Russia’s illegal military actions at the sites of nuclear power plants in Ukraine, especially the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant (hereinafter – ZAE), have sown fears of possible radioactive contamination of Europe. Specialists of the Radiation Protection Center, after forecasting the consequences of nuclear accidents, pointed out that the greatest radiation threat is to the countries closest to the UAE, i.e. Russia, Belarus, Turkey, Moldova, Romania, but, according to the specialists, there would be no significant radiological impact on Lithuania (see fig. 1, 2, in which the spread of radioactive contamination, displayed in colors from green to dark blue, reflects very low gamma dose rate values).
Although there is a great risk that hostilities at the Ukrainian nuclear power plant sites could cause nuclear accidents, the ZAE, which is the largest in Europe, is more than 900 km away from Lithuania. Based on the recommendations of international organizations and the experience of previous nuclear accidents, if a nuclear accident were to occur in the UAE, due to the great distance to Lithuania, it is unlikely that there would be a significant radiological impact on the Lithuanian population and it would be necessary to apply population protection measures and use stable iodine preparations.
These prediction results made by the Radiation Protection Center specialists are confirmed by the comments of experts presented in the public space.
Specialists of the Radiation Protection Center constantly forecast the consequences of nuclear accidents at Belarusian and Ukrainian nuclear power plants, including ZAE, for the Lithuanian population and the environment, and cooperate with the regulatory authorities of other countries on the issues of forecasting the spread of radioactive contamination. When forecasting, the direction and speed of the spread of the radioactive cloud in real weather conditions and the exposure of the population can be determined by the radioactive substances deposited on the earth’s surface.
A real threat to Lithuanian residents would arise in the event of an accident at the Belarusian nuclear power plant, which is 20 km away from the Lithuanian border.
Specialists of the Radiation Safety Center constantly (24/7) monitor the radiation background in Lithuania. We will immediately inform the responsible institutions and residents about any impending danger related to the spread of radioactive materials in Lithuania.