More comprehensive information on the accident and the consequences in the vicinity of Chernobyl can be found at this Ukrainian site, the Polyn-project.
On the 27th the radioactive cloud reached Sweden, and at the same time it started to rain. This meant that even in Sweden the effects of the Chernobyl accident was very serious, though of course on quite another scale than in the vicinity of Chernobyl. It will most likely not be possible to deduce any cancer-cases directly from the accident.
The most affected areas in Sweden, where it rained during the critical days, received from 25 to 200 kBq/m2 of Caesium-137. Other areas, i.e. most of Sweden, received comparatively low activities, in the range of 0,2 to 5 kBq/m2. The deposition of the radionuclides lead to intensive activity, one of the first reports of increased radiation came from the Forsmark nuclear power plant, and it was first thought that the activity came from this plant, since no warning had come from the Soviet Union. however, it was quite soon discovered that increased radiation levels were detected at many places, and that the radioactivity had to have come from abroad. It didn't take very long before it was clear that the source was a Soviet power plant.
[Unfortunately this information is graphical to its' nature, but I'll try and add text information as soon as I can. The information can be found in the links is a clickable map. The sensitive areas are the black and red parts, Sweden as a whole, and the rest, respectively. Reproduced with the kind permission of Tone D. Selnaes, Norwegian Institute of Energy Technology.
The next phase in Sweden was to try and determine the risk situation for the population in the areas worst affected (black on the map). It was determined that personal protection was not necessary, and the emphasis was instead shifted towards food production. The accident happened short before the grazing season in the affected areas would begin, and it was decided to keep all livestock stabled until further notice. Soon it was possible to let animals in most of Sweden begin their grazing, but in some areas around Gävle the farmers had to wait until the end of June to let their animals out. These authority measures, though sometimes maybe too strict, meant that very little milk had to be wasted due to excessive activity. The limits for food were set to 300 Bq/kg, but the dairies set their levels to a tenth of this. However, some milk had to be discarded, and this was done by spreading it on farmland. No negative effects were seen from this.
For the farmers these countermeasures were of course troublesome. Their winterfodder was on the verge of running out, as it usually is at this time of year, and now they had to keep their animals indoors. The government gave subsidies for buying fodder from other parts of the country, but the situation was much the same everywhere. By using more grainfeed than usual it was possible to make it work anyway. It now became apparent that it was necessary to make sure that this years harvest could be used for winterfodder the next season. Intensive activity, both at the University of Agricultural Sciences and at the local agricultural extension authorities, lead to improvement of current technology, and very little fodder eventually had to be discarded.
Our department now has research on the effects of the Chernobyl accident in the agricultural system mainly in the areas around Gävle, in the county of Västernorrland and in the county of Jämtland. Much of the research in the forest ecosystem is conducted in an area called Harbo, in the county of Västmanland. [Image]
If you feel need for more information on the Chernobyl-accident, feel free to contact me at Sverker.Forsberg@radek.slu.se.
Sverker Forsberg
Last updated 16 Feb 1995