What Nuclear Power Plants Have To Do With Nuclear Terrorism

The biggest threat from terrorism in the United States today is the possibility that a weapon or weapons of mass destruction would be unleashed on the general public.

What better way to accomplish this than a deliberately-planned surprise attack on a Nuclear Power Plant. The objective of the attack is damaging or sabotaging either the entire Plant, the Nuclear Reactor spent fuel rod storage, or the controls for the coolant to the Nuclear Plant itself, causing the Plant to leak radiation to the surrounding area. 

Depending on the location of the plant, many thousands of people could be in harm's way if even one of the 103 Nuclear Plants leaked significant amounts of Radiation. As a matter of fact: Indian Point Nuclear Power facility in New York, has 20-million people that live within 50 miles! 

This type of attack is the poor-man's nuclear weapon: no nuclear materials are needed, no complex construction required to accomplish the task. The nuclear materials are in the Nuclear Plant itself, and although an attack would not unleash the terror and destruction of an atomic weapon, (the terrible heat and destructive power of an atomic explosion), the result of leaking radiation is lethal to the population that is "down wind" of the plant. 

How Possible is a Nuclear Power Plant Attack?

In the United States both before and after 9/11/2001, we have had many many warnings of potential deliberate attacks on Nuclear Power facilities. There have been over 160 news headlines this year - stating that very thing. This article from the BBC (England) states that the prime target on 9/11 was a Nuclear Power plant, not the towers. Let's look at other warnings:

• News agencies in this country and in other countries, like the BBC in Britain have reported many times that Nuclear Power facilities were prime terrorist targets.

• Talking to a government official in Germany, he indicated that we were very much in danger of this very thing - seems other countries know this and watch us with expectations of it happening

• President Bush announced the possibility of a nuclear power plant attack this year in his "State of the Union" speech.

• Diagrams and locations of Nuclear Power facilities were found in the Al-Qaeda caves. Now, really, why else would they be there?

• Why worry about trying to smuggle enough radioactive material for a "dirty bomb" into the US? There are TONS of unprotected spent fuel rods (which are more radioactive and deadly than when new fuel) that are at easy access for a trained group terrorist attack.

• The Council on Foreign Relations in its report on this issue has this Question:
  "Could Terrorists Target US Nuclear Power Plants?" The answer? - YES and then quoted the President reminding US citizens in the "State of the Union" address of the specific danger of Nuclear Power plants as terrorist targets.

• Ask yourself this question: IF the government did NOT think that nuclear facilities were in danger of being terrorist targets, then WHY did 14 states with Nuclear Power facilities mandate (this year) to stockpile and hand out free anti-radiation pills AND (again) why would the President of the United States include that information in his speech?

• Eight governors have independently ordered the National Guard to protect nuclear reactors in their states.

• The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued an advisory to the nation’s 103 nuclear power plants that terrorists might try to fly hijacked planes into some of them.

A Nuclear Power Plant is a Lethal Terrorist Target

How lethal or dangerous it the radiation from a Nuclear Power Plant? The best example we have is the most serious Nuclear Disaster that ever happened: a place called Chernobyl in Ukraine. (You can read about the detailed events that led to the explosion here)

In 1986, an explosion ripped through Reactor 4 of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine. The explosion spewed radiation throughout Europe, and spread to parts of the rest of the world. Exposure to massive amounts of radiation immediately killed 32 plant workers and firefighters. Thousands more died later from effects of the accident.

The Ukrainian government now says hundreds of thousands of people suffer from Chernobyl-related illnesses. And that may be just the beginning. Among the world's scientists, there's deep concern about long-term genetic damage to future generations. There are many documents that with the facts about the loss of life and the legacy that Chernobyl has left.

The Chernobyl Disaster was caused by human error and compounded by faulty technical design. This one incident directly affected hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians, especially the children, and reached into the rest of Europe with the help of the wind... 

Is the threat of Nuclear Terrorism real? Was a deliberate attack on a Nuclear facility in the plans of the Al-Queda? Is the heightened security necessary? The answer is a definite YES. Discovery of diagrams of Nuclear Power Facilities were revealed by our armed forces at a raided house in Kabul, Afghanistan.  There have been other ominous warnings: 

"...U.S. officials have known at least since the mid-1990s that terrorists wanted to strike a nuclear power plant." as reported by the Associated Press. 

The conclusion to draw from these warnings is not "IF" but "WHEN". The threat is real. Now the big question: "What can you do about it?"

Here are some things to help you answer that question. First study the maps below and understand where (at least generally) you are from a nuclear reactor. If you are along the Eastern seaboard, then you should follow the next steps carefully.

Maps showing Nuclear Power Plants in each State and Wind Patterns for the United States: