Tag: europe

Survey reveals war’s ‘immense’ mental health toll on Ukrainian refugee mothers in Poland — Global Issues

The finding is the result of a survey conducted by the UNICEF Refugee Response Office in Poland, which also revealed that 53 per cent had considered getting, or had already accessed, mental health support since arriving in the country.

‘Not a surprise’

“The psychosocial toll of the war in Ukraine is immense so the results of this survey are not a surprise,” said Dr. Rashed Mustafa Sarwar, who heads the Office, which was established just weeks after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Since then, more than four million Ukrainians have registered for temporary protection across Europe, UNICEF said. More than 1.6 million are in Poland, 90 per cent of whom are women and children, though overall refugee numbers could be much higher.

The survey used a World Health Organization (WHO) self-reporting questionnaire that measures psychological well-being through five simple, non-invasive questions.

Uncertainty and sadness

The results indicated that over 30 per cent of the mothers were exhibiting high levels of distress, and over 30 per cent were experiencing severe levels. Most said they felt helpless and had considered seeking help from a psychologist.

Among the issues contributing to their stress were uncertainty about the future, worries about family or friends in Ukraine or elsewhere, and sadness because of the war. High levels of distress were also related to practical concerns, including money, housing, jobs, language issues, access to healthcare and childcare.

Helping to heal

UNICEF has used the survey results to inform a nationwide online campaign in Poland targeting Ukrainian mothers with information on available psychological support, as well as coping strategies.

“Mental health and psychological support is vital to help families and children heal from the invisible wounds of war and that’s why it’s a huge part of our response and cuts across all of the work we do here in Poland,” said Dr. Sarwar.

Aid delivery in Ukraine

Meanwhile, humanitarians in Ukraine continue to assist frontline communities in the Kharkiv region in the east and the Kherson region in the south, where frequent bombardments are ongoing.

On Wednesday, an inter-agency convoy led by UN Humanitarian Coordinator in the country, Denise Brown, delivered aid to a community in the very east of the Kharkiv region, where more than 80 per cent of homes are damaged. Shelling also continues to interrupt water, gas, and electricity supply.

The convoy delivered shelter materials, hygiene supplies and solar lamps to some 1,000 remaining residents in a community that had 5,000 inhabitants in February 2022, said Stephanie Tremblay, a UN Spokesperson in New York, speaking on Friday.

“Today, another inter-agency convoy delivered critical aid – including shelter materials, food and water, solar lamps, hygiene kits and clothing – to support nearly 3,000 residents of another front-line community in the Kherson region,” she said. “Almost half of the remaining residents there are older people with limited access to most basic services.”

Landmine challenges

Humanitarians also warned that Ukraine is now one of the most mine-contaminated countries in the world, with Kharkiv and Kherson the most impacted regions.

Ms. Tremblay said nearly 300,000 hectares of agricultural land in Kharkiv alone needs demining, according to local authorities.

“Our humanitarian colleagues note that mine risks create additional challenges for repairing damaged houses and critical infrastructure and resuming farming, and both regions had large agriculture industries before the full-scale war,” she added.

Grain export update

Ms. Tremblay also provided an update on the Black Sea Grain Initiative, where operations are partially restarting.

Earlier this week, Russia confirmed that it will continue to take part in the UN-brokered agreement for a further 60 days.

The July 2022 deal allows for grain and other related foodstuffs to be shipped to global markets via three Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea. It is facilitated by the Joint Coordination Centre (JCC), which is based in Istanbul and staffed by representatives from Russia, Ukraine, Türkiye and the UN.

On Friday, the JCC registered six new vessels to participate, out of 15 applications. Three loaded vessels are currently preparing for inspection in Istanbul.

“No ships are currently though loading at any of the three Ukrainian ports under the terms of the Initiative. Teams from the Joint Coordination Centre checked and cleared today three new vessels to proceed to the ports of Odesa and Chornomorsk,” Ms. Tremblay told journalists.

She said the UN “continues to call for the prompt return to a tempo of operations that makes full use of the capacities of the three ports and the Joint Coordination Centre teams.”

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

IAEA warns of ‘increasingly tense military situation’ around Ukraine nuclear plant — Global Issues

IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said on Friday in a statement, that a location near the town of Enerhodar, home of most of the plant’s staff, reportedly came under artillery fire earlier in the day, “in the latest incident indicating an increasingly tense military situation in the area.”

Speculation of military activity

The ZNPP, Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, is located just a few kilometres from Enerhodar.

IAEA experts present at the plant reported that it had not been affected “but the proximity once again underlined persistent nuclear safety and security dangers at a time of heightened speculation of future military operations in the region,” said Mr. Grossi.

He again underlined his determination to secure the protection of the ZNPP, which has already been shelled several times during the conflict.

Preventing nuclear risk

The Director General said he is engaged in intense negotiations with all parties to achieve this vital objective and help prevent the risk of a severe nuclear accident on the continent.

“It is very simple: don’t shoot at the plant and don’t use the plant as a military base. It should be in the interest of everyone to agree on a set of principles to protect the plant during the conflict,” he said.

The ZNPP was occupied by Russian forces shortly after the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Staff under stress

There has been a major fall in staff numbers since the fighting began, with personnel and their families facing extremely difficult and stressful conditions in the frontline region during the conflict.

The IAEA said a recent evacuation of some residents from Enerhodar added to the uncertainty about the staffing situation.

Earlier this month, agency experts observed a further reduction in staffing to essential personnel only, but regular day staff returned to the plant on Monday. However, the workforce size is still far below the pre-conflict level.

Personnel numbers ‘insufficient’

“Our experts have seen a notable increase of personnel at the plant this week. At the moment, it has enough staff for a plant whose reactors are all in a shutdown mode. It remains clearly insufficient, however, for carrying out necessary maintenance and other regular work,” said Mr. Grossi, who described the situation as “unsustainable”.

He warned that the longer the plant has this kind of reduced staffing, the bigger the nuclear safety and security risks become.

Sole power line

Furthermore, the ZNPP still relies on the only remaining functioning 750 kilovolt power line for the external electricity required for reactor cooling and other essential nuclear safety and security functions.

Four such lines were available prior to the conflict, while the last functioning back-up 330 kilovolt powerline was damaged in March and has still not been repaired.

Meanwhile, the IAEA team onsite continues engagement on gaining access to the nearby Zaporizhzhya Thermal Power Plant (ZTPP) following assurances by Russia’s state nuclear company, Rosatom, that this would be granted.

The ZTPP operates its 330-kilovolt open switchyard, through which back-up power has previously been provided to the nuclear power plant.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Imperative to ‘explore all options’ to reach civilians – UN relief chief — Global Issues

Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths said that it was “imperative that we explore all options to reach civilians”, stressing that all parties to the fighting must allow and facilitate the “rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief”.

“I urge the parties to strengthen facilitation efforts so we can reach all civilians in need”, he said.

Cut off from food, water, care

He noted that many communities along Ukraine’s northeastern border with Russia and the frontline of fighting, were encircled, without access to water, food and medical care.

“Only last week in Kherson, residential buildings, a school, an outpatient hospital, and an elderly care facility were reportedly damaged, leaving scores of civilians needing shelter and healthcare. And missile strikes in Odesa hit a humanitarian storage warehouse. A Ukrainian Red Cross mobile hospital in Mykolaiv was also hit. Humanitarian supplies and vital medical equipment were destroyed.”

He said no staff or volunteers were injured but the threats persist. Civilians must not be target, he insisted, or the homes, schools, hospitals and buildings, where they live and work.

He stressed again, the need for a political solution, and importance of peace for Ukraine, with civilian casualties during Russia’s continued occupation of parts of the south and east, “rising to their highest levels in months.”

Over 20,000 dead or injured

The UN human rights office, OHCHR, “has now verified a staggering 23,600 civilian casualties since 24 February 2022; we all know the actual toll is likely to be much higher”, said Mr. Griffiths.

Despite the constant dangers, the “sheer bravery of humanitarian workers, particularly local workers”, for the UN and other NGOs, means life-saving assistance continues to be delivered nationwide.

He said nearly 3.6 million people received humanitarian assistance in Ukraine in the first quarter of 2023 with around 43 inter-agency convoys delivering food and vital supplies to some 278,000 people in frontline areas so far this year, “with local partners conducting last-mile delivery and distribution.”

But he said more is needed “to take our efforts to scale. The biggest challenge remains the impediments to reaching all areas in Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia currently under the military control of the Russian Federation.”

Full access to these areas “continue to be explored through engagement with both parties.”

UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe

Martin Griffiths (on screen), Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, briefs the Security Council meeting on maintenance of peace and security of Ukraine.

‘Recommitment’ to Black Sea Initiative

Food exported under the Black Sea Initiative, together with food and fertilizer exports from Russia, continue to make a crucial contribution to global food security, he told ambassadors.

More than 30 million metric tons of cargo have now been safely exported from Ukrainian ports, of which over 55 per cent has gone to developing countries and close to six per cent, directly to Least Developed Countries.

This includes just under 600,000 metric tons of wheat transported by the World Food Programme (WFP), in direct support of humanitarian operations in Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and Yemen.

Despite the progress and falling food prices since last summer’s highs, “much more remains to be done”.

“Predictable supplies for humanitarian food assistance operations continue to be required. The Initiative refers to the export of ammonia, but this has not yet been possible.

Over the past month, there’s been a major reduction in exports moving through Ukraine’s Black Sea ports, due to what the UN relief chief called “increasingly challenging dynamics” within the Joint Coordination Centre (JCC), run by Russia, Ukraine, the UN and Türkiye, “and a related slowdown in operations.”

He assured that intensive talks “to secure agreement on its extension and the improvements needed for it to operate effectively and predictably”, would continue in the next few days, with UN support continuing for the “Memorandum of Understanding on the facilitation of Russian food and fertilizer exports.”

“For the reasons I have set out, continuation of the Black Sea Initiative is critical, as is recommitment by the parties to its smooth and efficient operation. We call on all parties to meet their responsibilities in this regard.”

“The world is watching”, he underlined.

A war none can afford

He ended telling the Council it was clear that neither the people of Ukraine, or millions around the world who have suffered as a result of the economic chaos and supply chain issues, “can ill afford a continuation of this war.”

Mr. Griffiths called on Security Council member and all nations, to support all efforts to end “the carnage and destruction.”

“In the meantime, the United Nations and its humanitarian partners remain committed to safeguarding the life and dignity of persons affected by the war and to the pursuit of peace – today, tomorrow, and for as long as it takes.”

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Keep calm and respect diversity, says UN expert — Global Issues

“I am deeply concerned about increased bias-motivated incidents of harassment, threats, and violence against LGBT people, including a rampant surge in hate crimes in the UK,” said Victor Madrigal-Borloz, the human rights expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, who completed an official visit to the country on 5 May.

“All of this is attributed – by a wide range of stakeholders – to the toxic nature of the public debate surrounding sexual orientation and gender identity,” said the Human Ritexpert.

Mr. Madrigal-Borloz warned that these developments could endanger very significant achievements, built over decades, to address violence and discrimination in the country.

Violence and discrimination risk

In an extensive statement after his 10-day visit, Mr. Madrigal-Borloz lauded achievements in data gathering and said the UK was poised to take transformational public policy steps, on the basis of solid evidence.

The data makes it possible to determine social exclusion against LGBT persons but, equally importantly, the way factors such as race, ethnic background, and socio-economic status interact with sexual orientation and gender identity to exacerbate the risk of violence and discrimination, he said.

Mr. Madrigal-Borloz also noted the progress made through strategies, plans of action and public policies, which are evident in all four nations of the UK.

He was also encouraged by the actions of national governments and civil services in Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland in relation to devolved competencies in health, education, housing, and employment.

While acknowledging achievements in health and education, he expressed concern at the overrepresentation of LGBT persons among the homeless population in homelessness and relatively scarce data in relation to employment.

“Waiting lists for gender affirming treatment at the National Health Service continue to be years-long, and current initiatives risk erosion of achievements in comprehensive sex education,” the independent expert said.

Fighting for protection

The expert expressed grave concern about delays in long-promised legislation to ban the practice of “conversion” of sexual orientation and gender identity.

“The vicissitudes of this and other necessary public policies appear to be connected to political discourse concerning gender-diverse persons and refugees and asylum seekers, two areas in which recent State actions are cause for concern,” Mr. Madrigal-Borloz said.

He cited the example of the Illegal Migration Bill, and blanket policy decisions in relation to trans persons deprived of liberty.

The expert also took issue with recent advice by the UK Equalities and Human Rights Commission to the Government in Westminster, that promoted the reduction in human rights protections for trans persons with legal recognition of their gender.

“These actions were admittedly with the objective of withdrawing trans women from legal protections to which they are entitled under the Equality Act,” Mr. Madrigal Borloz said.

Demanding political accountability

The expert urged all stakeholders to recognise that democracies benefit from healthy debate, in an environment that includes protection of free speech, and accountability for hate speech, yet reminded them that they must keep the objective of human rights protection at the centre of State and non-State action.

“Politicians must carry out evidence-based evaluations, free from stigma and preconception,” the independent expert said.

Special Rapporteurs and other UN Human Rights Council-appointed rights experts, work on a voluntary and unpaid basis, are not UN staff, and work independently from any government or organisation.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Black Sea Initiative exports top 30 million tonnes from Ukraine, as talks continue over renewal — Global Issues

That was the message conveyed by the UN Humanitarian Affairs chief, Martin Griffiths, to a meeting held on Thursday in Istanbul, to discuss the future of the Initiative, with senior official from the signatories to the deal, Russia, and Ukraine, together with the UN and Türkiye, which also mediated the agreement.

Vital for global food security

In a note issued to correspondents from the UN Spokesperson’s Office on the meeting, Mr. Griffiths congratulated the parties to the deal – who also run the Joint Coordination Centre hub, based in Istanbul – on reaching the 30 million metric tonnes mark from Ukraine, and “reiterated the importance of the Initiative for global food security”.

The UN relief chief also recognized the important contribution of food and fertilizer exports from Russia.

UN proposals

The meeting discussed the recent proposals to advance the deal, made by the UN, namely the resumption of the Togliatti-Odesa ammonia pipeline, the longer extension of the Initiative, improvements at the JCC, “for stable operations and exports, as well as other issues raised by the parties.”

“The parties presented their views and agreed to engage with those elements going forward”, said the Spokesperson’s Office.

Mr. Griffiths stressed that the United Nations would “continue to work closely with all sides to achieve the continuation and full implementation of the Initiative, in pursuit of their broader shared commitment to addressing global food insecurity.”

Grain for those most in need

Latest detailed figures on the Initiative released on Monday showed that nearly 600,000 tonnes of grain have been shipped by vessels chartered by the World Food Programme (WFP) to support its humanitarian work in Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and Yemen.

Last year, Ukraine supplied more than half of WFP’s total global wheat procurement, similar to 2021.

As talks have continued in the past few months about extending the deal – which provides a safe maritime humanitarian corridor for shipping out of Ukrainian ports – exports have dipped by nearly 30 per cent, with JCC inspection rates dropping significantly to an average of 2.9 completed inspections daily, for the month of May.

Monday’s update from the Office of the UN Coordinator for the deal, said that the UN and Türkiye’s delegation were working closely with Ukraine and Russia, aiming to facilitate movements and inspections of inbound and outbound ships, “within the framework of the Initiative and agreed procedures, while discussions for the future of the Initiative continue.”

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Rights experts — Global Issues

Alice Edwards, who is officially known as the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, said she was “distressed by the deteriorating state of Mr. Navalny’s health and the apparent lack of satisfactory diagnosis and medical treatment”.

‘A form of torture’

In a statement also backed by six of her fellow Human Rights Council-appointed experts, she said that the alleged placement of the Russian politician, lawyer and anti-corruption campaigner in isolation on 11 separate occasions, amounting to 114 days in solitary confinement over seven months, “appears disproportionate” and would amount to a form of torture, if confirmed.

“Mr. Navalny is reportedly suffering from serious ill-health, including chronic spinal disease and problems related to neurological damage,” Ms. Edwards said.

The jailed leader returned to Russia in 2021 from receiving extensive medical treatment in Germany, after what laboratory tests indicated had been an attempt to poison him with a nerve agent, while in Siberia in August 2020.

He was immediately arrested after resolving to fly home to Russia, from Germany.

Jailed

The 46-year-old is serving concurrent sentences of 11.5 years for fraud and contempt of court – on charges which he said were trumped up to remove him from public life.

Russia has denied all previous allegations that any prison employees have mistreated Mr. Navalny, saying that he has been given access to medical treatment when needed.

Immediate care needed

“He must immediately and continuously be provided with adequate care, including comprehensive medical check-ups, treatment and monitoring of his health situation in a civil hospital.”

She also raised the cases of three of his political supporters, who are also being held in Russian jails – Liliya Chanysheva, Vadim Ostanin and Daniel Kholodny.

The Special Rapporteur said their cases should be “promptly, thoroughly and impartially investigated.

Release supporters ‘without delay’

“If it is found that these individuals are being arbitrarily deprived of their liberty, they should be released without delay.

She said in the case of Mr. Ostanin, whose condition is reportedly deteriorating, Russia “should as a matter of urgency provide adequate medical care in a civil hospital”.

Liliya Chanysheva is the previous head of Mr. Navalny’s office in the city of Ufa. She was arrested on charges of managing a “structural subdivision” of an extremist group in November 2021, said the UN rights office, OHCHR.

Mr. Ostanin, ran the Navalny office in the city of Byisk, and was arrested on similar charges in March 2022.

Mr. Kholodny, an employee of Mr. Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation, was arrested at the same time on charges of belonging to an extremist group, and for allegedly providing or collecting money to finance an extremist organisation, OHCHR said.

Concerns registered

The Special Rapporteur and other experts have been in direct contact with the Russian Government about these cases “and will continue to monitor them.”

Special Rapporteurs and other UN Human Rights Council-appointed rights experts, work on a voluntary and unpaid basis, are not UN staff, and work independently from any government or organisation.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

UN in Ukraine ‘appalled and saddened’ at deadly airstrikes and attacks — Global Issues

According to news reports, Russian airstrikes targeted the capital Kyiv for the third time in four days, following on from what Russian authorities said was an assassination attempt by drone strike, on President Vladimir Putin, earlier on Wednesday.

Ukrainian authorities, who deny any involvement in the drone incident in Moscow, said Thursday morning’s large-scale attack on Kyiv was repulsed by the city’s air defences without casualties. There were drone explosions in the southern coastal city of Odesa, news reports said.

“We are extremely concerned for the plight of civilians after almost a week of nightly airstrikes and attacks which have killed and injured dozens of people”, Humanitarian Coordinator Matthew Hollingworth said.

Critical infrastructure has also been destroyed, compounding the dire humanitarian situation, he added.

Carnage in Kherson

Mr. Hollingworth said it was “particularly alarming to see how dozens were killed or injured in Kherson, when a train station and a supermarket where people buy their groceries, were hit during the busiest hours of the day.”

More than 20 were killed due to Russian shelling nearly the southern Ukrainian city, according to news reports, with over 45 people injured. Those who died included three engineers who were trying to repair damage inflicted by earlier attacks.

“We share the grief of families who have lost loved ones and wish a quick recovery to those injured”, said the UN Humanitarian Coordinator.

Ukrainian troops recaptured the city of Kherson last November, following some eight months of Russian occupation, but shelling continues from across the Dnipro River.

Briefing journalists in New York on Thursday, UN Deputy Spokesperson, Farhan Haq, said that in eastern Ukraine, a power plant was reportedly hit close to the front line of the fighting, cutting energy supplies for around 100,000, according to the Ukrainian Government.

‘Humanitarian crisis’ in Marinka

“Our colleagues on the ground also warn about the humanitarian crisis in the area surrounding Marinka, in the Donetsk region. Here, some 5,000 civilians – according to the colleagues – are enduring heavy ground fighting and hostilities that have escalated over the past two months”, Mr Haq continued.

The UN humanitarian coordination office, OCHA, issued a flash update warning that the crisis was “rapidly unfolding”, across the contested area, where heavy ground fighting has “dramatically escalated over the past two months.”

OCHA said the neighbouring communities of Kurakhove and Vuhledar, home to a further 24,000 civilians – were also impacted, both due to the violence and pressure over limited services and resources, with people taking refuge there from other parts of Donetsk.

So far, the UN and partners have provided 13 truckloads of humanitarian aid for the three communities, targeting around 15,000 in need.

© UNOCHA/Oleksandr Ratushniak

Deminers try to clear a previously occupied area near the front line between Mykolaiv and Kherson, in Ukraine.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

UN condemns ‘inexcusable’ deadly airstrikes in Ukraine — Global Issues

Dozens of civilians across the country were killed and injured, and homes and other vital infrastructure, destroyed.

More than 20 people were killed in the small central city of Uman alone, when their apartment building collapsed after it was hit, according to international media reports.

‘Inexcusable’ attacks

“It is just inexcusable that in places like Uman, far from the frontline, civilians were killed while sleeping at their homes. This must stop,” Mr. Hollingworth wrote on Twitter.

Catherine Russell, Executive Director of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) also took to the platform to denounce the bloodshed.

“At least three children were reportedly killed in an attack on Uman, Ukraine today, including two 10-year-old children and a toddler. A three-year old was reportedly killed in Dnipro. War is the worst enemy of children. The violence must stop,” she tweeted.

Not a target

In New York, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric noted that deadly attacks were also reported in Donetsk city, capital of the eastern region of the same name, and currently under Russian control.

Authorities there said several civilians were killed and injured when a bus and hospital in the city centre were struck.

“It is an important reminder that civilians and civilian infrastructure are protected under international humanitarian law and they must never be targeted, wherever those facilities may be,” Mr. Dujarric said.

Delivering critical supplies

As a result of the increased fighting and violence, humanitarian needs are deepening in Ukraine, and the UN and partners are trying to provide as much assistance as possible.

“Since January, we have organized almost 40 humanitarian convoys to areas as close as a couple of hundred meters from the frontlines,” he said.

On Friday, humanitarians delivered six truckloads of critical supplies to the 3,000 people remaining in communities around Lyman, in the Donetsk region, which included medical supplies and enough food to last for three months.

Earlier this week, they reached the city of Orikhiv, located just 10 kilometers from the frontline in the Zaporizhzhia region, and delivered water, hygiene and shelter kits for some 1,600 civilians, mostly older people.

Mr. Dujarric told journalists that these residents have been sheltering in basements to keep safe from shelling, and lack access to markets, electricity, piped water and gas, which is make life more difficult.



Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Survivors reflect on nuclear accident, Russian occupation — Global Issues

Looking back on two of the most difficult periods since the plant opened in 1977, Chernobyl employees shared their personal stories with UN News on the International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day.

Ground zero

Evgeny Yashin was a 40-year-old chemist at the Chernobyl plant when the nuclear power reactor accident unfolded in April 1986, resulting in massive evacuations, the deaths of 31 people, and long-term illness for thousands of others.

“Everyone was talking about the explosion of the reactor’s emergency cooling system,” he told UN News, recalling a fateful bus ride to work on the day of the accident. “But, passing by the fourth power unit, it became clear to us that it was much more serious than expected; the wall of the reactor had completely fallen out and a glow could be seen, resembling a steel foundry oven. We took action immediately.”

Mass evacuations

At that point, the scale of the accident was neither expected nor assessed, he said, adding that protocols were not in place because it had been inconceivable that this could happen to the reactors. As a shift supervisor of 300 employees at Chernobyl’s chemical workshop, his team’s main task was to prepare demineralized water, receive radioactive liquid waste, store it, and process it.

“We prepared the water to extinguish the reactor, walked knee-deep in water, and organized pumping,” he said. “Water appeared to be flowing endlessly, the system was launched at full capacity, and more and more water was required.”

On 27 April, Pripyat inhabitants were evacuated along with some of the plant’s staff, he said, remembering buses driving across the city, stopping in front of houses to collect evacuees. Relatives could neither call, warn them nor discuss the evacuation route, he said, recalling that he found his family had moved out of the area.

‘Very few of my colleagues are still alive’

In early May, the remaining staff were experiencing serious side-effects, as doctors monitored their health via frequent blood tests, he said, adding that some were taken “out of the zone” to rest.

“I feel the consequences on my health even now,” said Mr. Yashin, who has cancer. “Very few of my colleagues are still alive. I am surprised that I myself am still alive.”

Meanwhile, disputes remain about who is to blame, he said.

“I am 100 per cent sure that the designers could not have foreseen such a development,” he said. “The station personnel took all measures to localize the accident’s consequences, but could not prevent it.”

Since then, each year, on 26 April, residents of the city of Slavutych gather at a monument to the Chernobyl victims, lighting candles and remembering those tragic events, Mr. Yashin said. While he no longer works at the plant, his granddaughter, Tatiana, is an engineer who handles spent nuclear fuel at the facility, where it is stored alongside thousands of tons of radioactive waste.

New threat

Like all nuclear power facilities, Chernobyl enjoys special protection under international humanitarian law. But, the 2022 Russian occupation raised grave safety concerns. It also brought employees back to 1986 working conditions, requiring compulsory rotational shifts.

“We are now working as in 1986,” Alexander Novikov, the plant’s deputy chief engineer for technical safety, said. “I have just arrived on duty and will be here until next Monday. We converted our offices into rest stations, installing showers and washing machines. Radiation control has been significantly strengthened; we carry it out every day because people live close to the station.”

One year after the Russian occupation, employees can no longer take a simple bus ride. Most live in Slavutych, but railway lines were bombed on the first day the Russia’s invasion, on 24 February 2022. Workers now travel by bus from 350 kilometres away, work for a whole week, staying in the exclusion zone for the entire period, and then return home, he said.

New roommates

Until 2022, nuclear facilities had never been captured in the context of conflict, Mr. Novikov said. The unique situation has called for tailored measures.

“The IAEA made an unconventional decision to organize ‘permanent missions’,” he said, adding that power plant employees and IAEA inspectors alike are constantly present at the facility. “Inspectors used to come and conduct an inspection for several days or weeks and then leave. Now, IAEA representatives live with our staff, carrying out inspection activities without leaving the plant.”

When a country loses control over such facilities and is unable to conduct inspections, it must turn to the international community for support, he said.

‘The time has come’

“The time has come to respond to crises,” said IAEA chief Rafael Grossi.

While the agency’s main task, since its inception at the height of the cold war in 1957, is to ensure safety at nuclear facilities, it has never encountered the need to operate in the epicenter of intense armed fighting.

Following the onset of the war in Ukraine, the agency invited stakeholders to discussions at its headquarters in Vienna. Representing the Chernobyl plant as part of a Ukrainian delegation, Mr. Novikov said not one of the many reports he had read had mentioned the Russian war against Ukraine.

Demilitarize nuclear facilities

“The question arose of how to ensure security in such situations that are happening now in our country,” he recalled, pointing out that the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is also operating in the middle of a warzone. “After all, any incident can lead to consequences that will be felt throughout Europe.”

Indeed, Zaporizhzhia is Europe’s largest nuclear power plant.

“You can’t capture nuclear facilities,” he stressed. “The area around nuclear power plants must be demilitarized.”

Protect cleanest energy source

Despite the challenges of accidents and war, nuclear energy represents the future, as electricity consumption in the world is growing, he said. For example, 80 per cent of electricity in France comes from nuclear power sources.

“No matter how paradoxical these words sounded after Chernobyl and Fukushima, nuclear power plants are one of the safest electricity producers,” he said. “Under normal operations, absent accidents and incidents, it is also the cleanest source.”

New types of reactors are reliable and controllable, he explained, adding that the development of nuclear energy is “the most promising way” forward.

“All we need now is a new approach to security,” he said.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Now Europeans Learn What Climate Extremes Are All About — Global Issues

Rhine River, Cologne,,Germany,10.08.2022. Credit: Shutterstock.
  • by Baher Kamal (madrid)
  • Inter Press Service

MADRID, Apr 25 (IPS) – Apologies to those Western politicians and media who continue to say that Ukraine’s brutal proxy war stands behind whatever catastrophes, disasters or crises occur in the Planet.

Is this accurate?

Scientific evidence confirms that, much earlier than that war, Europe, like many other regions, was already walking closer to the edge of extreme weather consequences.

Europe’s worst drought in 500 years?

“The drought episode that affected Europe in 2022 could well be the worst in 500 years,” reports Copernicus, the Earth observation component of the European Union’s Space programme which “looks at our planet and its environment to benefit all European citizens and offers information services.”

This European service further explains that the 2022 drought episode “is attributable to a severe and persistent lack of precipitation, combined with a sequence of repeated heat waves that have affected Europe from May to October.”

Put simply, the reported climate extremes in Europe are not the consequence of the Ukraine war, and they were already there many years earlier to when it started in February 2022.

Anyway, European citizens now hear the devastating impacts of climate extremes in their own rich continent, which is one of the major global contributors to the ongoing climate emergency.

Are climate emergencies just an impoverished regions’ problem?

So far, the severe impacts of climate extremes in Africa and other impoverished regions, would jump to the news every now and then, by showing short videos of errant human beings and deserts… before analysing in-depth the latest soccer games or reporting on the new friend of a reality-show star. And highway accidents or a fight between young gangs.

Western citizens are also used to hearing that the horrifying numbers of hungry people (more than one billion human beings), in particular in East Africa due to long years of record droughts, is either caused by the war in Ukraine or that their situation was exacerbated by it.

Now European citizens wake up to the upsetting fact that they also fall under the heavy impact of the steadily rising human, economic, and environmental toll of climate change.

How come those impacts are now becoming news?

A swift answer is that such climate extremes, heat waves, severe droughts, water and food production shortages have been causing increasing damage to private businesses, as well as to medium-to-small-size agriculture activities. In short, damaging their pockets.

See what the very same European Union officially says at the macro level:

– Weather- and climate-related hazards, such as temperature extremes, heavy precipitation and droughts, pose risks to human health and the environment and can lead to substantial economic losses.

— Between 1980 and 2021, weather- and climate-related extremes amounted to an estimated EUR 560 billion (2021 values).

– Hydrological events (floods) account for over 45% and meteorological events (storms including lightning and hail, together with mass movements) for almost one-third of the total.

– When it comes to climatological events, heat waves are responsible for over 13% of the total losses while the remaining +/-8% are caused by droughts, forest fires and cold waves.

– The most expensive hazards during the period 1980-2021 include the 2021 flooding in Germany and Belgium (almost EUR 50 billion), the 2002 flood in central Europe (over EUR 22 billion), the 2003 drought and heatwave across the EU (around EUR 16 billion), the 1999 storm Lothar in Western Europe and the 2000 flood in France and Italy (both over EUR 13 billion), all at 2021 values.

– A relatively small number of events is responsible for a large proportion of the economic losses: 5% of the weather- and climate-related events with the biggest losses is responsible for 57% of losses and 1% of the events cause 26% of losses (EEA’s own calculations based on the original dataset).

– This results in high variability from year to year and makes it difficult to identify trends. Nevertheless, the average annual (constant prices, 2021 euros) losses were around EUR 9.7 billion in 1981-1990, 11.2 billion in 1991-2000, 13.5 billion in 2001-2010 and 15.3 billion in 2011-2020.

– The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicts that climate-related extreme events will become more frequent and severe worldwide. This could affect multiple sectors and cause systemic failures across Europe, leading to greater economic losses.

– Only 30% of the total losses were insured, although this varied considerably among countries, from less than 2% in Hungary, Lithuania and Romania to over 75% in Slovenia and the Netherlands.

Also at the medium-to-micro level

Most medium-to-small agricultural cooperatives, unions and associations in those European countries more stricken by droughts, have been rising their public protests, demanding their governments to compensate them for the big losses of their harvests.

In the specific case of Spain, farmers’ unions and agri-food cooperatives report crop losses of up to two-thirds of the expected harvest.

Back to Copernicus

The “historical drought” affected Europe as evidenced by the Combined Drought Indicator of the Copernicus Emergency Management Service European Drought Observatory for the first ten-day period of September 2022.

On this, Copernicus reports the following findings:

– Heatwaves: 2022 was also characterised by intense, and in some areas prolonged, heatwaves which affected Europe and the rest of the world, breaking several surface air temperature records.

– As reported in the July 2022 Climate Bulletin published by the Copernicus Climate Change Service July 2022 was the sixth warmest July in Europe.

– Temperature anomalies reached peaks of +4ºC in Italy, France, and Spain.

According to the European Union’s Copernicus:

– The prolonged drought that has affected various parts of the globe together with the record temperatures were contributing forces that have certainly caused an increased wildfire risk, which peaked during the summer season both in Europe, in the Mediterranean region, and in the north-west of the United States.

– The Combined Drought Indicator (which is published by the European Drought Observatory as part of the Copernicus Emergency Management Service) reported that more than one-fourth of the EU territory was in “Alert” conditions in early September.

– Another extreme phenomenon of 2022 was the marine heatwave that affected the Mediterranean Sea in the summer of 2022.

European countries are highly dependent on the Mediterranean Sea for shipping goods, including oil tankers; tourism (one country – Spain receives more than 80 million tourists a year, double its total population); industrial fishing; refineries; harbours, and a long etcetera.

© Inter Press Service (2023) — All Rights ReservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Exit mobile version