Role of GIS in Lifting the Cloud Off Chernobyl

164 Pages·2002·16.093 MB·English

by  C. Siegel, S. Palko (auth.), Jaromír Kolejka (eds.)

Role of GIS in Lifting the Cloud Off Chernobyl
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SeriesIV:EarthandEnvironmentalSciences- Vol.10
Role of GIS in
Lifting the Cloud Off Chernobyl
edited by
Jaromfr Kolejka
Masaryk University,
Faculty of Education,
Department of Geography,
Brno, Czech Republic
Springer Science+Business Media, B.V
Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on
Role of Geoinformation Technology in Mitigation Consequences of
Chernobyl Nuclear Accident
Yalta, Ukraine
17-21 September 2001
A C.I.P. Catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.
ISBN 978-1-4020-0769-9 ISBN 978-94-010-0518-0 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-94-010-0518-0
Printed on acid-free paper
AII Rights Reserved
© 2002 Springer Science+Business Media Oordrecht
Originally published by Kluwer Academic Publishers in 2002
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1s t edition 2002
No part of this work may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any
form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording or
otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher, with the exception of any
material supplied specifically for the purpose of being entered and executed on a compu
ter system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work
Tableof contents
Editor'spreface(J.Kolejka) vu
Situation Assessment for Mitigation Activities: Tools for Building Geographic
Knowledge.From Geodatato Geoinformation to Geoknowledge?(c. Siegel, S.Palko)
The Dnieper River Basin Challenge: Local and International Response to an
Environmental and Human HealthCrisis (D.Poletto, K. Babcock) 13
Providing Information in Relation to Chernobyl and the Role ofGlS (P.G. de Nooijer,
V.Chabanyuk) 25
The Consequences ofthe Chernobyl Accident: FirstResultsintheRadioecologyProjectofthe
French-GermanInitiative(G.Deville-Cavelin, H.Biesold, C. Brun-Yaba,V.Chabanyuk) 49
Development of the Data Base: Nuclear Fuel And Radioactive Waste, Environmental
Impact, and Radiological Situation in Chernobyl NPP 4th Block "Shelter" (A. Borovoi,
S.Gavrilov, G. Pretzsch) 67
From ImageMaps to Decision Making (S.Palko, C. Siegel) 77
The Chernobyl Sarcophagus Project of the German-French Initiative (G. Pretzsch, V.
L"Homme, A.N. Seleznev,E.S.Seredynin) 85
Radon Risk Assessmentin GIS (V.Vozenflek) 97
The Run-OffinNatural and Agricultural Environments (V.Popov) 109
Waste Dumps Around Chornobyl Power Plant: Actual State and Future (E.Sobotovich,
V. Skvortsov,C. Brun-Yaba) 121
The Problem ofWaste: Searching for GIS Solution (1. Kolejka,J.Pokorny,O.Skrott) 131
Countermeasures on Natural and Agricultural Areas After Chemobyl Accident (I.
Bogdevitch,N.Sanzharova,B. Prister,S.Tarasiuk) 147
List ofContributors 159
EDITOR'S PREFACE
1. Lookbackto history
The explosion at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant in northern Ukraine on April 26,
1986, contaminated the environment in large areas of Europe. As the governments of
Ukraine and surrounding countries had an urgent need to manage the recovery of the
affected population, and to optimise the production of uncontaminated food, large
volumes of data were accumulated including relocation statistics, compensations for the
affected population, and levels and extent of environmental contamination. The great
quantity ofdata was and is very difficult to use without the aid of modern information
technologies, especially Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Remote Sensing
(RS).
Figure1.Unit4oftheChemobylNuclearPowerPlant hiddeninconcretesarcophagus.
Fifteen years after the catastrophic accident at Chornobyl (Chernobyl in Russian), the
recovery of the affected population and environment is not over. Large quantities of
radionuclides, although mostly immobilized, are still found in the mineral portion of
soils. The radionuclide outflow from the Pripyat River into the Dnipro River also
continues, but is smaller than the amount cycled through the biotic system. Fire in the
forests, brush and grasslands has the potential to mobilize radionuclides from the biotic
vu
Vlll
system, increasing the population radiation dose in surrounding areas and posing a
serious radiological hazard to workers and firefighters inthe Exclusion Zone.
2. ObjectivesofNATO Advanced Research Workshop
The fifteenth anniversary ofthe Chornobyl accident was a timely event for organizing
the advanced research workshop - Role of GIS in Lifting the Cloud Off Chornobyl.
Experts from different NATO and partner countries and scientific disciplines had an
opportunity to provide a realistic assessment ofthe current situation and to formulate
suggested approaches for management ofthe information associated with the site and
surroundingcontaminatedterritories.
The following two objectiveswere established for theworkshop:
A) Assess the contribution of modern map-related information technologies,
particularly Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing, to the
management of the consequences of Chornobyl and other similar environmental
emergenciesaround the world, and
B) Propose the best possible approaches to the rehabilitation ofcontaminated areas in
Ukraine and surroundingcountries.
Figure 2.Areabetween Kyiv,capitalofUkraine (infront)andChemobylPowerPlant(inbackground)in3D
model presented byGIS.
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3. Scientific Meeting Programme
As a result ofthe unexpected, tragic events in the United States ofAmerica during the
week preceding the workshop, several key speakers from the U.S.A. and Western
European countries unfortunately cancelled their participation. In most cases, however,
their presentations were delivered by additionally invited co-authors from Ukraine. The
final program included (see Table I below) a combination ofpresentations ofscientific
methodologies and applications related to the Chornobyl recovery efforts. Expert
discussions focused on best possible strategies for the management ofthe contaminated
territories inthe future.
4. Benefits
Application of modern remote sensing and geographic information systems
technologies,and related expertise will continue to be critical inthe management ofthe
volumes of information associated with, and accurate assessment of nuclear
contamination ofaffected areas. The Ukrainian government, as well as governments of
surrounding countries, need modern information technologies for organizing and
executing activities that can minimize the impact of the Chornobyl disaster on the
inhabitants and the environment. Consequently, expected short-term benefits of the
NATO workshop include support for improved decision-making processes that will be
used to identify remediation actions, establish priorities, and design and implement
work plans to improve livingconditions inthe areas surroundingthe Chornobyl Nuclear
Power Plant.
The long-term benefits will go beyond addressing the consequences ofthe Chornobyl
accident. As Ukraine and surrounding countries enter the 2Ist century, access to
information will be critical for planning the country's economic development. In
particular, rapidly accessible geospatial information (such as maps and satellite
imagery) will be required in support ofgovernment decision-making processes. At the
same time, such information will be essential for the country's resource management,
environmentalprotection,emergencymanagement, and land usesustainabilityplanning
Both short-term and long-term benefits ofthe NATO workshop go clearly beyond the
boundaries of Ukraine and surrounding countries. The world's attention continues to
focus on Chornobyl especially following the closure of its nuclear power plant in
December 2000. Given the real possibility of similar accident at nuclear facilities
elsewhere around the world, the developmentofrecoverystrategies based onexperience
at Chornobyl that use modern scientific methods and technologies, would be invaluable
forallNATOcountries inthe future.
Based on the workshop presentations and discussions, the following highlights
summarize key conclusions and indicate directions for further research anddevelopment
inUkraine:
A) Image maps (i.e., maps derived from satellite imagery) are the most economical,
up to date and readily available bases for Chornobyl related applications, as well
as for other important future applications, such as land resource management
projects;
B) Prister's research conclusions concerning the soil-plant transfer ofradionuclides,
comparedto previous conclusions based on lessreliable data (to be formulated and
added)
x
C) Building aNational Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) for Ukraine isan important
initiative for both thegovernment agencies and the private sector. Starting withthe
establishment ofstandards for project proposals, project management, monitoring
and reporting, NSDI will implement the use of metadata standards, organize
databases, and facilitate access tocommon, standardized data inUkraine;
Figure3.FromtheNATOARWdiscussions.
D) Local government agencies responsible for geomatics need to take a leadership
role indevelopingan NSDI strategy and then moving todevelop partnerships with
the private sector to implement it.
E) GIS continues to be a valuable tool in decision making and modelling, but itcan
also be a liability if usedwithout reliable data and adequate knowledge to interpret
the results
F) Coordination ofactivities between governmentorganizations andtheprivate sector
needs to be improved in order to drive maximum benefit from the available
financial resources from both internal and external sources.
More details about the NATO ARW Role of GIS inLifting the Cloud Off Chernobyl
are availableonthe websitehttp://www.ped.muni.cz/wgeo/arw.
xi
5. Participants
The total number of the Yalta NATO ARW is 35. All of them attended the meeting
because of the extraordinary opportunity to meet the leading specialists from the
international GIS and Remote Sensing community dealing with the radioactive area
pollution.The NATO ARW has been held in the beautiful environment ofthe Southern
Crimean Black Sea Coast.
Figure4.FirstdayarrivedNATO ARW participantsinYalta,Ukraine.
6. Acknowledgments
Thanks to the generous support from the NATO Science Committee, the very useful
and successful meeting of western and eastern specialists dealing with the geomatics
applications in the radioactive area pollution management could be held with regard to
the 15th anniversary ofthe Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant accident. The experience
collected during the remediation activities in the Chomobyl area and the utilizing of
modem geoinformation technology can help not only in the recovery ofthe territory
polluted by radionuclides around Chornobyl but also enhance the efficiency of
emergencymanagementand accident prevention on othersites inthe world.
Jaromir Kolejka Bmo,March 19,2002
NATO CountryARWeo-director,