Chemical and Toxicological Analysis of Territories Affected by Radiation and Chemical Pollutants: I. Preconditions of the Toxic State of the Aquatic Environment

—Using the example of a number of water bodies, the consequences of the combined effects of radiation and chemical pollution on natural water reservoirs as a habitat for aquatic organisms and sources of drinking water is studied. In particular, it is established that a superoxidative (having a high content of reactive oxidizing agents) state is present in the water environment of the Kiev reservoir as a result of radiation pollution following the Chernobyl accident, owing to which many adult fish have died. However, a similar state of the aquatic environment is also found for other water bodies in regions that are not exposed to obvious radiation pollution. This paper analyzes the causes and effects of the formation of a superoxidative state of the natural aquatic environment that is toxic to fish and some other aquatic organisms, and it presents the results of a study of the chemical contamination of water bodies and soils in Kaluga Oblast regions that are most exposed to radiation after the Chernobyl accident.