The new HBO Chernobyl series has me pondering about this. For instance, after the unfortunate indicident of the reactor core exploding, radioactive graphite was seen exposed. Consequently, radioactive particles were emitted at an extremely dangerous level.
So, how to energy companies initially obtain the radioactive material? Where do they transport the material from? How do they safely transport the material?
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There are highly regulated facilities that produce the fuel rods. Uranium can be mined in some places. That has to be enriched to be usable as fuel for the usual reactor designs. As long as the reactor wasn’t started yet the fuel is not that radioactive. That happens when you start the chain reaction and you get fission products and other material catches neutrons and is activated.
Transporting it takes a specialized containers. If it’s already very radioactive you use https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dry_cask_storage to sore and transport the material.
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