Chernobyl was lesson in nuclear peril: Gorbachev

The upcoming 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster is a brutal reminder of the dangers of nuclear power, proliferation and terrorism, former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev said on Tuesday. "The true scope of the tragedy still remains beyond comprehension and is a shocking reminder of the reality of the nuclear threat," Gorbachev said in an essay published by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, a watchdog organisation on nuclear security. Nuclear Power Daily

A picture is worth a thousand words: Chernobyl, 25 years on

Chernobyl refugee, photo by Gabriela BulisovaThe 25th commemoration of the Chernobyl nuclear catastrophe on April 26, 2011 will be a big moment: the nuclear power establishment in industry, government, media, academia, etc. will try to downplay Chernobyl's significance, while others -- the anti-nuclear and environmental movements, survivors of the catastrophe, etc. -- will struggle to keep the truth alive. Photographers have done essential work in this struggle for the past quarter century, and still are doing so. For example, Danish photographer Mads Eskesen published Chernobyl - 20 Years, 20 Lives in 2006. (Eskesen has also shot amazing photos of the beautiful, collectively owned, 40 Megawatt-electric Middlegrunden Offshore Wind Farm near Copenhagen Harbor.)

Beyond Nuclear has partnered with social documentary photographer Gabriela Bulisova to exhibit her Chernobyl photos in Vermont and New Hampshire, at this crucial time in the campaigns to prevent license extensions at the Vermont Yankee and Seabrook nuclear power plants. Beyond Nuclear's Kevin Kamps will speak at Bulisova's opening on Tuesday, April 26th at Dartmouth College's (Hannover, New Hampshire) Russo Gallery in Haldeman Hall in cooperation with Dartmouth's Dickey Center for International Understanding. The Director of the Dickey Center, Kenneth S. Yalowitz, who served as the U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Belarus from 1994-1997, will also speak, as will Dartmouth students from Ukraine. Denis Rydjeski, Programs and Outings Chair, and the SIERRA CLUB of the Upper Valley in Springfield, VT, have made this exhibit possible with a generous donation, as well as all the ground work. Bulisova's photos can be viewed online; clicking the links to individual photos will enlarge them; some photos have captions (the remaining captions will be added in the near future). Bulisova's title, "Life on the Edge...The Half-Lives and Half-Truths of Chernobyl," and her artist's statement, provide additional insights on the work.

The Vermont Yankee Decommissioning Alliance, which has helped lead the grassroots effort to shut down the dangerously deteriorated and leaking reactor, also have plans to exhibit Bulisova's photos in Montpelier and other places in Vermont in the coming months. Stay tuned for details!

Robert Knoth, Amsterdam based social documentary photographer, has also documented the devastation caused by Chernobyl, as well as other nuclear disasters across the former Soviet Union. These photos have been exhibited around the world -- except, that is, in the U.S.! Robert has asked Beyond Nuclear's help in getting his work exhibited here. If you are interested in bringing Robert's powerful photos to your area, please contact Kevin at Beyond Nuclear's office number, (301) 270-2209 ext. 1.

National Geographic photographer Gerd Ludwig is also fundraising in order to return to Chernboyl to continue his "Long Shadow of Chernobyl" project.

Chernobyl nuclear plant shelter faces cash woes

Reactor 4 control room nowNearly 25 years after the world's worst nuclear disaster, it has emerged that only half the money needed to safely secure the wreckage of the Chernobyl power plant has been raised. A new shelter is being built to seal the almost 200 tonnes of melted nuclear fuel rods within the remains of the damaged reactor. But construction may have to be halted if donor nations fail to provide funds. BBC



Chernobyl birds are small brained

Marsh warblers are one of the species affectedBirds living around the site of the Chernobyl nuclear accident have 5% smaller brains, an effect directly linked to lingering background radiation. The finding comes from a study of 550 birds belonging to 48 different species living in the region, published in the journal PLoS One. Brain size was significantly smaller in yearlings compared with older birds. Smaller brain sizes are thought to be linked to reduced cognitive ability. BBC

"Chernobyl: Consequences of the Catastrophe for People and the Environment" available online for free

Chernobyl: Consequences of the Catastrophe for People and the Environment, Dec. 2009, 335 pages, published by the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS), is viewable online at no charge in PDF format. Go to: http://www.nyas.org/Publications/Annals/Detail.aspx?cid=f3f3bd16-51ba-4d7b-a086-753f44b3bfc1. Then click on “Full Text.” Then, under “Annals Access,” next to “Nonmembers,” click on “View Annals TOC free.” This will allow you, chapter by chapter, to download and/or view the entire text of the book, for free. As the 25^th commemoration of the Chernobyl nuclear catastrophe approaches (April 26, 2011), this vital book could not be more timely. It is written by Alexey V. Yablokov of the Center for Russian Environmental Policy in Moscow, Russia; Vassily B. Nesterenko, and Alexey V. Nesterenko, of the Institute of Radiation Safety in Minsk, Belarus. Janette D. Sherman-Nevinger of the Environmental Institute at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan, U.S.A. has served as the Consulting Editor. Please help spread the word about this significant scientific study, and its availability online at no charge. Its hardcopy sale price from the NYAS has been a whopping $150 for nonmembers – out of reach, of course, for most all-volunteer anti-nuclear groups. Besides that, NYAS only printed 700 hardcopies of the book to begin with. Now, no copies are left, and it is unknown if more will be printed.