I. Introduction

Copyright � 2004 by The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, the US government. URL: http://insp.pnl.gov/?library/caption. Used with Permission.

The Earth can remember the main events which have taken place in its depths and on its surface: ice ages, volcanic eruptions, meteorite falls, floods, deluges... Some of these events are usually called disasters if they destroy the stable lifestyle of humans or the animal kingdom, and lead to tragedies over vast areas. The consequences of the Chernobyl nuclear power station explosion on April 26, 1986, are related to such events. Although the exact amount of radiation released is unknown, "an estimated 260 million curies of radiation were released. This is approximately 200 times more radiation than was released by the bomb dropped on Hiroshima" (Sywenkyj, 2002, para. 1). Seventy percent of this radiation fell on Belarus. Now, 20% of its forests and 6000 square kilometers of its agricultural land are still contaminated. About 109,000 people have been relocated, but many still live in highly contaminated areas.
Many people have studied this accident, and many, many DIFFERENT facts and conclusions have been made, and the entire truth is very difficult to obtain. Only one fact is true to everyone: this was a terrible tragedy and it has affected everyone in Belarus. However, in this paper, I would like to look over for summarising facts and some details concerning the Chernobyl catastrophy, to give the determination of nuclear matter and particular facts about contaminated land, crops, water, and diseases. Most of this web page will be devoted to information of the Chernobyl catastrophy in Belarus.

II. What is "Nuclear Matter"?

Some facts about nuclear matter can be very interesting for people who are learning about nuclear disasters. All matter is composed of atoms, but not all atoms are alike. Their primary difference is in the number of protons and neutrons that comprise each nucleus. Each atom is held together by what physicists call �the strong force� � the strongest force in nature � a force which until recently made it impossible for man to split atoms apart. According to Gale and Hauser (1988, p. 6), in 1905, Albert Einstein proved theoretically that inert mass contained a lot of latent energy which could, if fundamental building blocks were broken apart, be released. In 1938, physicists showed Einstein�s theory in practice. The new time of atomic energy began On July 16, 1945, the first atomic bomb was tested in the New Mexico desert at Alamogordo. In August 1945, the United States bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Gale and Hauser (1988, p. 20) mention the following about the effects of radiation:

"The effects of radiation on humans are best-known from studies of the victims of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and a handful of laboratory accidents. Many residents who appeared unharmed immediately after the last soon suffered acute radiation sickness and a general breakdown of bodily functions leading to death. Other appeared in good health for years before developing generic mutation and cancer. Based on that studies and other that followed, scientists agree that radiation kills, and that exposure to any level of radiation poses certain dangers�.

III. People

The incident which happened on April 26, 1986, at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Station affected the fate of millions of people who live on vast territories, and the consequences of this fight may prove fatal for the over 10 million Belarussian people. Some scientists assess the result of the Chernobyl explosion equivalent to 150 Hiroshima's.
The Website, Belarusembassy.cz (2002, para. 2), states the following facts:

"Approximately 70 radioactive substances fell down on the territory of Belarus. 23 percent of the territory of the country with population of over 2 million people were contaminated by radio-nuclides with density of 1 Ci/km2 of caesium-137 (37 kBq/m2) and higher. Practically all population of the Republic affected to some extent from the effect of radioactive iodine.�

"After the disaster the wind blew constantly in the direction of my country, the Chernobyl power station being located just 4 miles from the Belarus-Ukraine border. The Moscow newspapers wrote, after all that "fortunately the wind didn't blow in the direction of Kiev," which could otherwise be swept from the Earth's face. Yes, unfortunately it blew in the other direction where there also lived hundreds of thousands of people. The most contaminated area of Belarus is in the Homiel' region with a population of about 1.5 million people. Another huge pollution area is the Magilyow region which is rather far from Chernobyl. How could it happen that in some areas of the Magilyow region the radioactivity was the same as in the nucleus of the disaster 200 kilometers away? There's still no exact answer, but an investigation conducted by the Belarussian novelist and public figure Ales Adamowich showed that the huge radioactive cloud moving from Chernobyl to Moscow was shot at by Soviet chemical troops and then the cloud came down on Belarusian territory. Thus, one-fourth of the population of Belarus turned out to be living in the contaminated territories."

IV. Diseases

One of the most delayed effects of radiation is the induction of cancer. Boever (2003, para. 2) says that the following direct injury of the health of the Belarussian people caused by the catastrophy of Chernobyl can be determined:

"1. Cancer of thyroid gland. This sickness occurs rarely among children, but until 31.12.1999 628 children fell ill because of it, that are 614 more than expected. This cancer distinguishes by an aggressive kind of growing and an early building of metastasis. Children took high thyroid doses be consumption of milk contaminated with radioactive iodine. There is no doubt that the Chernobyl accident is responsible for significant increase in the incidence of the thyroid cancer by children of Belarus. This is also valid for the increase in the incidence in thyroid cancers by of adolescents ( at the age of 15-18 years) and adults.
2. Leukemia. In Belarus normally 100 children and 800 adults are falling ill with leukemia every year. Estimations show that 1987-1998 about 70 children and 460 adults felt ill in leukemia because of Chernobyl accident. Additionally there are about 430 cases of other malignant neoplasms of blood-forming tissues. Official statistics of department of radiation protection deny these facts.
3. Other malignant neoplasms. The analysis of official data on the incidences in cancers shows that about 25,000 additional cases occurred in Belarus in 1987-199 as a result of the Chernobyl catastrophe. The number of people that died in Belarus from radiation cancers and leukemia up to the end of 1999 can be assessed approximately as 10,000."

V. Land, Crops, and Water

The affected area consists of vast forests and prime agricultural land. Now, Belarussian land is extremely dangerous to human life. According to Yaroshinskaya (1995, p. 77), Belarus has 7,000 square kilometers of radioactive land. A fifth of all is extremely dangerous. Just the region of Mogilev was the most tragically affected: it has 1,430 square kilometers of land contaminated by radio nuclides.
Yaroshinskaya (1995, p. 88), a courageous journalist concerning an interpretation facts of the Chernobyl catastrophy, also states that �the global catastrophe not only wiped out fertile farmland, but also marvelous forests. Millions of hectares were contaminated.� The forests and farmland together constituted the livelihood of the people. They are now effectively barren. As well as cultivated crops, wild food sources are also contaminated: berries, mushrooms, fish, and game. They are all a threat to life. As radio-nuclides slowly penetrate the soil they filter down into the water-table and poison the rivers and lakes. The threat of radioactive pollution looms over the rivers, the Dnieper River, and its tributary the Pripyat, which supply water for 30 million people. Information from the Website, Chernobyl.info (2002, para. 4) explains the following:

"Potential threat to the groundwater in both countries is the strontium released as a result of the accident, since it has penetrated deeper layers of soil more quickly than caesium. According to official government measurements, limits are not being exceeded in the groundwater in Belarus, but it is acknowledged that the average concentration of radio nuclides in the groundwater has risen 10- to 100-fold compared to pre-accident values."

"Mutations did occur in plants and animals after the plant explosion. Leaves changed shape and some animals were born with physical deformities. Despite the increased radiation levels, rare species are now returning in large numbers to the area. These animals include beavers, moose, wolves and wild boar, plus species of birds."

VI. Current Ongoing Research

Copyright � 2004 by EFN - Association of Environmentalists For Nuclear Energy. URL: http://www.ecolo.org/photos/npp/. Used with Permission.

According to a recent survey of 32 people (Gardner, 2004), 75% of respondents have heard why the city of Chernobyl is famous. Sixty-nine percent people know that Chernobyl is famous for a nuclear power plant explosion . This survey shows that only 28% people know Chernobyl is located in the former USSR, in the Ukraine, south of Belarus. Fifty-three percent people respond that the disaster happened in 1986. It appears that respondents may not know news about the country of Belarus and countries of the Former Soviet Union. Therefore, the results of recent survey seem to indicate that people know about the disaster in general. However, one could say that the more people are aware of nuclear plants, the more they understand a tragedy and its consequences. Having such knowledge as individuals can be and will be important in influencing local and national governments in the planning and construction of future nuclear facilities. A more detailed survey might provide a better picture of this.

In a recent interview (Davis, 2004), a teacher at the English Language Institute at the University of Utah explains why people began to study the reasons of the disaster and its impact on that local region. Click HERE to listen to the interview (recorded in mp3 audio-195kBs). From this interview, we can conclude that everyone can begin to take precautions for the future understanding of the long term-effect of radiation on human and animal life. The consequences of this tragedy can give ideas to find new alternative sources of energy.

VII. Conclusion

Although this page provides just information, everybody can see from the points outlined in this paper the consequences of the Chernobyl Catastrophe, this terrible tragedy, and how it has affected everyone in Belarus. Belarus has millions of victims. Past and current research shows that the affects and the consequences of Chernobyl catastrophy are serious, and human knowledge will help and influence to national government's decision to construct of nuclear plants. Despite the fact that Belarus and Ukraine have declared the Chernobyl explosion as a national catastrophe and have asked for help from the United Nations, people will find the best solution of this problem. Future research factors should give additional information about consequences of the Chernobyl catastrophy.

Books

Gale, R. P., & Hauser,T. (1988). Final warning: The legacy of Chernobyl. New York: A Warner Communications Company.

Yaroshinskaya, A. (1995). Chernobyl: The forbidden truth. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.

Web Pages

Belarusembassy.cz (2002). Chernobyl catastrophy, general overview. Retrieved November 16, 2004, from World Wide Web: http://www.belarusembassy.cz/en/belarus/chernobyl/index.shtm.

Boever, K. (2003) . Tschernobyl-Initiative. Retrieved November 18, 2004, from World Wide Web: http://tschernobyl-initiative.welcomes-you.com/tpress1_e.htm.

Chernobyl.info (2002). Chernobyl-Tschernobyl-Information. Retrieved December 1, 2004, from World Wide Web: http://www.chernobyl.info/index.php?userhash=813156&navID=18&lID=2.

Iaea.or.at (2003). Chernobyl plus 15. Retrieved November 29, 2004, from World Wide Web: http://www.iaea.or.at/NewsCenter/Features/Chernobyl-15/cherno-faq.shtml.

Sywenkyj, J. (2002). Born from pain: The children of Chornobyl by Joseph Sywenkyj. Retrieved November 15, 2004, from World Wide Web: http://www.digitaljournalist.org/issue0203/js_chornobyl.htm.

Zelenka, D. (1994). The Chernobyl disaster as a national catastrophe for Belarus. Retrieved November 27, 2004, from World Wide Web: http://www.belarusguide.com/chernobyl1/cyauh.html.

Online Survey

Davis, R. S. (2004). Personal interview. Salt Lake City, Utah.

Gardner, M. L. (2004). Chernobyl catastrophy. Retrieved November 30, 2004, from World Wide Web: http://www.createsurvey.com/c/21773-bUDzwG/.

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