My thanks to the Organising Committee for the Atomic Bomb Exhibitions for this important exhibition, which highlights the impact of nuclear weapons and associated radiation on human health and the environment.
The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki stand as a reminder of the horror that nuclear weapons unleash on people, other species and the environment. And they stand as a warning to nuclear powers to never again unleash the power of the atom in acts of violence.
Over 200,000 people died in these cities until 1945. No creature survived within a half kilometre radius of the blast site. Those who survived had no homes, jobs or lives to return to. The radiation caused many cases of cancer.
In October 2022, I visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum and was deeply impacted by the words of the Hibakushas, those affected by the blasts. I witnessed their powerful determination to teach us to not visit such horrors upon others. Because of their brave decision to share their wounds, mental and physical, we can pass the baton on to the next generation. Those survivors and their descendants are determined to work for peace.
Now, more than ever, the Hibakushas’ message must reach the ears of the world. The number of nuclear warheads has risen by over 300 to 9,583 during the last six years. And nations in possession of a significant nuclear arsenal are currently involved in conflicts, raising the risk of these weapons being used.
The use of just one warhead would be a disaster. The use of a few hundred would cause global devastation. Billions would die from the blasts and fallout. A lasting global famine would claim many more lives. The ozone layer would be ravaged.
And it is not just the threat of nuclear war that we must confront. The waste of dozens of nuclear tests is buried beneath an ageing concrete dome in the Marshall Islands. A dome that is also facing stress from rising sea-levels. If that dome cracks or crumbles, radioactive waste will be released into the environment, with appalling consequences.
So, the world must deliver what the Hibakushas have campaigned so long for. The UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons should be the framework to create a world without nuclear weapons.
We must also continue to study the impacts of ionizing radiation on the environment and human health. For example, we do not know the full scale of trans-generational effects or low-dosage exposure. This is why UNEP cooperates with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and World Health Organization (WHO) on the UN Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR).
There is a space for nuclear technologies. Technologies using isotopes and selective irradiation are being used to produce hardier crop varieties that will thrive in a changing climate. To determine optimal placement and timing of fertilizers, which decreases pollution of soil and water. To monitor marine and coastal pollution and mitigate its effect on people.
But there is no place for the use of atomic weapons. The world must work honour the message of the hibakushas and ensure that no community or nation ever endures what they have endured. I hope that this exhibition can help to bring this message home.
