SCIENCE AND WEAPONS DAILY REVIEW CABLE, <SANITIZED>

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: FOIA Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 06754316
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: April 23, 2025
• Document Release Date: March 25, 2025
• Case Number: F-2016-02406
• Publication Date: July 3, 1987

Approved for Release: 2025/03/24 C06754316
SECRETI/NOFORN
Classified By: Unspecified
Derived From: Unspecified
Declassify On: MR, 20120703
AlitstFrSUBJECT: SCIENCE AND WEAPONS DAILY REVIEW
CABLE,
Identifiers:
Document Number:
Messaging System ID: 87 5346727
Ingestion ID: 26057486
GUIDE: guide://1012/3ms0j0
Dates:
Date Published: 03-Jul-1987 01:01:00
Date Received: 03-Jul-1987 06:46:00
Coverage:
Region: Unspecified
Publisher:
#1
Agency Acronym: CIA
Office Name: CIA
#2
Agency Acronym: CIA
Office Name: NCS
Attachments:
26057486.orig
..+SittIFTUBJECT: SCIENCE AND WEAPONS DAILY REVIEW CABLE,
SW SWDRC 87-4120, 2 JULY 1987
X
USSR: THIRD REACTOR AT CHERNOBYL MAY REMAIN SHUTDOWN F):
THE
CHAIRMAN OF THE SOVIET COMMISSION ON THE CHERNOBYL
ACCIDENT RECENTLY STATED THAT CHERNOBYL REACTOR 3
MAY HAVE TO REMAIN SHUTDOWN BECAUSE OF THE
RADIATION HAZARD. HIS REMARKS. INDICATE THAT THE
RESIDUAL RADIATION AT CHERNOBYL IS MUCH MORE,
SERIOUS AND THE RECOVERY FROM THE ACCIDENT MUCH
MORE DIFFICULT THAN THE SOVIETS HAVE STATED
PUBLICLY:TS-119,,
X
/N F RN 1
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1. USSR: THIRD REACTOR AT CHERNOBYL MAY REMAIN SHUTDOWN (S
NA:
V. A. LEGASOV, (b)(1)
DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF THE KURCHATOV INSTITUTE OF ATOMIC ENERGY (b)(3)
AND HEAD OF THE SOVIET COMMISSION ON THE CHERNOBYL ACCIDENT,
DISCUSSED THE CURRENT SITUATION AT CHERNOBYL DURING A RECENT
MEETING IN MOSCOW. ACCORDING TO LEGASOV, REACTORS 1 AND 2
ARE OPERATING, BUT THE FATE OF REACTOR 3 IS LESS CERTAIN.
ALTHOUGH THE SOVIETS WOULD LIKE TO RESTART THE THIRD REACTOR,
THE RADIATION LEVEL FROM THE ADJACENT REACTOR 4 WOULD RESULT
IN EXCESSIVE EXPOSURE TO PLANT WORKERS. LEGASOV SAID THAT
RADIATION LEVELS ON TOP OF THE "ENTOMBMENT" OVER THE
DESTROYED FOURTH REACTOR ARE SO HIGH THAT WORKERS CAN
APPROACH NO CLOSER THAN 10 METERS. (S NF)
HE ALSO SAID THAT THE SOVIETS ARE FACING A DIFFICULT CHOICE
ON WHETHER TO REMOVE SEVERAL METERS OF TOPSOIL OVER MUCH OF
THE SURROUNDING SEVERAL HUNDRED SQUARE KILOMETERS OF LAND TO
ALLOW RESETTLEMENT OR TO LEAVE THE REGION UNINHABITED. (S
NF)
COMMENT:
LEGASOV'S COMMENTS POINT TO MUCH MORE SERIOUS RESIDUAL
RADIATION AT THE CHERNOBYL PLANT THAN THE SOVIETS HAVE
PREVIOUSLY INDICATED. CLEARLY, THEY ARE EXPERIENCING MUCH
GREATER DIFFICULTY IN RECOVERING FROM THE ACCIDENT THAN THEIR
GLIB PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENTS INDICATE. (S NF)
THE SOVIETS' STATEMENTS UP TO THIS TIME HAVE AFFIRMED THEIR
INTENTION TO RESTART THE THIRD REACTOR, BUT THE TIME FRAME
FOR RESTART RECENTLY HAS BECOME MORE VAGUE. ABANDONING THE
THIRD REACTOR WOULD BE CONSISTENT WITH THE RECENT DECISION
NOT TO COMPLETE THE UNFINISHED FIFTH AND SIXTH REACTORS AT
CHERNOBYL BECAUSE OF RADIATION HAZARDS. (S NF)
THE SOVIETS ARE FINDING THAT THE PROBLEMS INVOLVED IN
RETURNING THE CHERNOBYL PLANT TO A HABITABLE WORKPLACE
REQUIRE A MUCH GREATER EFFORT THAN THEIR INITIAL EMERGENCY
CLEANUP. LEGASOV'S DESCRIPTION OF THE RADIATION SITUATION
ABOVE THE ENTOMBMENT OF THE FOURTH REACTOR INDICATES A VERY
HIGH RADIATION FIELD. THIS RADIATION LEVEL CONTRASTS SHARPLY
WITH THE ORIGINAL SOVIET GOAL OF ABOUT 5 MILLI-ROENTGENS PER
HOUR AT THAT LOCATION ANNOUNCED AT THE AUGUST 1986 CONFERENCE
OF THE INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY ON THE CHERNOBYL
ACCIDENT. (S NF)
ALSO, THE SOVIETS RECENTLY HAVE BEEN MUCH LESS OPTIMISTIC
THAN A FEW MONTHS AGO ABOUT THE PROSPECTS FOR FURTHER
RESETTLEMENT OF THE AREA AROUND CHERNOBYL. IF, AS LEGASOV'S
STATEMENT IMPLIES, RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS HAVE PENETRATED THE
SOIL TO A DEPTH OF SEVERAL METERS, THEN REMOVAL OF SOIL OVER
SEVERAL HUNDRED SQUARE KILOMETERS IS NOT A FEASIBLE OPTION
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AND SIGNIFICANT RESETTLEMENT PROBABLY WILL NOT BE ATTEMPTED.
(S NF)
THE PERMANENT LOSS OF TWO-THIRDS OF THE PLANNED GENERATING
CAPACITY OF THE CHERNOBYL ATOMIC POWER STATION AND SOME OF
THE SURROUNDING LAND WILL INCREASE THE COST OF THE ACCIDENT
SIGNIFICANTLY. (S NF)
SECRET NOFORN
DECL OADR DRV MULTIPLE BY
END OF MESSAGE SECRET
(b)(1)
(b)(3)
Collection: CC
Creator:
#1
Agency Acronym: CIA
Office Name: CIA
#2
Agency Acronym: CIA
Office Name: NCS
Description: (S//NF) None
Language: eng
Precedence: R
Source:
Attributions: CIA
Subject: --
SECRET//NOFORN 3
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