Baghdad The Iraqi Commission for the Control of Radioactive Materials announced that the National Committee for Nuclear Reactors is studying 20 sites for establishing nuclear reactors in Iraq.

The head of the commission, Kamal Latif, said that “20 primary sites have been identified so far, and then internationally approved scientific projection methods will be used to reduce them to 5 sites, after which only two of them are determined, one of which is original and the other is an alternative,” indicating that “the selection process has been completed.” Pointing out that “the selection process was carried out in two accurate scientific ways through differential and weighting equations, the first is the” Kenny “method, the second is the” SITE “method or the singular value, and by using the ArcGIS system, confirming that the report on choosing the site will be completed and sent to the Prime Minister’s Office.

He added, in a press release, that “the first stage includes technical objectives, selection requirements, evaluation and consideration of issues of population distribution, which is preferred to be the nearest population settlement 2.5 kilometers from the site, and that the number of residents in that area does not exceed 500 persons per square kilometer.”

He explained, “The earth must be free of tectonic plates and no earthquake has been recorded more than 2 Richter during the past 50 years, and it must also be flat land and stable soil that is not eroded with torrents and there is no height, mountain, or large plateau or valley for a distance of 20 kilometers away from the site, because the elevations with the rain may cause massive torrents to wash out on the site. It is also preferable that the height of the site not be more than 350 meters above sea level for calculations of boiling and evaporation of the reactor water.”

He went on to say, “It is preferable in the area of construction of the reactor that the depth of the groundwater is not less than 30 meters and that it be constant and not variable seasonally and annually. There is clear information about the level of groundwater, which must be checked periodically as well, and it is preferable that the ecosystems, plants and animals and their habitats be as little as possible.” The terrestrial nature is semi-desert, and there must be a nearby water source, and there is another factor that concerns Iraq alone, which is the status and extension of the national electrical network.

Source: National Iraqi News Agency