Chernobyl aftermath wildlife1/15/2024 Relocation proved a "deeply traumatic experience" for some 350,000 people moved out of the affected areas. Poverty, "lifestyle" diseases now rampant in the former Soviet Union, and mental health problems pose a far greater threat to local communities than does radiation exposure. As a consequence, no evidence or likelihood of decreased fertility among the affected population has been found, nor has there been any evidence of increases in congenital malformations that can be attributed to radiation exposure. Most emergency workers and people living in contaminated areas received relatively low whole body radiation doses, comparable to natural background levels. About 4,000 cases of thyroid cancer, mainly in children and adolescents at the time of the accident, have resulted from the accident's contamination and at least nine children died of thyroid cancer however, the survival rate among such cancer victims, judging from experience in Belarus, has been almost 99 per cent. The existing "zoning" definitions need to be revisited and relaxed in light of the new findings. An estimated 5 million people currently live in areas of Belarus, Russia and Ukraine that are contaminated with radionuclides due to the accident about 100,000 of them live in areas classified in the past by government authorities as areas of "strict control". Approximately 1,000 onsite reactor staff and emergency workers were heavily exposed to high-level radiation on the first day of the accident among the more than 200,000 (as registered by 1996 in the national registries of Belarus, Russia and Ukraine) emergency and recovery operation workers exposed during the period from 1986 to 1987, an estimated 2,200 radiation-caused deaths can be expected during their lifetime. Members of the Forum, including representatives of the three Governments, will meet on 6 and 7 September in Vienna at an unprecedented gathering of the world's experts on Chernobyl, radiation effects and protection, to consider these findings and recommendations.ĭozens of important findings are included in the massive report: The Forum's report aims to help the affected countries understand the true scale of the accident consequences and also suggest ways the Governments of Belarus, Ukraine and Russia might address major economic and social problems stemming from the accident. By and large, however, we have not found profound negative health impacts to the rest of the population in surrounding areas, nor have we found widespread contamination that would continue to pose a substantial threat to human health, with a few exceptional, restricted areas." Bennett continued: "This was a very serious accident with major health consequences, especially for thousands of workers exposed in the early days who received very high radiation doses, and for the thousands more stricken with thyroid cancer. "The Governments of the three most-affected countries have realized that they need to find a clear way forward, and that progress must be based on a sound consensus about environmental, health and economic consequences and some good advice and support from the international community."ĭr. Burton Bennett, Chairman of the Chernobyl Forum and an authority on radiation effects. "This compilation of the latest research can help to settle the outstanding questions about how much death, disease and economic fallout really resulted from the Chernobyl accident", explains Dr. The Forum is made up of eight UN specialized agencies, including the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation, and the World Bank, as well as the Governments of Belarus, Russian Federation and Ukraine. The digest, based on a three-volume, 600-page report and incorporating the work of hundreds of scientists, economists and health experts, assesses the 20-year impact of the largest nuclear accident in history. The new numbers are presented in a landmark digest report, "Chernobyl's Legacy: Health, Environmental and Socio-Economic Impacts", just released by the Chernobyl Forum. WASHINGTON, D.C., 5 September (IAEA/WHO/UNDP) - A total of up to 4,000 people could eventually die of radiation exposure from the Chernobyl nuclear power plant (NPP) accident nearly 20 years ago, an international team of more than 100 scientists has concluded.Īs of mid-2005, however, fewer than 50 deaths had been directly attributed to radiation from the disaster, almost all being highly exposed rescue workers, many who died within months of the accident but others who died as late as 2004. Chernobyl: The True Scale of the AccidentĢ0 Years Later, UN Report Provides Definitive Answers, Ways to Repair Lives
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