors - with a total capacity of 6,000 MW - and would then be the largest nuclear generating facility operating in the Soviet Union.
If all four units were to go on line, Ignalina's annual output of electricity would reach about 21 billion kWh - a 79% increase over the Republic's total output in 1980. This dramatic increase in the availability of electricity raises questions about its use. It should be pointed out that during the late 1960s and 1970s, Lithuania was not able to use all the electricity generated by its power stations. Consequently, the Republic became a net exporter of surplus electricity. Between 1965 and 1975, 17.5 billion kWh or almost 27% of the Republic's total output was transmitted to Latvia, Byelorussia, and the Kaliningrad Oblast. Later, export levels decreased and in 1980 reached only 300 million kWh, or 2.5% of total output. This decrease paralleled the growth in demand for electricity - especially in agriculture. The rate of growth indicated that existing capacities could not satisfy the Republic's need for electrical power in the 1980s. Nevertheless, a fourfold increase in generating capacity is more than sufficient to meet the growth in electrical power use caused by the mechanization and automation of production processes. There is reason to believe that besides providing electricity to the Northwest grid, Ignalina will also become the key to a new round of industrial development in Lithuania. Between 1980 and 1985, output of electricity in the Republic increased from 11.7 billion kWh to 20.1 billion. In 1985, Ignalina generated 8.6 billion kWh or over 40% of the Republic's total electrical output. Of this, 75.6% was used in the Republic; the remaining amount entered the Northwest grid.
The completion of Ignalina increased the problem of daily fluctuation in electrical power consumption. Since most industrial enterprises in
- The station has been built on a tectonic fracture point - there was no geological survey.
- Seismic studies were also not carried out and no earthquake protection was built into the design of the buildings. The two existing blocks are settling irregularly. Local records show that stronger quakes have periodically occurred in the region.
- Ignalina is situated in the heart of the main Baltic artisan basin. Radioactive wastes may easily seep into underground drainage areas and thus contaminate water over a wide area. This is particularly dangerous since the plant's wastes include long-living radioisotopes.
Some of the dangers related to the structure of Ignalina are:
Ignalina has the largest Chernobyl- type reactors in the USSR and indeed in whole world. Reactors of this type are not used in the West due to the fact that security measures are extremely difficult to ensure due to human errors. In the Western reactors, the station staff are given a response time of six to seven hours if problems arise; at Ignalina response time is as little as one minute (with a manual not automatic control system).
The impact of Ignalina on Lake Druksiai concerns some Lithuanian scientists. The Lake is the largest (4,500 hectares) in the Republic. Water from the lake eventually reaches the Daugava River. Ignalina uses enormous amounts of water from Lake Druksiai.. It is estimated that the water intake is between 300 and 400 meters per second. The daily amount withdrawn for cooling purposes is between 25.9 and 34.5 million cubic meters. This represents 5.6% to 7.5% of the total amount of water (459 million cubic meters) found in Lake Druksiai.
Ignalina doesn't have cooling towers. Consequently, the discharge of hot water into Lake Druksiai has created a number of problems. First of all, the Lake's annual rate of evaporation increased from 600 mm in 1975-84 to about 900-1200 mm in 1986-88. During dry years, when the inflow of water into the Lake decreases to three cubic meters or less, water loss due to evaporation reduces the volume of water in the Lake. Second, the increase in the Lake's water temperature destroys its existing ecosystem. Since Ignalina began operations in 1984, the temperature of Lake Druksiai has risen noticeably. In July-August, 1986, the average water temperature was 25.1 degrees Celsius. In July 1988 it was 27.9 C and rose as high as 30.1 C (28.0 C is considered the biological limit). Varieties of plankton have dropped from 100 varieties to only 40. The varieties essential for the feeding of the fish disappeared first. A group of Lithuanian scientists have pointed out that "this problem should be investigated more thoroughly and corresponding correction should be make while it is not too late".
So, activists are calling for an independent international commission to visit and evaluate Ignalina as soon as possible. They also demand that the proposed third block not be built since Ignalina already poses a threat to it's neighbors and possibly many more countries if there is an accident of catastrophic proportions.
Source and Contact: Lithuanian Green Movement, c/o Jonas Jonynas, Kalvariju 130-48, SU-232000 VILNIUS, Lithuania, tel and fax: +70122 766737.
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