Reindeer Pulling Sleigh Photo by Elen Schurova via wikimedia.

“The Chernobyl accident is an obvious example of how human failures when dealing with a modern technical system can have global consequences and also be a potential threat to what we like to think of as the unspoiled wilderness of the Arctic.” (Ahman, 1995) http://septentrio.uit.no/index.php/rangifer/article/viewFile/1455/1370

Reindeer are particularly at risk from nuclear fallout because Reindeer love to eat lichens, and lichens are excellent absorbers of radiation. The, 26 April, 1986, Chernobyl disaster is well-documented to have scattered radioactive caesium 137 (cesium 137), with a half life of about 30 years over Europe. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caesium-137. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_disaster This is very bad, as caesium is very similar to potassium and hence can be taken up by human and animal body as well. Potassium is one of the most important, and perhaps the most important element in the body, as it is necessary for…