Chapter 14 – The Legacies of Soviet Nuclear Testing in Kazakhstan: Fallout, Public Health and Societal Issues

Abstract More than 110 atmospheric nuclear explosions were carried out at the Semipalatinsk test site between 1949 and 1963 and, after the moratorium on above ground nuclear tests, underground nuclear testing was continued until 1989. This chapter describes Soviet and post-Soviet research frameworks and documents some of the scientific debates over nuclear legacies in contemporary Kazakhstan. Nuclear issues played an important role in the independence movements during the late Soviet Union. Efforts to document and mitigate long-term health effects range from epidemiological studies, a compensation program, exposure reconstruction, medical screenings, risk estimation, and radioecology. Reflecting on the changing conditions for research into nuclear legacies, current assessments of the long-term impact of nuclear testing and compensation issues are described.