Runit Dome Cracking: 120,000 Tonnes of Nuclear Waste Threatens Marshall Islands

• The Runit Dome in the Marshall Islands, built in the 1970s to seal nuclear waste, is cracking after nearly 50 years.
• Beneath the dome lies over 120,000 tonnes of radioactive debris, including plutonium, never intended as a permanent solution.
• Scientists, government agencies, and the United States Department of Energy are monitoring the aging structure and assessing risks.
• Cracks mean the dome is not fully sealed, allowing seawater and groundwater to move through, raising fears of gradual leakage.
• Rising sea levels and storms exacerbate pressure, increasing the risk of radioactive materials slowly leaking into the ocean lagoon.