Soviet Union's Environmental Disasters Mount By Paul Quinn-Judge Boston Globe MOSCOW - In the minds of millions, the environmental disaster that is the Soviet Union is summed up in one word: Chernobyl.
The world's worst nuclear disaster ever, the 1986 power-plant explosion that spread radiation as far as the United States, has taken at least 250 lives, forced the evacuation of 115,000 people and cost $12.8 billion in cleanup and lost energy. The catastrophe continues to unfold in leukemia cases now being diagnosed.
But horrific as it was, Chernobyl was in some ways an environmental sideshow for the U.S.S.R.
The country today is facing not just one environmental crisis, but a series of overlapping threats that have developed over 50 years. Its outdated and inefficient heavy industries are environmentally as well as financially costly. An estimated 50 million Soviet citizens are living in cities and towns beset by serious air pollution.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2013-05-13 08:54 am (UTC)