While fires rage all over Russia, it would seem that there is an increasing possibility of radioactive contamination being spread around once more as the fires come close to areas of contaminated forest on the borders of Ukraine.

From econotwist :

The Russian government warned late Thursday that raging wildfires could pose a nuclear threat to neighboring countries, with the natural disaster already spilling across Russian borders in terms of food markets. The heat from fires in the Bryansk region near the frontier with Belarus and Ukraine could release harmful radioactive particles into the atmosphere.

“In the event of a fire there, radionuclides could rise together with combustion particles, resulting in a new pollution zone.”

Russian emergencies minister Sergei Shoigu says heat from fires in the Bryansk region near the frontier with Belarus and Ukraine, which was contaminated following the Chernobyl disaster in 1986, could release harmful radioactive particles into the atmosphere.

“In the event of a fire there, radionuclides could rise (into the air) together with combustion particles, resulting in a new pollution zone,” he explained on national television yesterday night.

At least the winds are light right now with the high pressure system dominating most of the continent so the spread of radiation should be minimal for now.

If you were wondering just how many fires there have been so far in Russia then the following graphic pinched from ZeroHedge gives a fair idea :

The graphic was compiled by the University of Maryland and if you follow this link to the Zerohedge article you can find the link for the live map should you wish to explore in more detail.

Meanwhile, Moscow is getting a taste of Beijing like smog as the smoke from all the forest fires lingers under the high pressure system responsible for the hot weather.

Pravda (the Russian one not the BBC) has the following :

The smog from forest and peat bog fires has shrouded Moscow on Friday morning again. The pungent smoke has covered almost the whole city. The gas attack is accompanied with extremely high temperatures. The city is about to brave another absolute record for summer temperatures on August 6: 40 degrees above zero Centigrade. Meteorologists said that the first week of August would become the hottest in 130 years of observations in Russia.

The smog from wildfires ravaging the Moscow region has been tormenting Moscow for several weeks already. Today’s smog is the thickest ever. The level of the air pollution in the city continues to grow. The concentration of carbon monoxide, suspended particles and specific hydrocarbons in the air has exceeded maximum allowable levels. The pollution of the air is expected to grow. “We expect a very intense air pollution in the capital,” an official said.

The work of Moscow’s Domodedovo International Airport has been disrupted as a result of the smoke. The visibility on the runway is less than 400 meters. The airport works on actual weather: the commanders of arriving planes make personal decisions on landing. Six planes have already landed on the reserve airdrome at Sheremetyevo Airport.

The air seems to be a tad thick there right now.