Health Effects of Chernobyl 25 years after the reactor catastrophe

Timebomb Nuclear Power
25 Years after Chernobyl
Urania, Berlin
April 8 – 10, 2011

German affiliate of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, Physicians for Social Responsibility in cooperation with the Society for Radiation Protection, the Physicians of Chernobyl, the Scientists Initiative for Peace and Sustainability and the Nuclear Free Future Award.

Chernobyl: The Meltdown
April 26, 1986: 23 minutes, 40 seconds after 1 am, Block 4 of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded. For the first time ever, the world witnessed a “maximum credible accident” in a nuclear installation. This disaster changed the world. The Chernobyl catastrophe made millions of people into victims. 180,000 kilograms of highly radioactive material were inside the reactor. The radioactive cloud did not stop at borders, it circled the world. Even now, the effects of the accident are still being suppressed, hushed up and made light of.

Nuclear Energy Kills
Chernobyl opened our eyes to the dangers of nuclear technology. Nuclear energy kills. Not only when there is an accident but also all along the nuclear chain. Even before one single kilowatt of electricity is produced, people are dying. Uranium mining destroys the subsistence for livelihoods of whole populations and their health. Even during “normal operations” an increased danger is present. Childhood leukaemia occurs more frequently in the vicinity of nuclear power plants. Safety deficits are ignored or tolerated. No protection from natural disasters and terror attacks exists. Radioactive waste contaminates our groundwater. We will leave behind a highly radioactive inheritance for future generations for millions of years to come.

Nuclear Energy Endangers Peace
The technology required for nuclear energy also provides the requirements for the development of nuclear weapons. Thus, more reliance on nuclear energy increases the risk of proliferation and causes the number of states possessing nuclear weapons to grow. Peace is dependent upon the abandonment of nuclear energy and converting to a decentralised system that supplies renewable energy – wars cannot be fought over the sun and the wind!

25 Years After Chernobyl
Against the will of the German people, the operational lifespan of nuclear power plants is being increased. New nuclear power plants are being planned and built in Europe. Politics are slave to the nuclear industry, The fairy tale of “clean” nuclear energy as saviour of the climate and a “stopgap technology” is doing the rounds. In place of responsible policies we find only disinformation. The success story that was renewable energy has been stalled.

The Congress
- provides information on the effects of Chernobyl
- analyses the risk potential of the nuclear chain
- offers solutions for a world free from the nuclear threat
- introduces possibilities for action