Russia The Dirtiness of the Cold War : Russia ’ s Nuclear Waste in the Arctic

Introduction During the Cold War, the United States and the former Soviet Union amassed extensive nuclear arsenals in a race of intimidation. Rapid manufacture of nuclear weapons produced large amounts of radioactive waste, and both sides sought the easiest means for waste removal. Russia generally disposed of its nuclear waste by a convenient and expeditious method: dumping it into the Arctic Ocean. The Arctic Ocean is one of the world’s most heavily fished seas, and it is a particularly fragile ecosystem. Countries in the region were rightfully outraged when the practice was discovered. The present situation poses a great risk to the environment. The amount of waste awaiting disposal in Russia is thousands of times greater than the amount already deposited in the ocean, and Russia currently lacks both the funds and the facilities to dispose of the waste. The international political structure that evolved as the world was addressing nuclear waste dumped in the Arctic is insufficient to solve Russia’s current problem. To improve the system, the nations involved must move beyond their immediate national interests to a practice of greater openness. This article will describe the evolution of current perspectives on Russia’s nuclear waste and consider how the world might improve its approach to the issue. The first section will describe the discovery of Russian practices of nuclear waste dumping, and the second will outline relevant international agreements in place at that time. A description of the international response to Russia’s nuclear waste disposal problem will follow in the third section, and the final section will suggest potential improvements.