A comparative study for the atmospheric dispersion characteristics of two proposed sites for nuclear power plant in Tunisia

Abstract

Countries around the world are considering the adoption of nuclear power due to its major
economic advantage with a low greenhouse gases emission, which is vital for climate change
mitigation. So, Tunisia is considering adding nuclear energy to its energy sources in order to
address its energy crisis. In Tunisia, two sites are preselected for Nuclear Power Plant (NPP)
implantation: Marsa-Dhouiba site in the far north of the country (N3716, E0929) and Skhira site
in the South-Est (N3415, E1003). According to standard practices and regulatory requirements,
the main objective in site evaluation for NPPs in terms of nuclear safety is to protect the public
and the environment from the radiological consequences of radioactive releases due to normal
operation and accidents. The aim of this work is to study the impact of routine atmospheric
radioactive discharges from the proposed NPPs for each site. To achieve this goal, a
meteorological description of each site is developed, including descriptions of the basic
meteorological parameters, such as wind speed and direction, air temperature, precipitation,
humidity and atmospheric stability parameters. The hourly meteorological conditions of each
site for one complete year is analyzed to show the points of convergence and points of variation
between the characteristics of the two sites based on atmospheric dispersion. The monthly wind
roses of each site are also evaluated. The impact of routine discharge is estimated by applying
the PC-CREAM 98 computer code, where the concentration of radionuclide discharge in the air
in Bq/m3, the deposition rate in Bq/m2s and the cloud gamma dose Nuclear power makes it
possible to fight against global warming because it produces much less CO2 than oil, natural
gas and coal Sv/y have been predicted for each site.

Keywords: Pc-Cream, Normal Operation, Meteorological Description, Impact Assessment, Nuclear Power Plants.

R. Souissi, F Tawfik, A. Ramadan, N.
Reguiguia. A Comparative Study For The
Atmospheric Dispersion Characteristics Of
Two Proposed Sites For Nuclear Power
Plant In Tunisia. Research & Reviews:
Journal of Ecology. 2019; 8(2): 1–13p.