Chernobyl Exclusion Zone: ‘The Continent’s Biggest Animal Sanctuary’
January 26th, 2013Via: Independent:
Sergei Gaschak’s photography offers an unparalleled glimpse at animal life inside “the zone”, the area of Ukraine and Belarus that has been officially closed off to human habitation since the Chernobyl nuclear catastrophe of 1986.
Using camera traps to take photographs mechanically, as well as taking photographs personally, Gaschak has captured what few have been able to see with their own eyes – the remarkable diversity of wildlife within the zone.
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At the time of the disaster, there were few wild animals living in the region around the nuclear plant. But as the humans moved out in the wake of the catastrophe, large mammals appeared and thrived. While the animals showed incredibly high levels of radiation, they still looked normal. There were no giant wolves or three-headed deer.
According to a book on animal and plant life in the zone, A Natural History of Chernobyl, the only abnormalities found in animals has been albino spots and deformities in barn swallows.
It was a different story with fauna, including the radioactive mushrooms that grow in the area and still cause occasional panic when they find their way into the market stalls of Ukraine and Russia.
But the beasts that roam the deserted zone are normal, save the radiation levels. Indeed, the book suggests that, paradoxically, the dirtiest radioactive site in Europe has become the continent’s biggest animal sanctuary.
Nature bats last. Increasingly, and ultimately, my solace in the face of humanity’s rampaging determination to destroy all that we have been given. All the miraculous chemical, physical, and biological processes that have given us the wonders we are so determined to squander will persist long after we are gone, creating new beauty and new wonders.
Meantime, I teach my children and cultivate my garden and help my neighbors and try through art to add a bit of beauty and connection. At this point, everything else is hot air.