Nature & Environment

Norway's wildlife still plagued by radiation

By T.K. Randall
April 11, 2016

Image: Chernobyl New Safe Confinement Over Reactor 4
Credit: Tim Porter / CC BY-SA 4.0 (adapted) Authorities in Norway have reported that some of the local wildlife - in particular the reindeer - are still showing signs of radioactive contamination well above the legal limits imposed by the EU more than three decades after the Chernobyl disaster spread deadly radiation across the continent.

A particularly bumper mushroom crop this year is believed to have further exacerbated the issue because the reindeer have been ingesting even more contaminated vegetation than usual.Among those worst affected by the disaster are Norway's indigenous Sami people who have long relied on reindeer meat for sustenance. Some of the herders have taken to feeding the animals uncontaminated food in an effort to tackle the problem but it could still be years before the reindeer are completely free of the radiation originally spewed out by the disaster.

"There's a real sadness there," said photojournalist Amos Chapple. "These people had always lived at one with nature, and suddenly in the days after Chernobyl, they woke up to their completely pristine landscape being one of the most contaminated places on the planet."

Source: Wired

Tags: Chernobyl, Reindeer, Radiation