RADIOACTIVE WASTE BURIED.

On February 13, it was reported that experts working for the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations had buried eight ionizing radiation sources which had been found in Djohar (Grozny). The radioactive substances were found on the territory of a chemical plant, of the Red Hammer plant, and of Secondary School no. 38, located in the Zavodskoi and Leninsky districts of the Chechen capital. The radiating power of some of the substances was said to exceed 400 milliroentgen per hour. During the summer of 2000, the Ministry was reported to have averted “an ecological catastrophe” in the capital when it discovered “a huge amount of ionizing radiation sources at five industrial installations in Grozny and took them out of the city using special robots” (Military News Agency, February 13; Russian agencies, February 12-13).