Thousands of hectares of farmland in northern Ukraine that were considered too dangerous for cultivation following the Chornobyl disaster almost 40 years ago can safely return to agricultural production, according to new research.
A study involving University of Portsmouth, the Ukrainian Institute of Agricultural Radiology, the University of Salford and the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) developed a method for the safe reassessment of farmland abandoned after the nuclear power station accident in 1986. This ‘protocol’ involving radiation measurement and modelling evaluates contamination levels and predicts the uptake of radioactive substances by common crops such as potatoes, cereals, maize and sunflowers.
Co-authors on the study included the late Professor Nick Beresford, a radioecologist at UKCEH, who visited the areas affected by the Chornobyl disaster many times over four decades to study radiation exposure and carry out risk assessment.
The 4,200 km2 Chornobyl Exclusion Zone around the nuclear site remains uninhabited while a further 2,000 km2 area, known as the Zone of Obligatory Resettlement, was never fully abandoned. A few farmers have begun unofficial production in some areas but officially, no use of land or investment was allowed.
Low radiation levels
The latest study, published in the Journal of Environmental Radioactivity, supports what farmers and many scientists have insisted since the 1990s – that crops can be grown safely in many areas.
Using a 100-hectare test site in the Zhytomyr region within the Zone of Obligatory Resettlement, the researchers analysed soil samples and measured gamma radiation levels. They confirmed the effective radiation dose to agricultural workers was well below Ukraine’s national safety threshold and was significantly lower than background levels experienced naturally all over the world.
With careful implementation and community involvement, the researchers believe Ukraine could safely reclaim up to 20,000 hectares of agricultural land, contributing to food security and rural development.
The research team hopes this protocol can serve as a model for not only the Chornobyl-affected areas radiation but other regions worldwide dealing with long-term radioactive contamination.
Paper information
Smith et al. 2025. A protocol for the radiological assessment for agricultural use of land in Ukraine abandoned after the Chornobyl accident. Journal of Environmental Radioactivity. DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvrad.2025.107698. Open access.
This work was supported by the Natural Environment Research Council’s TREE iCLEAR project (grant NE/R009619/1).