Site of Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster May Apply for UNESCO Protection
2021-04-26
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1Are you interested in a visit to the site of the world's worst nuclear power accident?
2The government of Ukraine hopes so.
3The country's culture minister is requesting that the United Nations add the Chernobyl disaster area to its list of world heritage sites, meaning those of exceptional historic importance.
4The sites are then recognized as protected places.
5April 26 will mark the 35th anniversary of the disaster, caused by an explosion of a nuclear reactor.
6The center was testing its emergency operations system at the time.
7Thirty-one power plant workers and firefighters died from radiation poisoning immediately after the explosion.
8Thousands of other people died in the years that followed from cancer and other conditions linked to radiation poisoning.
9The total number of dead from the disaster is disputed.
10The nuclear plant is located near the town of Pripyat, about 100 kilometers north of Kiev.
11Townspeople were ordered to leave to safer areas.
12All that remains in the area is the nuclear complex itself, damaged buildings and trees and plants that have grown in and around the wreckage.
13In 2019, the American television company HBO produced a fictional series based on the nuclear accident.
14It increased public interest in the disaster. Over 100,000 people visited Chernobyl that year.
15UNESCO, the United Nations' cultural organization, would decide whether to make it a protected area.
16But first, Ukraine needs to add Chernobyl to a national list of historically important locations.
17Then it can continue with its UNESCO request.
18Oleksandr Tkachenko is Ukraine's culture minister.
19He said the importance of Chernobyl "lays far beyond Ukraine's borders...."
20UNESCO protection of the site is not just about, in his words "commemoration, but also history and people's rights."
21Ukraine will have to make repairs to the nuclear site and the nearby town if the site wins UNESCO recognition.
22UNESCO will not consider adding Chernobyl as a world heritage site before 2022.
23Some other UNESCO heritage sites around the world include:
24Australia's Great Barrier Reef, the Schönbrunn Palace in Austria, China's Great Wall, the old town of Dubrovnik in Croatia and Ecuador's Galapagos Islands.
25I'm Dan Friedell.
1Are you interested in a visit to the site of the world's worst nuclear power accident? 2The government of Ukraine hopes so. 3The country's culture minister is requesting that the United Nations add the Chernobyl disaster area to its list of world heritage sites, meaning those of exceptional historic importance. The sites are then recognized as protected places. 4April 26 will mark the 35th anniversary of the disaster, caused by an explosion of a nuclear reactor. The center was testing its emergency operations system at the time. Thirty-one power plant workers and firefighters died from radiation poisoning immediately after the explosion. Thousands of other people died in the years that followed from cancer and other conditions linked to radiation poisoning. The total number of dead from the disaster is disputed. 5The nuclear plant is located near the town of Pripyat, about 100 kilometers north of Kiev. 6Townspeople were ordered to leave to safer areas. All that remains in the area is the nuclear complex itself, damaged buildings and trees and plants that have grown in and around the wreckage. 7In 2019, the American television company HBO produced a fictional series based on the nuclear accident. It increased public interest in the disaster. Over 100,000 people visited Chernobyl that year. 8UNESCO, the United Nations' cultural organization, would decide whether to make it a protected area. But first, Ukraine needs to add Chernobyl to a national list of historically important locations. Then it can continue with its UNESCO request. 9Oleksandr Tkachenko is Ukraine's culture minister. 10He said the importance of Chernobyl "lays far beyond Ukraine's borders...." UNESCO protection of the site is not just about, in his words "commemoration, but also history and people's rights." 11Ukraine will have to make repairs to the nuclear site and the nearby town if the site wins UNESCO recognition. 12UNESCO will not consider adding Chernobyl as a world heritage site before 2022. 13Some other UNESCO heritage sites around the world include: Australia's Great Barrier Reef, the Schönbrunn Palace in Austria, China's Great Wall, the old town of Dubrovnik in Croatia and Ecuador's Galapagos Islands. 14I'm Dan Friedell. 15Margaryta Chornokondratenko wrote this story for Reuters. Dan Friedell adapted it for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. 16Would you travel to Ukraine to see the Chernobyl site? Tell us in the Comments Section and visit our Facebook page. 17___________________________________________________________ 18Words in This Story 19lay -v. used to describe the location of something in a nonspecific way 20commemoration -n. something (such as a special ceremony) that is intended to honor an important event or person from the past