The possible loss of the plant’s main source of cooling water further complicates an already extremely difficult nuclear safety situation.
While Kyiv and Moscow are shifting responsibility for the Kakhovka dam explosion, the IAEA is ringing the alarm: interruptions in water supply could lead to a nuclear accident.
Work is underway in Zaporozhye to stockpile water needed to cool the reactors in case access is lost to the nearby Kakhovka Reservoir, where the water level is inexorably declining after the dam explosion.
According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, the lake level has dropped to 14.07 meters; when it reaches 12.7 meters, water supply to the nuclear power plant will become impossible.
“It is important to maintain the integrity of both the cooling basin and the spillway,” said Rafael Mariano Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency. “This is fundamental to ensure that the hydroelectric power plant has enough water to provide the main cooling of the nuclear power plant in the coming months. Now more than ever, the increased presence of the IAEA at the Zaporozhye NPP is vital to avert the danger of a nuclear accident and its possible consequences for people and the environment during a period of military overactivity in the area. The possible loss of the plant’s main source of cooling water further complicates an already extremely complex and difficult nuclear safety situation.