Arnika - Ekibastuz

Ekibastuz

21.7.2014 - Kazakhstan

Experts of Arnika and EcoMuseum are taking samples of PCBs-contaminated soil at abondoned electric substation near Ekibastuz.

The substation was equiped by 15 thousand capacitors containing higly dangerous PCBs.

Ekibastuz belongs to the places most heavily contaminated by PCBs in whole Kazakhstan, and represents serious threat to the public health.

Several researches were conducted on the territory of former substation, showing very different results.

The facility is not fenced and cattle graze even directly on contaminated land.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, people started to dismantle the building and capacitors themselves, searching for construction materials, metals and copper to sell on the market.

Thousands of people keep domestic animals and grow fruits and vegetables in some of several cottage settlements located just few hundred meters from contaminated area.

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