25 Years After Chernobyl

Today marks the 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster, resulting in what was thought to be the worst nuclear catastrophe in history. The disaster contaminated and displaced thousands of people living near the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in the Ukraine. But then came the Fukushima power plant explosion in Japan on March 11, 2011. Twenty-five years later we have yet to learn from our mistakes and account for the inherent dangers associated with high-risk nuclear energy.

Chernobyl and Fukushima reminds us that nuclear technology is inherently dangerous, whether in a reactor or in a bomb. While the international community has taken great strides to improve the safety standards of nuclear energy and to curb the proliferation of nuclear weapons, more needs to be done. Ban Ki-Moon, Secretary General of the United Nations, wrote yesterday in the New York Times that, “We need to build a stronger connection between nuclear safety and nuclear security. At a time when terrorists seek nuclear materials, we can say with confidence that a nuclear plant that is safer for its community is also more secure for the world.”

In Preventing the Nuclear Apocalypse, Joe Cirincione notes that "there are 443 nuclear reactors in operation around the world; there are 22,000 nuclear weapons. Like a doomsday machine that no one has yet turned off, thousands of nuclear bombs still sit atop missiles ready to launch within minutes. Thousands more are stacked in reserve, dangerously vulnerable to theft or accident."

On this 25 anniversary, WAND remembers the victims of the Chernobyl accident and remains committed to helping our country move beyond nuclear power and nuclear weapons.