Lindsey Millis
Background:
International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day was first instituted by the United Nations in 2016, as a day to remember the nuclear explosion that occurred at Chernobyl in 1986.
To this day, the legacy that the Chernobyl Disaster left has not faltered as the communities surrounding the sight are still affected by the consequences.[1]
The Legacy of Chernobyl:
The Chernobyl explosion exposed almost 8.4 million people to radiation as the radioactive cloud it produced spread over 3 countries.
Originally, the United Nations plan was to provide humanitarian assistance to those affected by the radiation Chernobyl radiated, however, in 2002 the United Nations shifted its strategy to focus on a long-term development plan.
This new plan focused more on the prevention of future nuclear waste disasters that could affect millions of people.1
The Chernobyl disaster also impacted the health of the millions of people who were affected by the radiation that the nuclear power plant transmitted. It has been shown that children affected by the radioactive iodine were more likely to develop thyroid cancer and the consumption of radioactive food increased this probability. For those impacted by the radiation, the total cancer mortality rate most likely increased. [2]
[1] “International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day.” United Nations. United Nations. Accessed April 12, 2023. https://www.un.org/en/observances/chernobyl-remembrance-day.
[2] “Chernobyl’s Legacy: Health, Environmental and Socio-Economic Impacts.” Accessed April 13, 2023. https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/chernobyl.pdf.