PURPOSES : Recently, interest in radioactive accidents has increased due to domestic and international nuclear power plant accidents. In particular, local residents' concerns are increasing due to safety issues such as radioactive leaks at the Hanbit Nuclear Power Plant in South Korea. As Gwangju Metropolitan City is not included in the emergency planning area set by the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission, there are significant limitations to establishing disaster prevention measures for nuclear power plant accidents. Considering the Fukushima and Hanbit nuclear power plant accidents, the improvement of Gwangju Metropolitan City's radioactive leak accident response manual is urgently required. This study aimed to establish disaster prevention measures to respond to nuclear power plant accidents in Gwangju Metropolitan City in the event of a Hanbit Nuclear Power Plant accident and to improve resident protection measures by estimating the arrival time of radioactive materials and radiation dosage through a nuclear power plant accident simulation. Additionally, we aimed to supplement the on-site action manual for radioactive leaks at the Hanbit Nuclear Power Plant. METHODS : This study focused on establishing disaster prevention measures centered on Gwangju Metropolitan City in the event of a major accident such as a radioactive leak at the Hanbit Nuclear Power Plant. Simulations were conducted assuming a major accident such as a radioactive leak, measures to improve resident protection were established by calculating the arrival time of radioactive materials and radiation dosage in the Gwangju area in the event of a nuclear power plant accident, and on-site response action manuals were supplemented in response to a radioactive leak. RESULTS : This study considered the concerns of local residents due to the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident and the Hanbit nuclear power plant failure, conducted a simulation to derive the impact on Gwangju Metropolitan City, and examined the effectiveness of an on-site response manual for radioactive leaks to derive improvement measures. CONCLUSIONS : In the event of an accident at the Hanbit Nuclear Power Plant in Gwangju Metropolitan City, insufficient portions of the on-site response action manual should be supplemented, and close cooperation with local governments within the emergency planning area should be ensured to respond to radioactive disasters. Therefore, based on the revised on-site response action manual for radioactive leaks, close cooperation and a clear division of roles among local governments will enable effective resident protection measures to be implemented in the event of a radioactive disaster.

The chemical leak accidents cause a large number of casualties in the short term and secondary environmental pollution in the long term. In the case of the hydrogen fluoride (HF) leak accident in Gumi City, Gyeongsangbuk-do, Korea, the fluoride ion concentration in crops located near the HF leak accident area was detected to be in the range of 99 ~ 13,029 mg/kg and in woody stems in the range of N.D. ~ 6,789 mg/kg. We also identified the correlation relationship between the range and the contamination degree. The order of degree of fluoride contamination of crops was leaf > stem epidermis > inside the stem. However, in another case of accidental HF leak in Hwasung City, Gyeonggi-do, Korea, because the concentration of fluoride ion in the crops was detected in the range of N.D. ~ 45 mg/kg, it is difficult to make a decision about whether HF affects the crops or not. In this study, with the suggestion of the identification of leak accident impacts by checking the contamination characteristics and condition of HF in terms of diffusion distance from the accident point, we prevent damage from secondary environmental pollution and prepare for similar accidents in the future.