Chernobyl disaster to residual radioactivity from Chernobyl in the plants they graze on in the wild during the summer. 1,914 sheep needed to be given uncontaminated feed for a period of time before slaughter during 2012, and these sheep were located in just 18 of Norway's municipalities, a decrease of 17 from the 35 municipalities affected animals were located in during 2011 (117 municipalities were affected during 1986). The after-effects of Chernobyl were expected to be seen for a further 100 years, although the severity of the effects would decline over that period. Scientists report this is due to radioactive caesium-137 isotopes
Effects of the Chernobyl disaster advances in these countries' ability to carry out epidemiological studies of all kinds. Immediately after the disaster, the main health concern involved radioactive iodine, with a half-life of eight days. Today, there is concern about contamination of the soil with strontium-90 and caesium-137, which have half-lives of about 30 years. The highest levels of caesium-137 are found in the surface layers of the soil where they are absorbed by plants, insects and mushrooms, entering the local food supply. Some scientists fear that radioactivity will affect the local population for the next several generations. Note that caesium is not mobile in