Effects of Large-Scale Wildfires on the Redistribution of Radionuclides in the Chornobyl River System.

Wildfires in radiologically contaminated areas raise significant concerns due to potential radionuclides redistribution and increased public radiation exposure. This study examined the impact of the 2020 Chornobyl wildfire on the redistribution of radionuclides, specifically Cs and Sr, in the Chornobyl River system. We determined the quantities and speciation of Cs and Sr in charred residues and soil after wildfires and analyzed the riverine concentrations of these radionuclides based on long-term monitoring data.

Hydrological setting controls Cs and Sr concentrations in a headwater catchment in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone.

Concentration-discharge relationships are widely used to understand the hydrological processes controlling river water chemistry. This study investigates how hydrological processes affect radionuclide (Cs and Sr) concentrations in surface water in headwater catchments within the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone (ChEZ) in Ukraine. In the flat wetland catchments, the depth of the saturated soil layer changes little throughout the year, but changes in the saturated soil surface area during snowmelt and immediately after rainfall affect water chemistry by changing the opportunities for contact between the surface water and the soil surface.

Impact of wildfire on Cs and Sr wash-off in heavily contaminated forests in the Chernobyl exclusion zone.

Wildfires may play a role in redistributing radionuclides in the environment in combination with hydrological processes such as surface runoff and soil erosion. We investigated plot-scale radionuclide wash-off at forest sites affected by wildfires in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone (CEZ). We also compared speciation of the washed-off radionuclides with those in previous studies conducted just after the accident in 1986.

Bangkok 2004. Double discrimination: drug users living with HIV/AIDS.

Drug users in Russia living with HIV/AIDS are often denied basic medical and social services and are systematically excluded from antiretroviral therapy programs. In this presentation to "HIV Treatment for Drug Users--A Realistic Goal," a satellite meeting of the XIV International AIDS Conference held on 15 July 2004, Dmitry Samoilov describes the discrimination faced by people living with HIV/AIDS in general, and HIV-positive drug users in particular. The presentation includes powerful personal testimonials from people living with HIV/AIDS.