Lost Threads

Decontamination, rain and the passage of time have washed off much of the radioactive grime that coated Chernobyl, though plutonium has a half-life of 25,000 years. What didn't blow away has sunk into the soil, been absorbed by plants, in turn eaten by animals, and moved on up the food chain to be part of the biological continuum.

Yet this most blighted part of the planet is so very far from a dead zone these days. With humans withdrawing, animals roam at will and the plant life is more dramatic, even if some trees have sprung strangely. As one researcher put it: "Those trees have a terrible time knowing which way is up."

Few predicted this kind of resurgence in so short a span of time. It's all still contaminated but it's abundant in the absence of human habitation, reinforcing the belief that the greatest threat to nature is man. Left to its own devices, nature finds a way to survive and thrive.

A fascinating return to the scene of the worst nuclear disaster in history: the Chernobyl "Exclusion Zone". And there's been a surprising resurgence of wildlife and green stuff even amongst the radioactive contamination. Like kooky old Jeff Goldblum said in Jurassic Park: "Life, uh, finds a way..."