Η πρώτη πυρηνική βόμβα της Σοβιετικής Ένωσης, η οποία δοκιμάστηκε επί Στάλιν στις 29 Αυγούστου 1949, περιείχε ουράνιο από το βόρειο Τατζικιστάν, το οποίο ήταν τότε μέρος της ΕΣΣΔ.
Εξήντα και πλέον χρόνια μετά, σχεδόν 55 εκατομμύρια τόνοι ραδιενεργού υλικού παραμένουν σε ανοιχτούς χώρους χωρίς να έχουν υποστεί καμία επεξεργασία, προειδοποιεί η Οικονομική Επιτροπή για την Ευρώπη των Ηνωμένων Εθνών (UNECE).
Στη δεύτερη έκθεσή της για την προστασία του περιβάλλοντος στην πρώην σοβιετική δημοκρατία, η UNECE διαπιστώνει ότι οι τεράστιες ποσότητες αποβλήτων παραμένουν σήμερα στα επίπεδα όπου βρίσκονταν το 1990.
«Η αποθήκευση των πυρηνικών αποβλήτων είναι ένα από τα κυριότερα προβλήματα του Τατζικιστάν» εκτιμούν οι συντάκτες της έκθεσης.
Αρκετά από τα εγκαταλειμμένα ορυχεία βρίσκονται κοντά στο Κουτζάντ, τη δεύτερη μεγαλύτερη πόλη, η οποία φιλοξενούσε κέντρο επεξεργασίας στο οποίο κατέφθανε μετάλλευμα ουρανίου και από την Κιργιζία και το Ουζμπεκιστάν. Σύμφωνα με την UNECE, στην εγκατάσταση αυτή είχαν συσσωρευτεί 35.000 κυβικά μέτρα αποβλήτων με χαμηλά επίπεδα ραδιενέργειας.
Η υπηρεσία του ΟΗΕ συγχαίρει τις πρωτοβουλίες της Διεθνούς Υπηρεσίας Ατομικής Ενέργειας για την αντιμετώπιση της κατάστασης, εκτιμά ωστόσο ότι «λόγω της έκτασης του προβλήματος, είναι δύσκολο να φανταστεί κανείς ότι το ζήτημα θα επιλυθεί στο προσεχές μέλλον.
Η χρόνια έκθεση σε υψηλές συγκεντρώσεις ουρανίου είναι επικίνδυνη για την υγεία καθώς μπορεί να προκαλέσει βλάβες στους νεφρούς και αύξηση του κινδύνου εμφάνισης καρκίνου.
.tanea gr
16/12/12
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- Second Environmental Performance Review of Tajikistan highlights lack of access to clean water and sanitation and need for improved waste management
Access to clean water and
improved sanitation and waste management remain some of the most
pressing environmental challenges for Tajikistan according to the second
Environmental Performance Review of Tajikistan published today. The
Review, performed by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
(UNECE), takes stock of progress made by the country in the management
of its environment since the country was first reviewed in 2004.
The Review covers 10 issues
of importance to the country related to policymaking, planning and
implementation, the financing of environmental policies, climate change,
water management, waste management, human health and the environment
and biodiversity conservation. It notes a series of improvements,
including significant changes to the legal and policy framework in the
area of the environment, as well as challenges that the country is still
facing.
Tajikistan has abundant
water resources. However, due to institutional weaknesses as well as
inadequate funding and outdated infrastructure in the water sector,
there are multiple challenges in the use and protection of water
resources. Only one third of Tajikistan’s 7.2 million inhabitants have
access to chlorinated piped water. Some 30% rely on spring water and the
remainder of the population depend on river and ditch water sources.
Only 5% of the population are connected to public sewerage. The
functioning of the water supply and sewerage systems is, moreover,
frequently interrupted by power outages, which is also a source of water
contamination. Frequent power cuts limit water supply to a few hours
per day. Although there has been an overall improvement since 2004 in
the quality of drinking water, 15% of samples do not meet
bacteriological standards today.
Waste management has been
receiving more attention since 2004. Nevertheless, today municipal solid
waste collection services are only provided for the urban population,
which represents about 26% of the total population. Waste disposal
practices require urgent improvement as even in the capital, Dushanbe,
the city’s single disposal site does not meet sanitary norms and
standards.
Tailing ponds from mining
activities also pose a threat to human health in the country.
Approximately 54.8 million tons of waste from past uranium mining
operations are still located in unsecured sites in northern Tajikistan, a
number of them close to Khujand, the country's second-largest city.
The Review concludes with a
set of 47 recommendations to the country to improve management of its
environment, to better integrate the goals of sustainable development
into sectoral policies, to promote greater accountability to the public
and to strengthen cooperation with the international community. The recommendations were approved by the UNECE Committee on Environmental Policy.
The Review is available at: http://www.unece.org/env/epr/publications.html
For more information on the EPR Programme, please visit: http://www.unece.org/env/epr or contact info.epr@unece.org.
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Note to editors
In 1993, at the Second
“Environment for Europe” Ministerial Conference, ministers requested
UNECE to undertake Environmental Performance Reviews in countries that
were not Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development members.
By 2004, the first cycle of Reviews was completed (with the exception of
Turkmenistan). UNECE is now finalizing the second round of reviews,
taking stock of the progress made since the first review, and putting
particular emphasis on implementation, integration, financing and the
socio-economic interface with the environment.
At the seventh “Environment
for Europe” Ministerial Conference in Astana in September 2011,
ministers invited UNECE to conduct the third cycle of EPRs, which may
additionally look at environmental governance and financing in a green
economy context, countries’ cooperation with the international community
and environmental mainstreaming in priority sectors.
14/12/12
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