The dome of the site of the cactus nuclear weapons experiment
From 1948 to 1952, the United States conducted a series of nuclear tests in the Pacific island countries, code-named Operation Sandstone, to test the new design of the atomic bomb, not the effects of the atomic bomb.
Operation Sandstone conducted three nuclear tests and detonated a total of 67 bombs. The United States successfully tested the new atomic bomb blaster, allowing it to make effective use of fissile material.
The explosive yield of the Cactus nuclear weapon is 18 thousand tons
Operation Sandstone's last experiment was conducted on Runit Island in the Marshall Islands of the Pacific Ocean, where the nuclear weapon explosion yield code-named "Cactus" was 18 kilotons, relatively small compared to the previous two blast yields of 37 kilotons and 49 kilotons, but it left a persistent site for dome-shaped radioactive explosions in the Marshall Islands.
Two decades after the explosion, the U.S. military built a concrete dome where nuclear waste was dumped and told displaced residents of the Pacific's distant Ernevetak Atoll that they could go home with confidence.
Dome of the Nuclear Waste Site on Runit Island
Recently visiting U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres described the dome as "a kind of coffin."
Now, cracks have appeared in this 45-centimeter-thick concrete dome.
Because the 115-metre-wide blast crater was never lined, there were fears of radioactive contaminants that would leach into the ocean through the island's porous coral rock.
Concerns about climate change are heightened. Rising sea levels encroach on low-lying countries threaten to undermine the structural integrity of the domes.
Jack Ading, the regional representative of the Marshall Parliament, called the dome a "monster."
"It's full of radioactive contaminants, including plutonium-239, one of the most toxic substances known to humans," he said. The coffin leaked venom into the surrounding environment. To make matters worse, we were told not to worry about this leak, as the radioactivity outside the dome was at least as bad as the radioactivity inside it. ”
The "Cactus Dome" in the Pacific Ocean is a heap of U.S. nuclear waste
The dome has become a symbol of the chaos left behind by the U.S. nuclear test program in the Marshall Islands. Many Pacific islanders have been forcibly evacuated and resettled from land inhabited by their ancestors, including those at Enevertac Atoll. Thousands of islanders suffered from radioactive deposition and suffered from health problems.
The people of Ernevetac Atoll were allowed to return home in 1980 and now about 800 islanders live in the southern part of the atoll, 20 km from Runit Island.
After the withdrawal of U.S. troops, the Marshall Islands government formally accepted a "comprehensive and final" solution to cover the impact of the nuclear test.
But there have long been complaints about the lack of compensation paid by Washington, which the United Nations has described as a "legacy of distrust of the United States."
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres raised the issue after a meeting with Marshall Islands President Hilda Heine in Fiji earlier this month when they discussed the prospects for a radioactive leak from the nuclear heritage and the Dome of Runit Island.
Thousands of Marshall Islanders residents fled or were forcibly evacuated during the nuclear test
Guterres said: "The Pacific has been a victim in the past. In terms of water intoxication in some areas, these factors have a considerable impact on health. ”
Marshall Foreign Minister John Silk said he appreciated Guterres' talk for bringing the world's attention to the Roonet Dome.
"We are pleased that the Secretary-General has issued these statements, as the international community often seems to forget these legacy issues that continue to affect our people," he said. ”
Rhea Moss-Christian, president of the Marshall Islands National Nuclear Council, said the country "needs the support of the international community to address the alarming health and environmental challenges of the entire Pacific region." ”
The consequences of the Dome's nuclear leak are unclear. A 2013 inspection commissioned by the U.S. government showed that radioactive sediment in the Ernevetak Lagoon sediment was already high, but this did not necessarily lead to locals receiving more radiation doses.
President of the Marshall Islands Hilda Heine
Scherke noted that the U.S. government has pledged to monitor the dome on an ongoing basis, saying an independent assessment of the state of the structure "will help."
But Adin sees this situation as "a source of constant anxiety for the people of Ernevetak".
"We pray that the Runet Island Dome will not ultimately become our coffin," he said. ”