Wildlife Take Refuge in Chernobyl's Wasteland

Back to Map Page June, 2000 Chernobyl, Ukraine   Wildlife are returning to areas abandoned by humans around Chernobyl.   The site of the world's worst nuclear accident has become one of Europe's prime wildlife habitats, according to a report in the London Independent. In 1986, the nuclear power plant at Chernobyl in the Ukraine exploded and burned, releasing clouds of radioactive gases and particles that spread across Europe, contaminating soil, water, and farms as far away as Norway. Contaminated livestock and crops had to be destroyed, and 135,000 people were evacuated from the most intensely contaminated areas near the plant. Now, just 14 years later, wildlife ecologists have found some of Europe's most endangered species living in the Chernobyl area, including cranes, eagles, wild boar, roe deer, wolves, badgers, otters, and lynx. The scientists have found little evidence of disease or reproductive failure in the animals observed. The absence of humans and human-associated species (for example, rats, sparrows, and pigeons) has probably allowed wildlife to return and establish populations in the Chernobyl region. Soil and water contamination have made the area unsafe for farming, gardening, and human habitation, and most people of childbearing age have left the region, although some residents and workers remain in mostly depopulated villages. The area is expected to be unsafe for humans for a long time to come. Cancer and other disease risks may be higher for people than for many wildlife species because humans live longer than most wildlife and worry about birth defects in their children. As long as people heed health warnings and don't repopulate the Chernobyl area, it could become an important wildlife refuge in an otherwise densely populated region. To learn more, see these related websites: Report from London Independent Map of Chernobyl radiation hot spots Environmental assessment of Chernobyl's effects, 1995, by the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency Chernobyl information Chernobyl Center for Nuclear Safety, Radioactive Waste, and Radioecology European Center for Nature Conservation (wildlife in Europe) Ukraine map To read more, see: Environmental Science, A Global Concern, Cunningham and Saigo, 6th ed. Resiliency and stability in ecosystems, pp. 92-94 Nuclear power, how it works, pp. 485-87 Chernobyl disaster, pp. 488-89 Environmental Science, A Study of Interrelationships, Enger and Smith, 7th ed. Reactor safety, pp. 172-73 Exposure to radiation, pp. 174-75 Nuclear legacy of the Soviet Union, p. 178 Back to Map Page feedback form | permissions | international | locate your campus rep | request a review copy digital solutions | publish with us | customer service | mhhe home Copyright ©2001 The McGraw-Hill Companies. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. McGraw-Hill Higher Education is one of the many fine businesses of the The McGraw-Hill Companies.