On April 26, 1986, the tragedy that was the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant disaster led to the eventual death of thousands.Since the disaster, the thirty-mile exclusion zone around the plant has been home to little more than memory and wildlife. In fact, since humans have evacuated the exclusion zone, the gray wolf population in the area is booming, and the rare Przewalski’s horse has moved into the region. All this despite initial speculation that the nuclear fallout would decimate the region well into the future.
If the Ukrainian government has their way, however, it may soon be added as the latest UNESCO World Heritage site. They claim that the events that happened in Chernobyl in 1986 possess not just cultural and historic significance for the Ukrainian people, but also for mankind as a whole. Their argument does have some weight to it, as it is the closest representation of what the world could look like after a widespread nuclear disaster. Since it was opened to the public in 2010, the exclusion zone has gradually attracted more and more tourists interested in getting a firsthand view of the disaster. Should the site gain World Heritage status, Chernobyl might well become one of the most popular destinations in Ukraine.
