The US says the structural integrity of the Marshall Islands’ Runit Dome, described as a 115-metre-wide concrete “coffin”, is at risk Government Accountability Office (GAO). The dome was built over an unlined crater from a 1958 nuclear explosion that contained more than 120,000 tons of radioactive debris, much of it composed of plutonium-239-contaminated soil. Rising sea levels and increased storm intensity in the Central Pacific have caused the 18-inch-thick concrete dome cover to be damaged by forces (e.g., high and low tides) that were not anticipated when the dome was built and were never designed with its permanent storage in mind. The porous nature of the coral matrix in which the crater is located allows radioactive waste to “float” up and down with the tides and allows seawater to penetrate the debris. The continued leakage of seawater from the deteriorating concrete cladding, coupled with large cracks visible on the surface, created an environmental disaster that was a “ticking time bomb” during the Cold War.
Runet Dome’s time bomb: Cracks and missing base allow radioactive water to flow through
One of the dangers of the Runit Dome is not only the exterior cracking, but also the lack of a base lining inside the dome. As mentioned in GAO reportWhen the U.S. Defense Nuclear Agency (DNA), with support from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, built the dome in the late 1970s, it used a “cactus” explosion crater for radioactive soil disposal and did not use a concrete foundation to reduce costs. As a result, radioactive waste is in constant contact with groundwater and rises and falls in response to ocean tides. This resulted in what is commonly known as the “pump,” or daily discharge of radioactive isotopes into the lagoon surrounding Runet Dome.
How rising sea levels could damage Runet Dome
According to the Office for National Statistics, Runet Island is only 25 feet above sea level. U.S. Department of Energy 2024 Climate Report. Currently, rising sea levels are pushing radioactive groundwater into porous areas. This creates greater internal pressure and “foundation” cracks in the surface of the structure. These cracks allow rainwater to enter the building, while carrying plutonium-239 underground and into the water table surrounding the building through existing channels in the area. The report states that a large typhoon surge could cause internal contents to be washed into the Eniwetak Lagoon, as sediment and small particles would be washed into the lagoon through channels.
Is the Roonet Dome about to collapse?
Today, the rupture of Runet Dome is a sight of structural destruction and a template for a decaying nuclear history. this Government Accountability Office (GAO) and Department of Energy (DOE) The report confirms that the “interim” 50-year design has reached its design life. Without international action to stabilize unlined craters, rising Pacific tides will continue to “pump” plutonium into the environment. Protecting the Marshall Islands from catastrophic washouts is now a matter of global environmental justice or one that requires immediate climate action.
