A mutation is the changes in the nucleotide sequence of the genetic material of an organism. Some of these mutations may have little to no effect on humans but certain ones can cause serious, even deadly complications.
Chernobyl is a city in Ukraine, right next to the city is a nuclear power plant containing multiple reactors. In 1986 one nuclear reactor malfunctioned and caused a meltdown. Nearby cities were evacuated, many rescue workers died and the meltdown affected many people all throughout the surrounding areas.
Originally, the severity of the accident was not realized by those attempting to fix the situation, this was do to inaccurate readings, malfunctioning equipment, and a lack of caution. In the aftermath of the meltdown about 237 citizens of nearby towns suffered acute radiation sickness and 31 of them died, hundreds of workers and rescue workers were killed by the radiation caused by the meltdown. Even today people are still dying from the complications caused by the radiation.
The effects of radiation on humans depends on several things, how strong the radiation is and how long the person is exposed to it. In minor doses it may cause minor, detectable problems such as nausea, in slightly larger doses in can cause more major issues such as hair loss and changes in the blood, if exposed to major doses, there is a 50% you will die. There is no effective treatment so those exposed to too large of amounts typically die within two weeks. If someone lives after being exposed to large amounts of radiation, chances are they will develop a serious disease such as leukemia, lung cancer, thyroid cancer, breast cancer, and many other different cancers. Many effects follow those who were originally exposed, still today people are dying from effects of the Chernobyl disaster radiation, the estimated number of deaths caused by this accident, 16,000
There is still toxic radiation all around the area and a 16 mile radius is still marked off, only certain personnel may enter. Currently the reactor that had a meltdown is covered in a stone shell called the sarcophagus. Even with advanced protection you cannot remain inside for very long. They are currently working on a ten year project to clean it up. The project is greatly funded by the US and involves covering the plant with a giant steel arch.
I think Chernobyl should cause concern for others using nuclear power but not stop us from using it completely. The accident showed us how easily the gas and components could be spread into the air and cause fallout world wide. The accident also showed how very deadly this whole thing could be. Chernobyl’s radiation caused radiation poisoning that killed rescue workers in days, cancer mutation like leukemia and other cancers caused by radiation also slowly killed people over time and caused birth defects.. We should learn from Chernobyl that nuclear power needs to be respected and used carefully and not abused. Chernobyl is an a example of the worst case scenario, we need to look at it and learn from their mistakes so as not to repeat it
There should be international laws on these materials because they have such a threat on human life if not controlled. The way I think the laws should work is that a company is only allowed to have a regulated amount of materials and the material is closely monitored by the government. The reactors should also not be allowed to be set around civilization and should be in isolated areas so if something would happen, the direct effect on humans would not be as terrible.
