Belarusian, Ukrainian and Russian ambassadors speak on Chornobyl (05/05/96)

Belarusian, Ukrainian and Russian ambassadors speak on Chornobyl

by Khristina Lew

WASHINGTON - The ambassadors of the three countries most affected by radioactive fallout from the Chornobyl nuclear power plant explosion held a press conference marking the 10th anniversary of the disaster at the National Press Club on April 24.

News of the April 23 brushfires in the abandoned village of Tovsty Lis, located in the 30-kilometer zone surrounding the Chornobyl plant in Ukraine, dominated the proceedings. According to Ukrainian Ambassador Yuri Shcherbak, five hectares of forest and five hectares of stubble burned, raising radioactivity in the area slightly, to 45 microroentgens per hour. In Kyiv, the normal level of radioactivity is 16-18 microroentgens per hour.

Ambassador Shcherbak, Belarusian Ambassador Serguei Martynov and Russian Federation Ambassador Yuli Vorontsov issued a joint statement calling for expanded international cooperation in alleviating the consequences of the 1986 disaster at Chornobyl, and detailed how the explosion affected each of their countries.

In Ukraine, radioactive fallout contaminated 50,000 square kilometers of land and exposed 2.6 million people, 700,000 of them children, to above normal levels of radiation. Over 142,000 people were resettled after the explosion. The Soviet government spent over $10 billion combating the consequences of Chornobyl, while independent Ukraine has spent an additional $3 billion, five times the country's budget expenses for health care, culture and public education.

In Belarus, which received 70 percent of the radioactive fallout from the Chornobyl explosion, 2 million people, among them 500,000 children, live in over 3,000 settlements located in contaminated territory. More than 400 settlements were abandoned after the explosion, and 600 schools and kindergartens were closed. The government evacuated 131,000 people from the areas most contaminated. Only 1 percent of Belarusian land is considered "clean" of radioactive contamination. Since the disaster, the economic damage incurred by Belarus equals 32 annual budgets of the republic, or $235 billion.

In Russia, 60,000 square kilometers of land, inhabited by 3 million people, 600,000 of them children, suffered radioactive contamination. Over 163,000 people were evacuated, and the government decommissioned 300,000 square kilometers of land. In 1992-1995, the Russian government earmarked $3 billion to ameliorate the consequences of Chornobyl.

All three countries have registered an increase in Chornobyl-related illness. According to Ambassador Martynov, Belarus is experiencing a "negative growth of population." He explained, "There are less Belarusians on the earth each year, and Chornobyl is the reason."

Dr. Shcherbak said that, according to Ukrainian Ministry of Health and Greenpeace statistics, 8,000 to 32,000 people have died as a result of Chornobyl. He explained the often wide discrepancies in statistics concerning Chornobyl-related deaths as "not maliciousness, but a result of the exceptional complexity of the disaster, multiple factors and unpredictability."

The three ambassadors said their countries cooperate closely on joint Chornobyl-related projects and hope to expand cooperation on an international level, particularly in the area of underground water contamination. In mid-April parliamentarians of all three countries met to discuss strengthening ties in order to solve Chornobyl problems.

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