NEWS AND VIEWS: Chornobyl's realities are forgotten (03/17/96)

NEWS AND VIEWS: Chornobyl's realities are forgotten

by Bozhena Olshaniwsky

April 26, 1986, is remembered in the annals of the history of humanity as the day of the world's worst nuclear accident - the 10th anniversary of which will be marked this year. We can lay the fault and responsibility for this infamous disaster at the feet of the former Soviet Union, which through its criminal disdain for the human needs and welfare of its citizens led to the Chornobyl catastrophe at the nuclear power station in Ukraine 10 years ago. Its aftereffects will be felt much longer than the aftermath of the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of World War II. Let us hope that we have learned our bitter lesson and that no Chornobyls will ever happen again.

Although 10 years have elapsed since this disaster occurred, the effects of this nuclear accident are still being felt by many and may continue for generations to come. At present 3.5 million people live on Ukrainian territory still contaminated by radiation - 1 million of them being children. The government of Ukraine has been unable to relocate these people. It is reported that Ukraine's budget for expenses dealing with the aftereffects of Chornobyl has decreased to a tenth of what it was four years ago.

One gets the feeling that the Chornobyl problem has been moved to the back burner. When the subject of Chornobyl comes up, the concerns addressed are usually with the atomic reactor or the need for energy from the nuclear station - but not for the victims of the disaster. Meanwhile, the deadly effects of radiation continue to maim and kill an unprecedented number of citizens of Ukraine. Following are some statistics on the effects of the Chornobyl fallout, which should be acknowledged and seriously taken under consideration.

The area contaminated by radiation is more than 19,500 square miles, which constitutes one-tenth of the entire territory of Ukraine, or 232,046 square miles. (As a comparison, Texas has 267,338 square miles.)
There are 2,294 population units (cities, towns, villages) within this area.
17,761 square miles of agricultural land is contaminated by radiation.
16,989 square miles of forests are contaminated by radiation.
3.2 million persons have been affected by radiation.
Over 1 million children are affected by radiation.
More than 125,000 persons have died because of radiation exposure.
356,600 persons have participated in the liquidation and on-site clean-up of the aftermath of the Chornobyl accident.
50,000 Chornobyl clean-up workers have become disabled because of illnesses caused by excessive exposure to radiation.
6,000 clean-up workers have died directly due to radiation.

The Chornobyl problem has extended far beyond the borders of Ukraine and has caused grave consternation to medical doctors, scientists, politicians and governments officials of many countries. Tragically, Chornobyl proved that the "peaceful atom" knows no boundaries.

Recently an international conference dealing with the problems of "the medical consequences of Chornobyl and other radiation catastrophes" was held in Geneva with participants from 59 countries.

The main task of this conference was to analyze and summarize medical data gathered on the aftereffects of Chornobyl in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia by the World Health Organization of the United Nations. Evhen Korolenko, of the Ministry of Health in Ukraine, attended the conference and stated that the Chornobyl catastrophe was the worst medical, ecological, economic, social, psychological and political disaster that ever befell Ukraine. "What can we do about Chornobyl?" is a question being asked more and more frequently by concerned individuals in many countries and also in the press.

Western Europe has finally acknowledged the fact that the closing of the Chornobyl nuclear power station is a concern not only of Ukraine but also of the in-ternational community, since Ukraine lacks the capability to solve this problem. A number of experts have stated that the Chorno-byl nuclear reactor must be shut down since it is not safe and is a threat to humanity.

But, it is easier to say "shut it down" than to accomplish this task in the face of the facts that the Chornobyl plant produces 5 to 7 percent of Ukraine's power and that its closing, according to the Ukrainian government, will cost over $4 billion. So far, the G-7 states have promised Ukraine $ 2.3 billion, part of which is for loans for the construction of new power stations.

The chairman of the Parliament of Ukraine, Oleksander Moroz, stated that he is in favor of closing the Chornobyl station only if its entire cost is covered by the international community. Ukraine has no such funds available. He also stated that the memorandum on Chornobyl's shutdown, which was signed by Ukraine on December 20, 1995, in Canada, will ruin Ukraine's energy production system.

By his stance Mr. Moroz is using the closing of the Chornobyl power station as a bargaining chip to extract more money from the international community while the people of Ukraine continue to suffer as the negotiations drag. This is equivalent to being held hostage in a hostile and poisonous climate of excessive radiation, which poses a threat to the health and lives of all living things.

Ecological organizations such as Green World and Green Peace in Ukraine have appealed to Mr. Moroz to seriously consider closing down the Chornobyl plant. In their letter they point out that:

The first nuclear disaster at the Chornobyl plant happened in 1982, but information about it was never disclosed.
The second accident in 1986 wreaked nuclear havoc, affecting all of Europe.
There were 125 accidents at nuclear power plants in Ukraine during 1994 - 109 of them were at the Chornobyl plant.

Numerous charitable, humanitarian and environmental organizations in the United States and Canada have focused their work within the realm of damage control, that is, helping the affected victims, the sick and the poor in Ukraine.

Americans for Human Rights in Ukraine (AHRU) has directed its work toward the prevention and removal of the cause of the problems at Chornobyl. Their primary thrust has been to shut down the source of contamination and move the potential victims from contaminated areas before they become sick. To this end, AHRU has directed its approach during the past nine years by writing appeals and sending petitions to the G-7 and the United Nations.

The next meeting of the G-7 will take place in April of this year in Moscow. The question "to be or not to be" for the Chornobyl power station will again be bantered about by the seven major industrial powers. And, Ukraine's good relations with the European community will probably be made dependent on the resolution of the Chornobyl question.

Bozhena Olshaniwsky is president of Americans for Human Rights in Ukraine.

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