Reindeer are still very radioactive 30 years after Chernobyl

April 26 marks the 30 year anniversary of the worst civilian nuclear disaster in history. When a nuclear power plant at Chernobyl exploded, it coated the earth with radioactive material — as far as the picturesque, snow-capped mountains of Scandanavia, where for generations, the indigenous Sami people lived in harmony with nature.

Many worked as boazovázzi, or "reindeer walkers," herding the animals over hundreds of miles of terrain and selling their meat come slaughter season. The reindeer were a cultural and economic centerpiece for the Sami people.

Chernobyl poisoned their way of life by turning the reindeer radioactive. Thirty years later, the reindeer walkers are still devastated.

Photographer Amos Chapple with Radio Free Europe traveled to the Norweigan village of Snasa, where he met with herders fighting to preserve their traditions. Chapple shared a few photos with us, and you can read the whole story here. 

In the fallout of Chernobyl, streams of radioactive material spewed into the atmosphere above the Soviet Union and across Europe. Among the most dangerous fission products was cesium-137.

Wind and rain carried contaminants to the ground, and in Norway, spring brought a relentless downpour. Radio Free Europe reports 700 grams of radioactive cesium-137 settled on the land there.

Source: Radio Free Europe

The radioactive materials funneled into the lakes and forests, contaminating wildlife, berries, and plants. Worse still, it got to a spindly green fungus called lichen, a reindeer's favorite wintertime snack.

Flickr/randihausken

Lichen has no roots system and absorbs nutrients from the air, making it well suited to sponge up all that cesium-137. The reindeer gorged themselves and became radioactive.

Amos Chapple

Source: University of Texas

For 9,000 years, the Sami people tethered their cultural identity to the reindeer. The animal provided food, income, and traditions that herders passed on. Chernobyl brought an abrupt end.

Amos Chapple

Source: Associated Press

In 1986, scientists detected levels of radiation in the reindeer unfit for human consumption. European governments passed strict regulations, and the Sami people released their herds back to the wild.

Source: University of Texas

"The aftermath of Chernobyl was devastating," Chapple tells Tech Insider. "[The herders] went from living this timeless lifestyle, completely at one with nature, to suddenly working in one of the most contaminated places on earth."

Amos Chapple

Thirty years later, conditions have improved. The radioactivity of the cesium-137 released has decayed by half, but much of the slow-growing lichen remains unsafe. In 2014, hundreds of reindeer failed inspection due to strong fungus growth.

Amos Chapple

Source: Cultural Survival and Radio Free Europe

Sami herders in Snasa, who eat reindeer, get tested annually for radiation. They tell Chapple they will always live in the shadow of Chernobyl.

Bjorn-Owe Holmberg/AP