In addition, 19 members of the Democratic Party argued that “a full investigation by the National Assembly is necessary” on the suspicion of the leakage of tritium at the Wolseong nuclear power plant on the 13th. There were a total of three people who applied for the press conference, including Rep. Yang Yi Won-young, who was an environmentalist, but 19 members flocked to the press conference at 1:30 pm. The ruling party is taking the lead in inflating the loopholes of the Moon Jae-in government’s public institution (Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power) after the first reports of suspicion came out on the 10th. The opposition party criticized “The Democratic Party is systematically spreading fake news to cover the investigation of the Wolseong nuclear power plant” (a statement by the People’s Power of Science, Technology Broadcasting and Communication Commissioner on the 12th).
19 Democratic Party lawmakers, including Yang Yi Won-young, Woo Won-shik, Yoon Young-chan, and Han Jun-ho, gathered in front of the press conference of the National Assembly on the afternoon of the 13th to discuss how to share a statement related to the suspicion of the leakage of tritium from the Wolseong nuclear power plant.
Rep. Yang pointed out, “The entire site of the Wolseong nuclear power plant is contaminated with tritium, and it is not known where and how much radioactive material is leaked, but Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) repeated the statement that there was no external leakage, but did not investigate the cause. did. Other radioactive substances, gamma nuclides, were also claimed. Rep. Yang said, “Gamma nuclides cannot come out unless the concrete is cracked because the size of the atom is large. It is suspected that the spent fuel tank has been damaged.” Some argued that gamma nuclides were not detected, refuted that it was “confirmed through KHNP’s report.”
Democrats plan to visit the Wolseong Nuclear Power Headquarters on the 18th to conduct a field investigation. They said, “I will meet the residents living near Wolseongwon to hear their opinions and, if necessary, review the composition of the public-private joint investigation committee requested by the residents.”
On the afternoon of the 13th, members of the Democratic Party, including Lee Won-young Yang, are making a statement on the suspicion of the leakage of radioactive materials from the Wolseong nuclear power plant at the National Assembly Communication Hall.
Audit and prosecution
The Democratic Party is openly linking the issue with the audit of the Wolseong nuclear power plant and the subsequent investigation by the prosecution. At the heart of raising the problem is Lee Nak-yeon. Representative Lee said on the 11th, “The auditor has been auditing the Wolseong nuclear power plant for more than a year and has not confirmed the radioactive leakage. It must be clear whether there was a collusion with the nuclear mafia in concealment.” It is said that the Supreme Council on that day also gathered opinions on the need for a full investigation and establishment of countermeasures at the level of the National Assembly.
Chief spokesman Choi In-ho said in a back briefing right after the highest ranking, “This time it was revealed that the audit of the auditor and the prosecution’s investigation were biased and excessive,” and “the result of neglecting the lives and safety of the people.” One of the top members of the Democratic Party said, “If an investigation team is organized, nuclear power mafias such as KHNP, the Nuclear Safety Committee, and professors who have recently received a service assignment from KHNP should be excluded.” “I am very suspicious of the response attitude of President Jae-hoon Jeong and some professors. We have to exclude them and investigate what has been concealed.”
President Jeong said on his Facebook page on the 12th, “I visited the Wolseong nuclear power plant and checked the facilities. The conclusion is that there is no outflow of tritium groundwater.” He also urged, “We must inform the outsiders accurately based on facts and science and technology.” On the 11th, he wrote, “There should be no spread of irresponsible content claimed by very few (environmental) activists in a way that blurs the standard of comparison.”
The opposition party continued criticism that “the political intention to neutralize the prosecution’s investigation into the closure of the Wolseong Unit 1 is clear” and that “the brutality of anger that drives the citizens of Gyeonggi to unrest” (Rep. Kim Seok-ki).
Yong-Hoon Jung, Professor at KAIST Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering Facebook capture
The battle against the Democrats is also hot
The battle between Chung Yong-hoon, professor of the Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering at KAIST and the Democratic Party continued on the 13th. Professor Jeong wrote on Facebook on the 8th that “the exposure of tritium to residents living near the Wolseong nuclear power plant is at the level of eating 6 bananas or 1 gram of anchovies per year,” he said. “You should not fuel residents’ anxiety with a strange conspiracy.”
At the conference, Congressman Yang said, “The radioactive material in the banana is potassium in nature, but tritium is a material that does not exist in nature.” All claims that it is safe come from the mouths of nuclear engineers. It’s a story,” he refuted.
Then, Professor Jeong pointed out on Facebook again that “Tritium doesn’t exist in nature, so I start by writing down things that aren’t true.” “Because of radiation from space, about 130 tera becquerels per year fall in Korea alone,” he explained. “Tritium is produced both in nature and in nuclear power plants.”
Reporter Song Seung-hwan [email protected]