NUBiP of Ukraine received technical assistance from Japan

    The Ukrainian Research Institute of Agricultural Radiology of the National University of Life and Environmental Sciences received one of the latest analytical complexes - the ICP-MS mass spectrometer - from its partners from Japan.

     Such technical assistance is a part of the international cooperation project “Improving Environmental Radiation Control and Legislative Framework in Ukraine for Ecological Rehabilitation of Radioactively Contaminated Territories”, funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency and Japan Science and Technology Agency on behalf of the Government of Japan through SATREPS State Science and Technology Program. The expert commission on the implementation of the project in Ukraine consisting of the representatives of the Department of Foreign Affairs of the Japan Science and Technology Agency and scientists of Fukushima and Tsukuba universities came to Ukraine to supervise the opening of the complex.

    Leading research institutions of Ukraine and Japan are actively involved in eliminating the consequences of Chernobyl and Fukushima radiation accidents. A significant contribution is made by the scientists of the Ukrainian Research Institute of Agricultural Radiology of NUBiP of Ukraine, whose research data are being used by the UN Scientific Committee on Atomic Radiation to refine the estimates of fuel ejected from the reactor of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.

   ‘The long-term goals of the project are to strengthen the technical level of radiation control and the legislative base in Ukraine for the environmental restoration of radioactively contaminated territories, to provide monitoring and support of the implementation of the new zoning of the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone,’ comments Svyatoslav Levchuk, Deputy Head of the Ukrainian Research Institute of Agricultural Radiology. ‘We also aim to gain new knowledge about the long-term behavior of radionuclides in the environment and to evaluate the effectiveness of management methods and technologies for environmental recovery by comparing the studies of Chernobyl and Fukushima.’

    ‘Close cooperation between the Ukrainian Research Institute of Agricultural Radiology and Japanese scientists started immediately after the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant accident in April 2011,’ said Rector Stanislav Nikolaenko, welcoming the meeting participants. ‘For five years, NUBiP researchers Vasyl Yoshchenko and Olena Parenyuk have been assisting their Japanese counterparts at the Institute for Environmental Radioactivity at Fukushima University. And Japanese scientists are frequent guests of our research station in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. So our cooperation with the Japanese counterparts is very beneficial for both parties. We are grateful for the support of this project and the resources provided. We will make every effort to maximize the research efficiency.’ Head of the university assured that the university administration will continue to do everything necessary to support the Ukrainian Research Institute of Agricultural Radiology.

   Professor Nanba of Fukushima University noted the contribution of Ukrainian scientists to the elimination of the consequences of the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant accident and their reliability as partners. He and his colleagues are happy to cooperate with us even after the completion of this project.

   ‘It is a modern device that allows to analyze the elemental and isotope composition of any samples (including transuranium elements, which present the greatest threat in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone due to their half-life of tens of thousands of years) - products of agroindustrial complex, biological materials, environmental objects even at extremely low concentration (up to 0.01 ppb) and reproducibility,’ comments senior researcher Valeriya Morozova, who will work with the complex. ‘With this incredible tool one can solve many complex and routine scientific and analytical issues.’

   Earlier, the university had already received equipment to assess biomass in forests and the behavior of radionuclides in the environment. Next year, the equipment for hot particles identification is expected to arrive.

Valentyn Obrambalskyy