By Theodora Filis Near the southern Ural Mountains, in the Russian province of Chelyabinsk, there is a Soviet nuclear facility called the Mayak Chemical Combine (MCC). From 1948 until 1990 when the last of five reactors was shut down, the Combine contaminated the region to such an extent that it is now known as the most polluted area on Earth. This title is due to the MCC's continuous disregard for environmental and public safety. Between 1949 and 1956, 2.6 billion feet of liquid waste was dumped into the Techa. The radiation in the Techa is estimated to equal the amount released by the Hiroshima atomic bomb or nearly 20 times that released at Chornobyl in 1986. It is believed that the river now contains 2.5 times the number of long-life isotopes as were released by the Chornobyl reactor. 124,000 people were exposed to high-level radiation through the river. Waste has not been dumped in the river since 1951 when radiation was detected in the Arctic waters of northern Ru
It is imperative we all pay attention to the impact of our collective and personal actions on the environment. During the next decade, our global community will be unable to deal effectively with the formidable environmental challenges posed by decades of environmental mismanagement. There are many environmental issues I write about in this blog, some will scare you, and it is my hope, these articles will give you a reason to question and search for answers.