THE CAMBRIDGE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL, BANGALORE
Grade 5
SOCIAL STUDIES
Subject Enrichment Activity Term 1
Subject Enrichment Activities (SEA) enhance students' learning through interactive, hands-on
experiences that complement classroom education. These activities foster deeper
understanding, critical thinking, and engagement by applying theoretical knowledge to
practical scenarios.
Please follow the below instruction to complete the comparative study:
1. The Pdf contains details about two disaster – Chernobyl and Fukushima.
2. Read both the case study.
3. Draw the table given in the Pdf on the blank side of your SST notebook .
4. Answer the questions mentioned in the table. Write the questions as well.
5. The submission date is on 22.08.2024
6. Please note that both the case study was discussed in the class on August 3rd 2024.
7. Questions will be asked in class during class hours based on the case study.
8. Please get in touch well in advance in case of any query, as timely submission is
mandatory.
THE CAMBRIDGE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL, BANGALORE
Grade 5
SOCIAL STUDIES
Chernobyl case study
Nuclear accidents - an already classic example of such accident is the nuclear explosion at a
former Soviet nuclear power plant from Chernobyl that occurred in the mid 1986. Its effects
are still seen today.
The Chernobyl disaster was the worst nuclear power plant accident in history in terms of cost
and casualties, and is one of only two classified as a level 7 event (the maximum
classification) on the International Nuclear Event Scale (the other being the Fukushima
Daiichi nuclear disaster in 2011). The battle to contain the contamination and avert a greater
catastrophe ultimately involved over 500,000 workers and cost an estimated 18 billion $USD.
During the accident itself, 31 people died, and long-term effects such as cancers and
deformities are still being accounted for.
Causes: The Chernobyl nuclear accident was caused by an unfortunate cocktail of human
error and flawed reactor design. It was the worst nuclear disaster in history, releasing more
than 400 times as much radioactive material as the Hiroshima atomic bomb (6 August 1945).
Fukushima Daiichi Case
When a 9.1 magnitude earthquake caused a tsunami in 2011, it overwhelmed the existing
safety features of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant and caused the worst nuclear
power plant disaster since Chernobyl.
Although the plant did survive the initial earthquake, the resulting tsunami was more than
twice as powerful as the plant was designed to tolerate. This event caused the plant’s
seawater pumps — designed to keep the reactors cool during the shutdown — to fail.
This led to the plant’s three reactors leaking radioactive material and spillovers of the
plant’s contaminated wastewater — all escaping into the Pacific Ocean.
The nuclear plant was completely shut down, but massive amounts of radioactive waste still
spilled into the environment. It is estimated that it will take four decades to completely
decommission the power plant. Nobody died in this disaster as a direct effect.
Causes: The devastating quake and tsunami triggered the disaster. Nuclear fuel rods
overheated and emergency cooling generators lost power when seawater flooded the
buildings. This led to explosions at reactor containment buildings and leaks of nuclear
material. All of the emergency response systems failed.
Read the case study and draw the below table on the ruled side of your social
studies notebook and answer the questions:
Questions Chernobyl Fukushima
Where are these Nuclear
plant located?
Which year did the
disaster occur?
What was the reason for
the disaster?
How many people lost
their life in this disaster?
What damage does
Radioactive pollution
cause to humans?
Are these worse than the
Hiroshima blast?
Is this place still
radioactive?
