Lake Karachay: The Most Polluted Place On Earth
The Most Polluted Place On Earth
In a desperate bid for nuclear supremacy, the Soviet Union unintentionally created the most dangerous place on Earth.
Welcome to Lake Karachay—the lake so polluted that spending an hour there would take your life. From the reason for its secret existence to the devastating consequences of its toxic contents, here’s everything you need to know about the most polluted spot on the planet.
Where Is It?
Lake Karachay, sometimes spelled Karachai or Karachaj, is located in the southern Ural Mountains in central Russia. It is close to the town of Ozyorsk—formerly called Chelyabinsk-40.
Why Is It Dangerous?
Lake Karachay is not your typical freshwater lake, it is severely mixed with an unsafe amount of radioactive waste.
According to a report by the Worldwatch Institute on nuclear waste, Karachay is the most polluted open-air place on Earth—from a radiological point of view.
Maple East, Lake Karachay: The Most Polluted Place in the World
How Did It Get This Way?
Starting in 1951, the Soviet Union used Lake Karachay as a dumping site for radioactive waste from Mayak, the nearby nuclear waste storage and reprocessing facility.
What Is Important About Mayak?
The Mayak plant is one of the largest nuclear facilities in Russia—and was built in total secrecy between 1946 and 1948. In fact, it was kept a heavily guarded secret until 1990.
Maple East, Lake Karachay: The Most Polluted Place in the World