Chelyabinsk : the most contaminated spot on the planet / produced by Slawomir Grunberg.

Format:

Video

Contributor:

Grunberg, Slawomir.

Series:

Filmakers library online.

Academic Video Online

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Cheli︠a︡binsk (Russia).

Genre:

Documentary films.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (62 min.).

Place of Publication:

Spencer, NY : LogTV, 1995.

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

The whole world was horrified by the Chernobyl disaster, especially as it threatened to contaminate Europe. In the backwoods of Russia, however, there is a city with an atomic weapons complex which has endured no less than three nuclear disasters in the last forty-five years. In 1957, there was an explosion of the cooling system. Ten years later, a storm spread radi oactive dust. For six years, the complex systematically dumped radioactive waste into the only river that supplied water for twenty-four villages. Until now Chelyabinsk has been shrouded in secrecy. In 1992 when the area was opened up to foreigners, the filmmaker began recording the details of ordinary life in this deadly environment. A kitchen Geiger counter is necessary to guard against radiation in food. The countryside looks deceptively beautiful, but the Techa River, which beckons to children on warm summer days, is contaminated. Life expectancy is between fifty and fifty-five years and ninety percent of the children suffer from chronic illnesses. As one listens to the farmers, teachers, doctors and factory workers who live in Chelyabinsk, one is struck by the inhumanity of governments whose priorities put military advantage above people s well-being.

Notes:

Originally released as DVD.

Title from resource description page (viewed May 24, 2011).

Grand Prix, International Nature and Environment Film Festival of Grenoble, France, 1996

Best Journalistic Achievement, International Ecological Film Festival, 1995

National Educational Film & Video Festival, 1995

Reporting Film Award, International Festival of Environmental Films, Paris, France, 1994

Best of the Environment Award, Vermont International Film Festival, 1994

Felissimo Art Award, New York Foundation for the Arts, 1994

Bronze Apple, National Educational Media Network, 1994

Finalist, Vermont International Film Festival, 1994

Fellisimo Art Award, NY Foundation for the Arts, 1993

OCLC:

747796372