The impact on the food chain would be felt for years, if not decades. The remediation of the natural environment affected is time-consuming, and in some cases (such as contaminated water bodies) impossible. Due to its spread over large areas and large life span, radioactive material can have devastating effects on ecosystems, agriculture and food security, exposing large populations to short- and long-term risk of disease and death, as well as mass displacement. In addition to radiation poisoning and other illnesses, some genetic mutations caused by ionizing radiation exposure have been proven to transcend generations. The effects of radiation are impossible to control in time and space. But even absent an explosion, leaked radioactive material, for instance as a result of damage to the plant’s storage tanks or containment system, would seep into the soil and underground water, poisoning the flora and fauna in a large radius extending up to hundreds of kilometres around the damaged power plant. An explosion of the reactor or spent fuel tanks would mean that radioactive particles from fissionable material and fission products are carried downwind, potentially over vast distances and in an unpredictable manner, depending on meteorological conditions. Damage to a nuclear reactor could result in immediate exposure to lethal concentrations of gamma radiation and radioactive contamination by inhalation of airborne radioactive particles, with severe short- and long-term effects on human health and on the environment. Such damage can be caused directly, for instance by a shell hitting one of such components indirectly through interruptions in water or electricity flow caused by the fighting or result from operational failure due to staff death, injury or other inability to ensure the safe and secure functioning of the plant (for instance frontlines or movement restrictions by the parties to the conflict preventing staff or system components to reach the plant, or human error by staff operating under increasing stress and strain). The risk of radiation leak as a result of military activities in and around such facilities is very high, considering the likelihood of damage to a reactor or to other critical components enabling the safe and secure functioning of the facility. Radioactive material may be released when various components of a nuclear power plant – such as reactors or tanks storing spent fuel – are destroyed or damaged, or their functioning is impaired. Nuclear power plants contain radioactive material, which is extremely harmful to humans and to the environment it comes in contact with. Several nuclear safety and security measures must be in place to prevent and manage the risks of nuclear accidents and other incidents compromising the plant’s physical and functional integrity. The safe and secure operation of a nuclear power plants is complex. Why is there a need to protect nuclear power plants from the effects of hostilities? The law therefore imposes obligations on all parties to armed conflict to refrain from attacking nuclear power plants, and to avoid as much as possible any action that would expose them to attack, including locating military objectives at or in the vicinity of such facilities. While the applicable IHL provisions establish a detailed system of protection, the gist of it is very simple: to avoid that nuclear power plants become battlegrounds or are incidentally damaged by the fighting.
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