Clean-up of urban areas in the CIS countries contaminated by Chernobyl fallout

Earlier investigations in the CIS (the former Soviet Union) showed that the radiation from urban surfaces contaminated by Chernobyl fallout was almost entirely due to 137Cs. Following a series of small-scale tests, several decontamination methods were selected for field trials in Russia and Ukraine. The trials revealed that, even after 7 years, up to 75% of the 137Cs could be removed at relatively little cost and more could be removed if necessary.