Service in saithe bay. Saida Guba: Eliminating the Legacy of the Cold War
Soviet Union was the owner of one of the largest submarine fleets in the world. Only more than two hundred and forty nuclear submarines (NS) of various classes were built. Their average service life was about 25 years, and the most intensive construction took place at the end of the 60s.
Then the stocks descended to 13 nuclear submarines per year. Therefore, starting from the mid-80s, the pace of their withdrawal from the fleet has been constantly growing. Despite this, the infrastructure for the comprehensive dismantling of nuclear submarines has not been created. Decommissioned submarines were transferred to the sludge points of the Navy, where they were kept afloat. However, they practically did not think about their further disposal.
The collapse of the USSR seriously exacerbated this problem. A sharp decrease in military spending due to the economic crisis has significantly reduced the life of nuclear submarines, which has led to their massive withdrawal from the fleet and further disposal. This applied even to those nuclear submarines that had not yet completed their design life. In fact, more than 200 nuclear submarines built in the period from the 50s to the 80s, as well as 14 support vessels, were subject to write-off.
The then existing rates of disposal were so slow that some submarines waited their turn for up to 15-20 years. Spent nuclear fuel (SNF) storage facilities quickly became overflowing, and the sludge bases were filled with decommissioned submarines. In addition, infrastructure facilities associated with the operation of the nuclear submarine fleet eventually fell into disrepair. All this had the worst effect on the environment in the places where decommissioned nuclear submarines are based, gradually turning this problem from a national into an international one.
Dock-pontoon "Itarus" is being prepared for transportation from Italy to Russia >>
Dismantlement of ships and submarines of the nuclear fleet is a very complex and costly process. It must be free from any contamination. environment and unauthorized access to radioactive materials. After all, SNF in large quantities contains highly enriched uranium and plutonium - components nuclear weapons. Therefore, for the dismantling of nuclear submarines, an infrastructure is urgently needed, including their bases or sludge points, disposal enterprises, radioactive waste storage facilities, spent nuclear fuel processing facilities, a system of physical protection of nuclear materials, the restoration of contaminated areas, special vehicles and qualified personnel.
At that time, due to the economic crisis, Russia did not have the necessary funds to create such an infrastructure. But thanks to international financial assistance, in particular, programs such as Cooperative Threat Reduction and the Global Partnership, the rate of disposal of the Soviet nuclear legacy began to increase. Already in 2015, out of 201 decommissioned Soviet nuclear submarines, 195 were dismantled. Along with financial assistance, technical assistance was also provided. For example, in 2006, the self-submersible vessel Transshelf was used to transport three decommissioned nuclear submarines with heavy draft caused by depressurization of ballast tanks.
In 2003, within the framework of the Global Partnership program, Russia and Italy signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of disposal of decommissioned Russian fleet nuclear submarines, as well as the safety of radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel management. One of the results of these agreements was the construction of a specialized vessel "Rossita" and a dock-pontoon "Itarus". Both were built at the Muggiano shipyard of the Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri.
The ice-class ship "Rossita" was created to transport radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel. His main place of work is the area of coastal bases Guba Andreeva and Gremikha. The gross tonnage of the ship is 2567 tons, the length is 84 m, and the width is 14 m, the crew consists of 18 people. High level Rossita's safety is ensured by the most advanced systems and equipment. In particular, a fire extinguishing system is installed on the ship, as well as biological protection in the form of water tanks located along the perimeter of the ship. In two isolated holds of Rossita, with a total volume of 720 tons, special containers for nuclear waste are transported. Their weight can reach 40 tons, they are completely sealed and very durable. Their fall from a height of 9 meters or flooding at a depth of up to two hundred meters will not cause them damage leading to depressurization.
The non-self-propelled dock-pontoon "Itarus" is designed for lifting, transporting and placing three-compartment reactor blocks of dismantled nuclear submarines on a slipway in the Saida-Guba department of the North-Western Center for Radioactive Waste Management "SevRAO". The total carrying capacity of the vessel is 3500 tons, the length is 85 m, and the width is 31 m, the crew is six people. Its design makes it possible to transport almost any reactor compartments. In addition, Itarus has good survivability - in case of grounding or collision, it will remain afloat.
Today at Murmansk region There are three main complexes on the territory of which work is being carried out to store and eliminate the nuclear legacy of the USSR. it Saida-Guba, where nuclear submarine reactor compartments are stored. Gremikha (Ostrovnoy), where cassettes with spent nuclear fuel are reloaded from the reactors and Andreeva Guba, where about 22,000 fuel assemblies from nuclear submarines are stored.
Complex in the area locality Saida-Guba includes a long-term storage of blocks of reactor compartments, and also occupies a part of the water area where multi-compartment blocks are stored afloat. According to the IAEA classification, it belongs to the second degree of radiation hazard. Its construction began in 2005, and in just 10 years in the Arctic, on the site of a wasteland and a swamp, one of the most modern complexes of this kind was built. During construction, it was necessary to remove about 200,000 m³ of rock and raze a small hill to the ground. Here, piers, an electrical network, roads and production shops were built from scratch.
The ground part of the complex consists of three zones. The first one is actually a site for long-term storage of units with reactors of decommissioned nuclear submarines. The second is a workshop for their painting and repair. And the third zone, the most technologically advanced, is the workshop for conditioning solid radioactive waste. The concrete platform of the long-term storage facility accommodates 120 sealed single-compartment blocks with reactors from decommissioned nuclear submarines. Of these, 84 are already occupied and about forty more are waiting in line.
Sealed one-compartment blocks are formed from three-compartment ones. The latter contain a reactor and two adjacent compartments, which are cut out of the nuclear submarine after the nuclear fuel is unloaded from it. Three-compartment blocks are carefully sealed and left afloat under constant supervision. Some of them, due to the lack of technology and special disposal facilities, have been in the water for a very long time.
With the help of Itarus, the three-compartment block is unloaded ashore and brought into the workshop, where it is freed from the light hull and side floating tanks. After that, the remaining reactor compartment is sewn into a box of additional steel sheets, which is filled with concrete. At the final stage, keel blocks are welded to it, painting is carried out and it is placed on a long-term storage site. The unit will stay here for 70 years, and every decade it will be moved to a workshop for coating restoration and radiation control.
The facility on Andreeva Bay, notorious for its accident, when about 700 thousand tons of highly radioactive water leaked into the Barents Sea, was created to store waste from the nuclear icebreaker fleet. Later it was transferred to the Northern Fleet, and since 1993 its operation for receiving radioactive waste was discontinued. During the downtime, this largest storage facility in the world fell into a deplorable state. During its survey in 2007, it was found that about 65% of the fuel assemblies stored here had varying degrees of damage. The buildings and storage facilities were in such a state that it was impossible to determine what substances were in the tanks or containers.
To date, unlike the complex at Saida Bay, the restoration of infrastructure at Andreeva Bay is still ongoing. All work is expected to be completed in 2017. After their completion, this complex will ensure the safest possible handling, storage and removal for processing of the largest amount of spent nuclear fuel in the world nuclear industry. It is planned that containers with fuel assemblies will be delivered for further disposal in Chelyabinsk region to the special enterprise "Mayak". Solid radioactive waste, after being transported to Saida-Guba, undergoing a full cleaning and conditioning cycle, will be placed in sealed containers for long-term storage.
The main goal of these large-scale projects is the complete cleansing of the Arctic from nuclear legacy cold war. Given the volume, speed and quality of the work carried out, the day when these places will become completely safe is already close.
Story
Initially, Saida Guba was a fishing village. From 1938 to 1979 the settlement had the status of a workers' settlement. In 1990, the village was transferred to the Northern Fleet, after which it began to be used for surface sludge of nuclear submarines and reactor compartments. Currently, a facility for long-term ground storage of reactor compartments is being built in the village, which is designed to store 120 reactor compartments. Construction began in 2004 , the German government invested about 700 million euros in the project . As of 2013, 54 reactor compartments of dismantled nuclear submarines are stored and maintained on the coastal site, 32 three-compartment units (including the reactor compartment) are waiting for their turn afloat at the floating piers. In the coming years, it is planned to put into operation a regional center for the handling and conditioning of radioactive waste.
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An excerpt characterizing Said Guba
Her voice trembled, she almost burst into tears, but she recovered herself and calmly continued: “And I don’t want to get married at all. And I'm afraid of him; I am now completely, completely, calmed down ...The next day after this conversation, Natasha put on that old dress, which she was especially aware of for the cheerfulness it delivered in the morning, and in the morning she began her former way of life, from which she lagged behind after the ball. After drinking tea, she went to the hall, which she especially loved for its strong resonance, and began to sing her solfeji (singing exercises). Having finished the first lesson, she stopped in the middle of the hall and repeated one musical phrase that she especially liked. She listened joyfully to that (as if unexpected for her) charm with which these sounds, shimmering, filled the entire emptiness of the hall and slowly died away, and she suddenly became cheerful. “Why think about it so much and so well,” she said to herself, and began to walk up and down the hall, stepping not with simple steps on the resonant parquet, but at every step stepping from heel (she was wearing new, favorite shoes) to toe, and just as joyfully as to the sounds of his voice, listening to this measured clatter of heels and the creaking of socks. Passing by a mirror, she looked into it. - "Here I am!" as if the expression on her face at the sight of herself spoke. “Well, that's good. And I don't need anyone."
The footman wanted to come in to clean up something in the hall, but she did not let him in, again shutting the door behind him, and continued her walk. She returned that morning again to her beloved state of self-love and admiration for herself. - “What a charm this Natasha is!” she said again to herself in the words of some third, collective, masculine face. - "Good, voice, young, and she does not interfere with anyone, just leave her alone." But no matter how much they left her alone, she could no longer be at peace, and immediately felt it.
In the front door the entrance door opened, someone asked: are you at home? and someone's footsteps were heard. Natasha looked in the mirror, but she did not see herself. She listened to the sounds in the hallway. When she saw herself, her face was pale. It was he. She knew this for sure, although she barely heard the sound of his voice from the closed doors.
Natasha, pale and frightened, ran into the living room.
- Mom, Bolkonsky has arrived! - she said. - Mom, this is terrible, this is unbearable! “I don’t want to… suffer!” What should I do?…
The countess had not yet had time to answer her, when Prince Andrei entered the drawing room with an anxious and serious face. As soon as he saw Natasha, his face lit up. He kissed the hand of the countess and Natasha and sat down beside the sofa.
“For a long time we have not had pleasure ...” the countess began, but Prince Andrei interrupted her, answering her question and obviously in a hurry to say what he needed.
- I have not been with you all this time, because I was with my father: I needed to talk to him about a very important matter. I just got back last night,” he said, looking at Natasha. “I need to talk to you, Countess,” he added after a moment's silence.
The Countess sighed heavily and lowered her eyes.
“I am at your service,” she said.
Natasha knew that she had to leave, but she could not do it: something was squeezing her throat, and she looked impolitely, directly, with open eyes at Prince Andrei.
"Now? This minute!… No, it can't be!” she thought.
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