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OVERVIEW
During the Soviet Period Georgian territory was not extensively used to
produce fissile material and/or store highly radioactive waste. The only IRT-M
reactor in Georgia (Mtskheta city) operating under the
Andronikashvili Institute of Physics was shut down in 1990. In 1998, under
the Operation Auburn Endeavor, all remained fresh and
spent fuel was transferred from Georgia to Scotland.[1,2] In addition, in
Georgia there are no sites and facilities for the disposal and treatments of
radioactive, toxic or other hazardous waste.[3] According to unconfirmed
information,
Sukhumi I. Vekua Institute of Physics &
Technology in the Region of Abkhazia (currently not controlled by the
Georgian central government due to the conflict) once housed isotope
production reactor and fissile material, though the whereabouts of HEU is
unknown[1,2].
Despite the fact that Georgia inherited insignificant
number of the nuclear facilities from the Soviet Union, which virtually are
out of use today, during the last years highly radioactive incidents became
more or less frequent on Georgian territory. This might be caused by the post
Soviet chaos, when the devices and materials were abandoned frequently without
supervision. Former Soviet military bases in Georgia appeared to be
particularly contaminated sites by abandoned highly radioactive materials
(such as cesium-137, strontium-90 etc). In Georgia the Soviet army left more
than 350 military bases; the part of them is deserted and another is the
property of different structural organizations.[3] After the incident in Lilo
military base in 1997, Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze set up a
commission to inspect Georgia’s other military bases and to eliminate any
sources of radioactive contamination found. The commission, with the technical
assistance from the IAEA, has already revealed some radioactive springs,
namely in Vaziani and Godogani former Soviet military bases and Matkhodzhi
former Soviet civil defense unit.[4,5,6,7] Apart from the military sites,
incidents related with highly radioactive materials also took place on other
(nonmilitary) sites throughout the territory of Georgia.
6/26/2003: BORDER GUARDS ARREST MAN TRANSPORTING RADIOACTIVE
MATERIALS ACROSS ARMENIAN BORDER
Georgian border guards arrested a man trying to transport radioactive
material across the Georgian-Armenian border on 26 June 2003, Rosbalt reported.[1] The man,
Armenian citizen Sergo Mikoyan, said he got the material in Vladikavkaz,
Russia.[2] According to the Environmental Protection and Natural Resources
Ministry of Georgia, the substance in question was "well-isolated uranium."[1]
[This may have been a poorly phrased attempt to characterize the level of
enrichment of the uranium involved, although no other description of the
material was given.]
Another source said the contraband consisted of several boxes containing a
radioactive powder thought to be uranium.[2] The boxes were turned over to
the radiation safety department of the Environmental Protection Ministry and
were due to undergo further analysis.[2]
3/2003: "RAD
RANGERS" IN GEORGIA SEARCH FOR LOST RADIOACTIVE DEVICES
As of March 2003, officials from Georgia's Nuclear and Radiation Safety Service
were
searching in cooperation with the IAEA for radioactive objects, such as
abandoned military and agricultural equipment, which remain in the country
after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The technicians, called "rad
rangers," search urban areas and abandoned military bases and have succeeded
in gathering over 220 abandoned radioactive objects. Objects range
from rifle scopes that contain small amounts of radium, to radioisotope
thermoelectric generators (RTGs) powered
by strontium-90 that emit over 40,000 curies of radiation each.[1] The search
also looks for agricultural devices used in the secret Soviet research project
code named "Gamma Kolos," in which tractors used containers of cesium-137 to
irradiate seeds in order to examine the results of radiation exposure on wheat
harvests.[2] Authorities fear that these radioactive materials could be
used by terrorists, as the strontium-90 canisters could be used in
constructing a "dirty bomb," while cesium-137 is most commonly found in a
powdery form which could be easily spread without detection in an urban area,
possibly sickening or killing hundreds of people due to unwitting radiation
exposure.[1] The recovered strontium canisters and Gamma Kolos cesium
containers are being stored in concrete chambers in a secret location in
Georgia, assisted by funding from the US Department of Energy.[1,2]
2/11/2003: GEORGIA
NEEDS NEW RADIOACTIVE WASTE STORAGE
According to Iosif Kakushadze, head of the Radiation Safety Service at the
Georgian Ministry of Environmental Protection, Georgia needs a new
radioactive waste storage facility. Kakushadze noted that lack of funds and opposition
from local leaders has thus far prevented the construction of such a facility.
At this stage, Georgian authorities are considering construction of a temporary storage
facility
calculated for 50-year use, and expect that
the
International Atomic Energy Agency
will partially cover construction-related expenses. According to Interfax,
Kakushadze refused to name the current
radioactive waste
storage facilities.
2/2003:
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS LOST AT GEORGIAN MILITARY BASE
On 17 February 2003, Mamuka Tsaava, the military prosecutor of the Kvemo-Kartli
region in central Georgia, announced in a public statement that three containers
with the radioactive material cesium-137 were missing from the Vaziani military
base, which is located 30km east of Tbilisi.
According to RIA-Novosti, Georgian Minister of Defense David Tevzadze stated
that the radioactive sources originally had been found on the military base when
the Georgian military forces "were preparing for international exercises and
were surveying the territory of the base."[1,2,3,4] The Agence France Presse
reported that these radioactive devices were discovered at the Vaziani base in
2000.[5] According to Mr. Tsaava, a total of four containers were stored at the
Vaziani base, three of which are now missing. It is not clear when the
containers disappeared or what the exact quantity of the missing radioactive
material was.[1,2,3,4] However, according to a Rustavi-2 TV report, the three
containers with cesium-137 had been missing from the Vaziani base since summer
2002, while the criminal investigation in connection with the suspected theft
was initiated by the Military Prosecutor’s Office only on 3 February 2003.[6]
The head of the Radiation Security Department of the Georgian Ministry of
Environment, Soso Kakushadze, stated that his office was notified about the
suspected theft of the cesium-137 containers on 17 February 2003. Mr. Kakushadze
dispatched a group of experts to gather evidence at the site, but they were
denied access to the Vaziani base. Mr. Kakushadze stated that the containers
held calibrated radiation measuring devices powered by cesium.[1]
On 19 February 2003, Rustavi-2 TV quoted several classified documents, one of
which indicated that in October 2002 the Ministry of Defense had asked the Ministry
of Environment to transfer the containers with cesium-137 from Vaziani base
and to assume responsibility for their safe storage. The transfer apparently
did not take place. According to another classified document cited by Rustavi-2,
high-ranking Georgian military officials reported that radioactive sources had
been found on the territory of an army detachment in Dedoplis-Tskaro (eastern
Georgia), the Akhaltsikhe tank battalion (southern Georgia) and the Khashuri
fuel storage facility (central Georgia).[2,3,4]
Sources:
[1] Misha Dzhindzhikhashvili, Associated Press, 17 February 2003; in
“Radioactive materials go missing from Georgian base,” Anchorage Daily News,
http://www.adn.com/24hour/world/v-printer/story/768825p-5534609c.html.
[2] “S voyennoy bazy v Gruzii propali tri konteynera s ‘tseziyem-137,’” Newsru.com,
17 February 2003,
http://www.newsru.com/world/17feb2003/cesium_print.html.
[3] “V Gruzii pokhishcheny radioaktivnyye konteynery,” Vesti.ru, 17
February 2003; in Integrum Techno,
http://www.integrum.ru.
[4] Eka Mekhuzla, “S odnoy iz voyennykh baz Gruzii propali tri konteynera s
radioaktivnimi veshchestvami,” ITAR-TASS, 17 February 2003; in Integrum Techno,
http://www.integrum.ru.
[5] “Nuclear containers lost off Georgia’s military base,” Agence France Presse,
18 February 2003; in Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe,
http://www.lexis-nexis.com.
[6] Rustavi-2 TV, 19 February 2003; in “Program summary: Georgian Rustavi-2 TV
‘Kurieri’ News,” FBIS Document ID CEP20030219000497.{Entered 4/17/2003 KB}
6/28/2002: IAEA SEARCH FOR MISSING RADIOACTIVE GENERATORS IN
GEORGIA FAILED
About 50 specialists from the
Georgian government and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have
failed to find two missing highly radioactive thermoelectric generators in
western Georgia. The search, which lasted for two weeks, concluded on June 21.
The generators, weighing one ton each, contain a radioactive element,
strontium-90, which can be used in a so-called "dirty bomb."[1] Eight
generators were brought to Georgia from Narva in the early 1980s to power
communications devices during the construction of hydropower plants in the
region. Six of these generators were later found and neutralized, but
two remain missing.[2] According to Sergey Kakushadze, the head of Georgia's
Nuclear and Radiation Safety Service, a renewed search is planned for
September and will focus on the areas close to Abkhazia.
4/2002: IAEA PLANS TO RECOVER RADIOACTIVE SOURCES IN GEORGIA
At an
International Atomic Energy Agency-sponsored meeting in Paris in April 2002, France, India, Japan,
Russia, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States agreed on a plan to find and recover two
high-power strontium sources and an unknown number of other radioactive
sources in Georgia. In the first phase, to begin June 1, 30 Georgians will be
trained in radiological protection and use of donated detection equipment to locate the two strontium sources believed to be in
northwestern Georgia. The "Helinuc" helicopter-borne detection system
developed by the CEA's Bruyeres-le-Chatel center will likely be used in the
second phase of the program.
2/5/2002: MINISTER
WARNS: RADIOACTIVE DEVICES REMAIN
After the discovery of two containers filled with radioactive material
near the border of Abkhazia in December 2001, Georgian
Minister of the
Environment Nino Chkhobadze said that other
radioactive objects with similar radioactivity exist in the country. The
efforts to find those
objects will initially focus on former Soviet military sites. [See the NIS
Nuclear Trafficking Database entry
for more information on this incident.]
5/19/2000: IAEA SEARCHES FOR DISCARDED RADIOACTIVE
SOURCES IN GEORGIA
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
announced on 19 May 2000 that it was launching an aerial reconnaissance
effort to track down discarded radiation sources in the Republic of Georgia.
At the request of the Georgian Ministry of the Environment, a six-member
IAEA team will survey a selected area of Georgia in an attempt to find
discarded radiation sources or other areas contaminated with radiation that
could pose a health hazard. The team will use a helicopter equipped with a
gamma radiation detection system provided by the Commisariat a l'Energie
Atomique of France. Since Georgia became independent in 1991, nearly 300
discarded radiation sources have been found in the country. Accidental
encounters with improperly discarded radiation sources have sometimes had
serious health consequences, as in 1997 when a number of Georgian border
guards were hospitalized after being exposed to radiation from such a source
(see abstract for October 1997 below). The aim of the IAEA
mission will be to provide reasonable assurance that there is no risk from
discarded radiation sources to the population of Georgia. The mission
is planned to last from 23 May to 16 June 2000, and will make two two-hour
flights per day during the survey period. The team will work closely
with Georgian authorities and provide findings to the IAEA Director-General,
who will be responsible for passing them on to the Georgian government.
3/99: RADIOACTIVE SUBSTANCE FOUND AT LILO
Containers of radioactive material were found on the
former Russian military base near Lilo Fair. The material is well preserved
and safe, provided the containers remain unopened. (Please see the 10/97
entry below for more information on the previous radiation incident at Lilo.)
11/10/98: RADIATION SOURCES FOUND IN TSAISHI
Two radiation sources were detected in the village
Tsaishi in the Mestia region. The sources were "destroyed" and the
Institute of Physics prepared special lead containers for disposition of the
destroyed sources.
9/98: IAEA PUBLISHES REPORTS ON RADIATION IN
GEORGIA
In September 1998, the International Atomic Energy
Agency published a document, IAEA-TECDOC-1045: Safety of radiation sources and security
of radioactive materials, that contains two reports on radiation in
Georgia. The first report, "The
Radiological Accident in Tbilisi," summarizes and examines the radiological situation
at the Lilo Training Center. The second report, "Radiation
Sources and Materials Safety and Security in Georgia," outlines the problems of safety and security in Georgia,
the most important incidents and accidents, their consequences (including
severe injuries and deaths) and governmental actions for prevention and
mitigation.
8/98: RADIATION SOURCES FOUND NEAR GODOGANI AND
MATKHODZHI
The Georgian state commission in charge of detecting
and liquidating radiation sources examined a 60-square-meter plot of land
that was contaminated by radiation and included 30 spots at which radiation
levels reached 6 roentgen (R). [The time period over which this dose was
registered is not indicated in the original source. Presumably, it is
six roentgen per hour.] The plot of land is on the territory of a former
Soviet military site near Godogani, Terjola, in western Georgia. According
to Georgian Minister for the Environment Nino Chkhobadze, the radiation
sources have already been removed, and the radiation level in the area is
within the permissible range.[1] Another radiation source emitting 230R
[time period unspecified] and contaminating a 300m radius, was found on the
territory of a former Soviet civil defense unit near Matkhodzi, in the Khoni
region in Western Georgia.[1,2] Georgian experts are working on isolating
and disposing of the radioactive objects, Chkobadze said.[1] Experts
have checked only 60 out of 300 facilities formerly belonging to the Soviet
army and found radioactive substances at four of them. The Georgian
authorities have appealed to the IAEA for assistance in cleanup
operations.[2]
12/4/97: COMMISSION ANNOUNCES DISCOVERY OF
RADIATION IN VAZIANI
On 4 December 1997, the presidential commission for
investigating radioactive contamination at military bases in Georgia held a
press conference to reveal that its members had found a source of radiation
at the Vaziani military base on 23 November 1997.[1,2] The commission
discovered one source of cesium-137 in one portion of the base and later
encountered seven more sources of cesium in metal containers there. The
cesium at Vaziani, once a former Soviet missile base and now under the
jurisdiction of the Georgian Ministry of Defense, has radioactivity
comparable to that detected at the Lilo base.[2,3] The 17-hectare
(42.5-acre) base at Vaziani is located approximately 30 km (18 miles) from
Tbilisi.[4] No soldiers are stationed there, and no one has contracted
radiation sickness from the materials. Minister of Environmental
Protection Nino Chkhobadze noted that the commission does not possess the
equipment needed to contain these radioactive materials.[2,3]
12/97: IAEA PROVIDES TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO
RADIATION COMMISSION
IAEA experts have offered technical assistance to
the presidential commission established in October 1997 to detect radiation
at former Soviet military bases in Georgia. The commission has until
April 1998 to finish their study and to contain any radiation and chemical
sources they find.[1,2,6] With the help of $50,000 from the IAEA,
the commission will examine 100 of the 300 military bases on Georgian
territory.[5,6] The Ministry of Environmental Protection has
jurisdiction over the commission and has provided a large portion of its
funding. Resources are also expected from the Ministry of Defense and
the Department of Border Defense.[6] Georgian officials are to present their
preliminary findings to the IAEA in Vienna in January 1998.[1,2] IAEA
specialists visited the Lilo military base in October 1997, when news broke
that 11 soldiers were suffering from radiation sickness due to exposure to
cesium-137 abandoned at Lilo.[3] France and Germany have also provided
help by treating some of the ill soldiers. France's nuclear protection
and safety institute IPSN sent a medical team to Georgia to examine the
other soldiers.[4]
10/97: RADIATION SICKNESS
STRIKES SOLDIERS IN GEORGIA
In February 1997, soldiers at the Lilo military
base, near Tbilisi, began to exhibit symptoms from an unknown disease,
including open sores on their bodies.[1] After six months, in October 1997,
doctors diagnosed nine hospitalized soldiers with radiation sickness,
accompanied by third degree radiation burns.[1,2] By the end of October
1997, a total of 11 soldiers had been hospitalized with the same malady.[6]
After examining the 60-acre area of the Lilo military base, experts from the
Institute of Physics, Ministry of Defense, and border guards discovered and
unearthed 15 radioactive capsules, similar to one found in a coat pocket in
a pile of a winter gear[2] belonging to the soldier who suffered the most
severe radiation burns.[1] The capsules, half an inch long and a quarter
inch wide, contained cesium-137 and initially belonged in radiation
detection devices used to train troops. Although the capsules were
originally stored in shielded boxes, four had reportedly been removed from
their protective casings.[2] Three of the capsules were allegedly open due
to corrosion.[1] Specialists calculated that the capsules will remain
dangerous for 300 years[2] and are studying when the capsules might have
been left on the base.[1] Experts found most of the capsules in holes
up to 15 inches deep in smoking areas, near restrooms, and on the football
grounds, but discovered five outside of the territory of the base.[2] The
radiation level at the base was 1,300 milliroentgen per hour, [1] which is
one thousand times standard radiation levels.[2] It returned to normal after
the completion of liquidation work.[3]
According to the head of the Georgian border guards,
Valeri Chkheidze, Russian authorities abandoned the nuclear material without
notifying the Georgian government when Russian troops withdrew from the base
(used for civil defense training) in 1992. Chkheidze claims the event
is equal to "criminal nonchalance." Shukri Abramidze, a nuclear
expert with the Institute of Physics, was also shocked at how the canisters
were abandoned and stated he had never seen anything like it in his 40 years
as a nuclear specialist.[4] Experts are especially concerned that the
capsules found at the military base in Lilo might be just the tip of the
iceberg and that there might be similar incidents on other former Russian
military bases, or even nonmilitary sites.[2]
Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze set up a
commission to inspect Georgia's other military bases [2] and to eliminate
any sources of radioactive contamination found.[8] In addition, the
Office of the Chief Military Prosecutor of Georgia started an investigation
of the Lilo case and plans to bring charges in accordance with Article
215(5) of the Georgian Criminal Code "On Storage, Accounting, Transfer
and Usage of Radioactive Materials."[5] The investigation involves law
enforcement officials, security agencies, and scientific and medical
facilities.[7] Some Georgians believe that the radioactive materials
were deliberately left behind and called for a lawsuit against the Russian
government.[6] On 23 October 1997, the Russian Ministry of Defense
reportedly denied that Russian troops had left the radioactive materials
behind, and stated that the capsules originated from laboratory equipment at
the base.[12]
Georgian authorities invited Russian specialists to
relate their experiences in handling radiation sickness. Mikhail
Kolchanovskiy of the Institute of Biophysics traveled to Georgia and
reported that three soldiers with the severest burns will need several years
to recover completely.[9,10] Kolchanovskiy also noted that the
Institute of Biophysics in Moscow is ready to admit the soldiers for
treatment and free surgery.[7] However, the soldiers expressed
hesitation about going to Russia, fearing inadequate treatment by the same
country that left the radioactive waste in the first place.[2] Because
Georgian hospitals are unable to treat the soldiers, authorities waited for
an offer from abroad.[11] Seventeen countries offered assistance,[10] and in
late October 1997, four soldiers traveled to France and seven to Germany for
treatment.[6] Other sources note that only two soldiers went to
Germany.[13,14]
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