[ RadSafe ] Chernobyl Redux

[Cehn at aol.com]

from the Drudge Report:
 
Radioactive produce on sale in Moscow 20 years  after Chernobyl
Wed Jan 18 2006 08:29:05 ET

Large quantities of  radioactive produce still reach market stalls in Moscow 
from western Russia and  Belarus, almost 20 years after the nuclear accident 
at Chernobyl, a local  official told the AFP wire on Wednesday. 

"Around 830 kilogrammes of  radioactive produce was confiscated from Mocow 
markets in 2005," said Elena  Ter-Martirossov, spokeswoman for Radon, the 
municipal authority which handles  the capital's radioactivity security. 

The figure for 2004 was 986  kilogrammes, around a tonne in 2003, three 
tonnes in 2002, and 1.5 tonnes in  2001, she said. 

"Most of it comes from markets and consists of mushrooms  and berries" from 
regions affected by the April 1986 explosion in Chernobyl,  Ukraine.

"There was a case, involving meat, in a shop two years ago, but  it is very 
rare that shops are affected," she added. 

All marketplaces  have a laboratory which checks goods before sale, while 
shops are also  inspected, she explained. 

If contaminated goods are found, Radon is  called in to handle the removal 
and treatment of these goods which are  considered to be radioactive waste.

Mushrooms and berries are more  susceptible to radioactivity because they 
grow very close to the ground and  quickly absorb any radioactive  particles.