The old man who was not trim and was obsessed with his career was gone.
On January 19, Pan Ziqiang, winner of the Medal of Merit of the Chinese Nuclear Industry, honorary director of the Science and Technology Committee of CNNC and academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, died of illness in Beijing, completing an extraordinary life at the age of 85.
Image source: Guangming Daily
Pan Ziqiang has the stubbornness in the bones of Hunan people. Someone once commented that his persistence and persistence are rare among intellectuals, whether it is the majority or the minority, as long as he thinks it is right, he always insists. To some extent, the stubbornness of "not in line with the trend and not understanding the current affairs" has made his sense of innovation and pioneering spirit, so that he can always stand at the forefront of radiation protection.
Dare to speak up and dare to communicate
In the eyes of many people or a considerable number of people, the discipline of radiation protection is not remarkable, but it is one of the focuses of public attention.
On March 11, 2011, after the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan, everyone from the Party Central Committee and the State Council to the public was very concerned about the nuclear and radiation safety of the mainland.
Before his death, Pan Ziqiang stressed on different occasions that nuclear safety is an important prerequisite for the development of nuclear power, and it is necessary to respect and attach importance to safety, and an attitude of analysis and research should be adopted on the problem. To solve the problem of nuclear power, it is necessary to make the public aware of the safety of nuclear power, nuclear and radiation. There is no doubt about the role of public science communication, and it is also very important to do a good job in public communication. Some issues are not necessarily very specific, but it is also necessary to speak out in a targeted manner and gain the understanding and support of people at different levels of nuclear power development. In addition to doing a good job in persuading and explaining people with different opinions, we must also dare to speak out and dare to communicate.
When applying for a college major, Pan Ziqiang wanted to choose geology, which stemmed from the film's depiction of geological exploration: not only can you find so many resources, but also you can travel to various places. But the teacher still instructed him to fill in the physics department of Wuhan University. When he was a junior, he was fortunate to be introduced by the school to the Physics Department of Peking University.
For Pan Ziqiang, this is a big change in his life. Mentally, he was reluctant to do such a job and move on to a discipline that was considered marginal at the time.
Fortunately, he quickly changed this reluctant mentality. He had said this before he was alive, not interested in a subject, or felt that the knowledge of the subject was very shallow, just because he did not know enough about it. Only through understanding and discovering the real knowledge in the discipline will you slowly generate interest in research. In fact, it's important to understand and discover.
In the eyes of his colleagues who have worked together for 50 years, Pan Ziqiang works hard, even forgets himself. In the early 1980s, the only means of transportation for the project was a motorcycle, and the three members of Pan Ziqiang's team carried a long-pole radiation measuring instrument, and the winter war was cold, and the summer war was extremely hot. Colleagues who have watched the TV series "Garrison Death Squad" jokingly said: "Pan Ziqiang's death squad has set off again." "On a train trip out to a meeting, I got off the train to measure it in order to compare the radiation levels of the cement pavement and the fields. In order to seek truth from the data, repeated measurements, the result is a collective missed, can only catch the train to catch up with the forgotten items on the front train. In 2008, Pan Ziqiang, who was too old, went to Argentina to attend a meeting of the International Association for Radiation Protection (IRPA) and traveled for five days to convey the voice of China's radiation protection to the international stage.
The problem does not stop until it is solved
In 1984, Liu Hua, currently Deputy Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency and Director of the Department of Technical Cooperation, had the privilege of becoming Pan Ziqiang's second student. Liu Hua remembers that although Pan Ziqiang was already the deputy director of the Security Bureau of the former Ministry of Nuclear Industry at that time, he still carefully determined the research direction, selected the curriculum, designated reading and bibliography for Liu Hua, and often checked his study and research work, and often discussed issues related to the paper with him.
Photo by Zhao Weihua and Li Zhongming
As a top expert in the field of nuclear and radiation safety in mainland China, Pan Ziqiang has long served as the vice chairman of the Nuclear Safety and Environment Expert Committee of the Ministry of Environmental Protection (National Nuclear Safety Administration).
The experts and members of the expert committee come from relevant universities, scientific research institutions, government departments, enterprises and institutions, etc., including highly respected academicians and experienced old experts, as well as young and middle-aged experts with strong strength.
Pan Ziqiang actively participated in the relevant meetings of the expert committee, and in the process of policy consultation and project approval technical consultation related to nuclear and radiation safety, he always adhered to the supremacy of nuclear safety and environmental safety, adhered to the principle of science and justice on the basis of laws and regulations, and demonstrated the excellent quality of scientists who respect science and are upright.
Liu Hua remembers that in 2008, during the discussion and formulation of safety review principles for improved nuclear power plants, Mr. Pan insisted on writing radiation protection optimization and radioactive waste reduction into the review principles, and there should be specific requirements. At that time, some experts in the field of nuclear energy wanted to simplify this part of the discussion, but Mr. Ban argued that he insisted not only on making specific requirements, but also implementing them. Eventually, the Committee of Experts adopted his opinion. In terms of radioactive waste management, Mr. Pan has provided a large number of advisory opinions on the EIA approval for the decommissioning and treatment of radioactive waste left over from early nuclear facilities and historical legacy, the safety analysis report and EIA approval for low- and medium-sized radioactive waste disposal sites, and has participated in the consultation and deliberation of the current situation of the radiation environment of nuclear bases and nuclear facilities nationwide for many times, providing important technical guidance. In view of the characteristics of inland nuclear power plant sites, he suggested that effective preventive measures should be taken in the design of nuclear power plants, considering the minimization of liquid waste discharge, and suggested strengthening the study of radioactive waste discharge sources and preventive measures in the event of accidents.
At various expert meetings, Pan Ziqiang never let go of the existing nuclear safety and environmental safety issues and hidden dangers, and will always stare at the solutions to these problems, and will never give up if he is not satisfied.
Fix the sea god needle
Pan Ziqiang attaches great importance to the construction of nuclear and radiation safety regulations. From 2000 to 2003, he participated in the drafting and solicitation of opinions on the Radiation Pollution Prevention and Control Law several times, and made a significant contribution to its promulgation. In particular, in the activities of the Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council soliciting opinions and the Legislative Affairs Commission of the National People's Congress soliciting opinions, he objectively and impartially put forward opinions and suggestions on the scope of application of the law, legal requirements, the implementation of responsibility for the prevention and control of radioactive pollution, and the responsibility for supervision, etc., with a scientist's understanding of the law, not standing in the interests of any government department or unit, and in particular proposed to strengthen the safety supervision of radioactive isotopes and radiation devices, straighten out the supervision responsibilities of departments, and implement unified supervision and management. This opinion played an important role in the subsequent rationalization of the responsibility of the state for the safety supervision of radioactive sources.
In 2011, in order to answer social concerns and ensure the safety of nuclear facilities in the mainland, the Ministry of Environmental Protection of the Mainland (State Nuclear Safety Administration) organized a national radiation environment monitoring from March to May after the Fukushima nuclear accident in accordance with the decision of the State Council, and announced the monitoring results to the public in a timely manner, which played a major role in timely understanding the impact of the Fukushima nuclear accident on the mainland and calming the people's minds. Subsequently, the Ministry of Environmental Protection (State Nuclear Safety Administration), together with relevant departments, organized a major nuclear safety inspection of nuclear facilities throughout the country and organized the preparation of nuclear safety plans. Despite his advanced age and poor health, Pan Ziqiang guided the emergency work of nuclear accidents, and worked overtime with relevant technical personnel of the Ministry of Environmental Protection for many times to analyze and judge the results of radiation environment monitoring and evaluation.
The people involved said that with Mr. Pan present, there was a bottom in his heart, and he was our needle of the sea god.
Later, Pan Ziqiang, together with dozens of experts such as Wang Dazhong and Ye Qizhen, participated in the nuclear safety inspection and the formulation of nuclear safety plans. They carefully deliberated and revised the inspection plan and nuclear safety plan, and carried out in-depth research on various safety issues such as plant site conditions, engineering measures, operation management, and emergency preparedness, from fangcheng port on the border between China and Vietnam in the south and the Hongyan River in liaodong in the north, and finally formed two important documents, the comprehensive safety inspection report of civil nuclear facilities and the nuclear safety plan. These two documents were examined and approved by the State Council at three executive meetings and solicited opinions from the public, and finally released in the form of State Council documents. ( Chen Yu)
Source: Science and Technology Daily