Chernobyl nuclear accident: figures for deaths and cancers still in dispute

[bananas]

Source: Guardian

At the children's cancer hospital in Minsk, Belarus, and at the Vilne hospital for radiological protection in the east of Ukraine, specialist doctors are in no doubt they are seeing highly unusual rates of cancers, mutations and blood diseases linked to the Chernobyl nuclear accident 24 years ago.

But proving that infant mortality hundreds of miles from the stricken nuclear plant has increased 20-30% in 20 years, or that the many young people suffering from genetic disorders, internal organ deformities and thyroid cancers are the victims of the world's greatest release of radioactivity, is impossible.

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Meanwhile, the Belarus national academy of sciences estimates 93,000 deaths so far and 270,000 cancers, and the Ukrainian national commission for radiation protection calculates 500,000 deaths so far.

<snip>

But today Linda Walker, of the UK Chernobyl Children's Project, which funds Belarus and Ukraine orphanages and holidays for affected children, called for a determined effort to learn about the effects of the disaster. "Parents are giving birth to babies with disabilities or genetic disorders … but, as far as we know, no research is being conducted."

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/jan/10/chernobyl-nuclear-deaths-cancers-dispute

[MannyGoldstein]

1. I Thought I Saw Research A Few Years Ago....

That indicated a number of shorter-term issues (first few years after the incident), but nothing long term. My memory may not be perfect, though.

[TheWraith]

2. Enh. The estimate by the UN/WHO/IAEA is much less hysterical.

Despite all the hype, no one has ever provided evidence of 100,000 deaths, or 250,000, or 500,000. That many people from such a small area dying over the course of a couple decades would be incredibly noticeable.

The UN-backed Chernobyl Forum, on the other hand, says that the likely fatalities of the accident were about 4,000.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4216102.stm

[Demeter]

3. There Are So Many Ways to Die in the USSR Component States

Drugs, alcohol, smoking, malnutrition, HIV, pollution and moreso than in the US. Poverty, violence, multiple insurrections....but that doesn't mean radiation diseases were needed.

Besides, nobody has ever come up with a good count of radiation-caused illness and death in the US with the open-air testing, the weapons and fuel rod manufacturing, the Superfund sites, 3 Mile Island, etc.

We'd all have to get baseline readings, dosimeters, and much tighter environmental and product safety standards...radiation is like air pollution, you can't measure its effects until you clean it up and see how people don't get hospitalized and die all the time.

[ConcernedCanuk]

4. No government or big business will ever admit to the inherent dangers of nuclear power

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If it keeps them in power, or makes them money,

"collateral damage" is acceptable.

I DO believe that there are a few countries that forgoes relying on nuclear power

Sad that we in Canada are not one of them -

It's not as if we don't have a river or two up here . .

(sigh)