RADIOACTIVE CONTAMINATION concerns at N-sites in Iran

Undesirable radioactive material that is either airborne or deposited in or on the surface of structures, objects, soil, water, or living organisms in a concentration that may harm people, equipment, or the environment is called contamination. The IAEA recently flagged contamination at the bombed out Iranian nuclear facility at Natanz

- T K VINEETH @Kochi

N June 9, four days before Israel struck Iran's nuclear facilities, the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) met at its headquarters in Vienna. The agenda included verification and monitoring the nuclear safeguards in Iran, Syria, Ukraine and North Korea. However, Iran dominated the deliberations as Director-General Rafael Mariano Grossi raised serious concerns about Tehran's caginess about its growing stockpile of enriched uranium, estimated at over 400 kg. There were also unresolved questions about Tehran's nuclear programme, as Iran failed to explain the presence of man-made uranium particles at three undeclared sites — Varamin, Marivan and Turquzabad.

Iran sought to sanitise these three locations prior to IAEA's verification. "Unless and until Iran assists the agency in resolving the outstanding safeguards issues, the Agency will not be in a position to provide assurance that Iran's nuclear programme is exclusively peaceful," Grossi told the board. Iran's refusal to disclose full information flouted provisions of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Safeguards Agreement. Taking into consideration the secretary-general's revelations and after further deliberations, the UN nuclear watchdog on June 12 formally concluded that Iran was in breach of its nuclear obligations. Iran promptly denied the allegations. It also announced a new enrichment facility would go live soon, which was later identified as Isfahan.