Rlchard C. Parker New Jersey Institute of Technology Newark. 07102
Radiation and the Environment A relevant course on a topical subject
T h e effect of radioactive materials on the environment is a topic of major concern today. Mankind, without doubt, benefits from the use of radioisotopes hut must ask itself whether the benefits outweieh the risks involved. At the New Jersey Institute of ~ e c h n o lwe i ~have ~ introduced a course which enables one to avvreciate both the pros and cons of nuclear radiation and td &ahate for himseif the riskbenefit factor. Entitled "Radiation and the Environment," it is a n elective in our Master of Science Program in Applied Science. Radiation and the Environment is a three credit-hour course which assumes no prior knowledge of nuclear chemistry. Every effort is made to give a n unbiased and non-controversial presentation of the subject matter. T h e syllabus follows 1) Nuclear physin 2) Radioactivity 3) o, 8. 7 snd neutron radiations and their interactions with
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4) Fission and fusion processes 5) Nuclear explosives 6 ) Nuclear reactor concepts
7) Nuclear power plants 8)
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Radioactive waste orocessine" and disoml ~~~
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9) Instrumentation 10) Radiation regulations 11) 12)
Biological effects of nuclear radiations Beneficial uses of radioisotopes
This course has been given twice and each time the pace of presentation was determined by student interest and participation in classroom discussions. Regular lectures were supplemented with films and an occasional guest speaker, a combination which helped to maintain a high level of interest throughout the semester. Films were ver; useful for illustrating the numerous applications. "Atoms in Agriculture," "Diagnosis and Therapy with Radiation," "The Nuclear Witness," and "Isotopes in Environmental Control" were particularly well received by the classes, and were obtained from the USERDA Film Library. The lecture on instrumentation was followed by a visit to the nuclear engineering laboratory for a demonstration of counters and counting techniques. At this time the students were also able to view a t close hand a subcritical nuclear reactor. A professor in chemistry a t NJIT, one who teaches bioc h e m i s t ~and has a hackmound in the diaenostic field. s w k e to the ciass on the use of radioisotopesufor diagnosisand therapy. His lecture was suv~lementedwith the excellent f h " ~ i a g n o s i sand Therapy with Radiation." The texts that have been used are "Radiation and Life," by George E. Davis (Iowa State University Press) and "Nuclear Enerw," by Raymond L. Murray (Perpamon Press). Munay is considered the hetter of the twb books in that it coven most of the desired topics, although some are presented in too brief a fashion and must be supplemented. Davis is lacking in that the topics of instrumentation, regulations, and waste disposal are n i t covered, and there are no problems a t the end i f the
chapters. The programmed instruction book "Radiation Monitoring" by J. E. Wade and G. E. Cunningham (USERDA) has been used a s a supplement for instrumentation. What with the present controversy over building off-shore nuclear vower olants in New Jersev. - . i t was onlv natural that a n emphasis be placed on nuclear vower, its effluents and its effect on the environment. A thorough comparison was made with conventional fossil-fueled plants in terms of efficiencies. availability of fuel, and types of pollution. A representative from the Environmental Affairs Department a t Public Service Electric and Gas of New Jersey gave a guest lecture entitled "Radiation-Nuclear Power-Environmental Considerations." He made a concerted effort to eive a balanced nresentation of the subject, then fielded questions on all aspects of nuclear vower ranaine from fish kills to the resienation of the three GE nuclearen&eers in protest of unsafe conditions in the nuclear industry. At the conclusion of the course the students were asked to give their views on the question of nuclear vower plants. Surprisingly les* than hal€tcrok a strong stance.for or against nuclear power; 35% were definitely pro and 1040definitelv con. The majority took more or less thiposition of a devil's advocate with a favorable hut cautious stance. Some vertinent quotes from students' papers follow. "I am a cautious advocate of nuclear power plants. My opinion rests to a large degree on faith that the controls described to ensure that almost unconditional safety of such operations are, in fact, carried out precisely as required. This opinion is tempered by a desire to see nuclear plant production kept at a low level, since our fossil fuels are still in reasonable suoolv .. , and the hooe of safer, more producti!,e fusiun prucesaes is in the foreswsble future."
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"I have reservations as to the safety ofthe reactors themselves as well as the disposal of nuclear wastes; but, I feel the problems
are presently being handled adequately and will he safely accommodated in the future. The fact that the lifetime of a nuclear plant is only 30-35 years is a big plus. As new technology becomes Dower m available it can be imolemented. To ienore nuclear ~~~- - in --- o--present and future energy nwds would be a backwards step for srlence and a n exressit,e burden on our already pulluted envirm. ment." 0
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"I feel that without the outcry of the opponents the energy industry would not go to the lengths they are going to to assure safe reactors. Since industrv has traditionallv thoueht of safetv as an expensive form of overhead, the policing actionof the opponents is desirable."
"It is the redundancy feature of nuclear plants which makesme feel they are safe. If the industry remainsunder clwe watchof opponents and government, they should be a good source of in the near future." "We must frame nuclear-oawer risks in realistic ncranertive hv r - ~ - r - - --, - ~ comparing them t o the risks involv~din generating power using fossil fuels. Miner denths due to cave-insand explc,sionn and silicmii are real deaths, not possibilities of one chance u, :300 million anticipated when 100 nuclear plants are in operation." ~
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Volume 54, Number 7, July 1977 1 435
