Chapter I. Chernobyl Contamination: An Overview

Abstract

Radioactive contamination from the Chernobyl meltdown spread over 40% of Europe (including Austria, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, Romania, Great Britain, Germany, Italy, France, Greece, Iceland, Slovenia) and wide territories in Asia (including Turkey, Georgia, Armenia, Emirates, China), northern Africa, and North America. Nearly 400 million people resided in territories that were contaminated with radioactivity at a level higher than 4 kBq/m(2) (0.11 Ci/km(2)) from April to July 1986. Nearly 5 million people (including, more than 1 million children) still live with dangerous levels of radioactive contamination in Belarus, Ukraine, and European Russia. Claims that the Chernobyl radioactive fallout adds "only 2%" to the global radioactive background overshadows the fact that many affected territories had previously dangerously high levels of radiation. Even if the current level is low, there was high irradiation in the first days and weeks after the Chernobyl catastrophe. There is no reasonable explanation for the fact that the International Atomic Energy Agency and the World Health Organization (Chernobyl Forum, 2005) have completely neglected the consequences of radioactive contamination in other countries, which received more than 50% of the Chernobyl radionuclides, and addressed concerns only in Belarus, Ukraine, and European Russia.

Absorption of Radionuclides from the Fukushima Nuclear Accident by a Novel Algal Strain

“…At the time, water-soluble radioactive nuclides, such as the radioisotopes of cesium (Cs), iodine (I), and strontium (Sr), contaminated aquatic ecosystems and food products [5]. Despite the relatively short half-life of radioiodine, the incidence of thyroid cancer in children living in radioiodine-contaminated areas increased significantly [3].…”

Vertical Distribution and Estimated Doses from Artificial Radionuclides in Soil Samples around the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant and the Semipalatinsk Nuclear Testing Site

“…Significant releases of radioactive substances from Unit 4 of CNPP during the accident lasted 10 days and changes in the meteorological conditions during this period have resulted in a composite picture of contamination of vast territories [1], [2]. Radioactive contamination from CNPP spread over 40% of Europe and wide territories in Asia, North Africa, and North America [3]. Nearly 400 million people resided in territories that were contaminated with radioactivity at a level higher than 4 kBq/m 2 (0.11 Ci/km 2 ) from April to July 1986 [3].…”

“…Radioactive contamination from CNPP spread over 40% of Europe and wide territories in Asia, North Africa, and North America [3]. Nearly 400 million people resided in territories that were contaminated with radioactivity at a level higher than 4 kBq/m 2 (0.11 Ci/km 2 ) from April to July 1986 [3]. In 2000, the total inventories of the fuel component radionuclides in the upper 30 cm of the soil layer in the 30-km Chernobyl zone in Ukraine were estimated as 0.4–0.5% of the radionuclide amounts in the CNPP Unit 4 at the moment of the accident [2].…”

137 Cesium Exposure and Spirometry Measures in Ukrainian Children Affected by the Chernobyl Nuclear Incident

“…A growing number of reports in the literature suggest measurable effects for both human and animal populations. Recently, a thorough literature review was published on this subject (Yablokov 2009a, 2009b; Yablokov and Nesterenko 2009; Yablokov et al 2009a, 2009b). A prudent approach to this problem should involve rigorous scientific explorations of all available information.…”

“…In addition, forest fires and agricultural activities in the contaminated regions of Ukraine and Belarus also release radionuclides to the atmosphere as aerosols or attached to dust particles, which are then widely transported (Konoplia et al 1992) and are potentially inhaled in adjacent regions. Recent summaries of Belarusian and Ukrainian reporting agencies suggest that ingestion is a significant source of exposure for large segments of these populations (Nesterenko et al 2009a, 2009b; Yablokov and Nesterenko 2009). …”