The Race to Save the World’s Deadliest Dam

Summary

Miley Sue, a once-secret Soviet-era town in Central Asia, harbors a dangerous legacy: nearly a million cubic meters of radioactive uranium tailings. The dam containing Tailings Pond 7 is unstable, and a collapse could flood the fertile Fagana Valley, home to 14 million people, with radioactive sludge. Repairing the dam is impossible, leaving relocation as the only option, a costly and high-risk endeavor involving treacherous mountain roads. The crisis highlights the challenges faced by post-Soviet countries, which inherited hazardous sites without sufficient expertise or funding. International efforts are underway, but the region remains on edge, facing long-term health and environmental consequences.

Takeaways

• 😀 Miley Sue, a small town in Central Asia, contains a toxic legacy from the Soviet era with nearly a million cubic meters of nuclear waste from uranium mining.
• 😀 The Fagana Valley, home to around 14 million people, is at risk of being contaminated by radioactive waste if the dam holding it back collapses.
• 😀 In 2023, a routine inspection of the dam at Tailings Pond 7 revealed that radioactive sludge had seeped, compromising the dam's stability.
• 😀 The town of Miley Sue, once prosperous due to its uranium supply to Soviet missiles, is now facing a dire crisis due to the decaying infrastructure left behind after the USSR's collapse.
• 😀 Tailings, the waste product from uranium mining, are stored in ponds like Tailings Pond 7 and can be highly radioactive if not properly managed.
• 😀 After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the new countries in Central Asia, including the Kiris Republic, lacked the expertise and funding to manage the environmental legacy of uranium mining.
• 😀 Despite the low immediate risk to life from exposure to uranium tailings, long-term exposure could result in severe health effects like cancer for those living in the affected regions.
• 😀 If the dam at Tailings Pond 7 were to collapse, it would take hours for radioactive waste to flow into the Fagana Valley, potentially poisoning the region's water sources and agriculture.
• 😀 With no way to repair the dam, the only option left is to relocate the radioactive waste to a more stable site, Tailings Pond 15, which poses its own risks due to poor road conditions and the potential for accidents.
• 😀 The costs of relocating the tailings are significantly higher than repairing the dam, raising the question of whether the necessary funds will be secured in time to prevent disaster.
• 😀 The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the Russian state nuclear agency Rosatom are involved in funding the cleanup efforts, but progress on fixing Tailings Pond 7 remains stalled, leaving the town and surrounding areas in a precarious situation.

Q & A

What is Miley Sue and why was it once a secret town?

Miley Sue is a small town in Central Asia, established in 1946 to support uranium mining and processing for the Soviet nuclear program. It was a closed town, meaning it did not appear on maps and its existence was never officially acknowledged, due to its role in producing uranium for atomic bombs.

What is the main environmental threat currently facing Miley Sue?

The main threat is the potential collapse of the dam at Tailings Pond 7, which contains nearly a million cubic meters of radioactive nuclear waste. If it collapses, radioactive tailings could flow into the Fagana Valley, affecting millions of people and the region's agriculture.

What are tailings and why are they dangerous?

Tailings are the waste material left after minerals like uranium are extracted from ore. They are dangerous because they contain radioactive and toxic substances, and if not properly managed, can contaminate soil, water, and pose long-term health risks.

Why can't the dam at Tailings Pond 7 be repaired?

The tailings in Pond 7 have a gloopy, toothpaste-like consistency, which makes the dam structurally unstable. Modeling shows that even a larger buttress would not prevent a collapse, making repair impossible.

What solution is being considered to mitigate the dam risk?

The current solution is to relocate the tailings from Pond 7 to the more stable Tailings Pond 15. This involves transporting thousands of tons of radioactive waste using trucks along narrow mountain roads.

What challenges are associated with relocating the tailings?

Challenges include the risk of truck accidents, the high cost of $17 million, and the logistical difficulty of transporting waste safely along tight, low-quality mountain roads.

How did the collapse of the Soviet Union impact uranium waste management?

The collapse led to the loss of expertise, funding, and infrastructure needed to manage uranium waste. Many Russian specialists returned to Russia, leaving newly independent Central Asian countries like the Kiris Republic under-resourced to handle the legacy sites.

What are the potential consequences if the dam collapses?

Immediate risk to life is low, but long-term effects could be catastrophic. Radioactive contamination could lead to increased cancer rates, long-term health problems, and severe damage to agriculture, the main source of income for the Fagana Valley.

What historical role did Miley Sue play in the nuclear arms race?

Miley Sue produced uranium yellow cake that was essential for the Soviet Union's first atomic bomb in 1949. The town’s mining and processing operations were crucial to the USSR entering the nuclear arms race.

Which organizations are involved in funding the cleanup of uranium waste in the Kiris Republic?

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is funding seven projects in the Kiris Republic and neighboring countries, while the Russian state nuclear agency, Rosatom, funds a few additional sites. However, progress is slow, especially for Tailings Pond 7.

How does the Fagana Valley’s geography increase the risk from the dam?

The Fagana Valley is a densely populated, flat agricultural region surrounded by mountains. Any dam collapse would allow radioactive tailings to flow rapidly from the mountains into the valley, contaminating rivers and farmland crucial for the region's food supply.

What educational approach was highlighted in the script alongside the environmental story?

The script highlights Kiwi Co's STEM kits, which provide hands-on learning for children and adults. One kit demonstrated civil engineering principles using a tower and shake table to simulate earthquake impacts, illustrating how engineering concepts can be learned through practical experimentation.