Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Cooling Pond to be Decommissioned

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is currently conducting a three-day seminar in Kyiv, Ukraine to discuss problems related to the decommissioning of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant's cooling pond.

The seminar, which was organized at the request of Chernobyl Plant management, includes experts from the United States, France and IAEA with expertise in the treatment of radioactively contaminated ecosystems. A date for decommissioning the cooling pond has yet to be announced.

The Chernobyl cooling pond is an artificial body of water that was created to cool the heat exchangers of four nuclear reactor units at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. As a result of the Chernobyl accident, the cooling pond was exposed to extremely high levels of contamination. The reservoir area has an approximate volume of 8.5 square miles, or 5,297,199,985 cubic feet.

The cooling pond is also home to a large number of huge catfish. It is not known what will eventually be done with the catfish when the reservoir is fully decommissioned.