VISAGINAS - For everyone afraid of radiation and Soviet Chernobyl-type nuclear power plants, supposedly doomed to blow up any second, this trip is for you. Visit Visaginas to explore your own opinions on nuclear power and the closing of Ignalina's Nuclear Power Plant. It is said opinions change through experience and this could be a good opportunity to check the strength of your position.
Leaving the political aspects of the power plant aside, this is also a great opportunity to see the last days of the monstrous power generating machine that power plant supporters have taken up as a symbol of Lithuania's safety and independence, both political and economical. It is the only nuclear power plant in the Baltics and has the biggest reactor in the world 's it is included in the Guinness World Records Book.
Located outside the town of Visaginas, which was built for the Ignalina power plant workers over 30 years ago, it looks strange surrounded by forests and lakes. Most of the world's nuclear power plants are built in no-man's land, far from densely populated areas. Water from nearby lakes also serves to help cool the reactors. In Ignalina's case, the power plant is built on the shores of Druksiai, the biggest lake in Lithuania.
Hills, forests and lakes are characteristic to this picturesque region, which, despite the power plant's uncanny aura, is popular among campers. When asked if residents of the city and passers-by are not afraid of the radiation, Dalia Straupaite, a Deputy Mayor of Visaginas Municipality, said that the radiation levels in the area are actually lower than in the capital of Vilnius. Both are way below the allowed level.
So don't worry 's the vicinity is not radioactive and three-eyed fish do not live in the surrounding lakes. Straupaite, along with many pro-nuclear power activists, consider nuclear power to be one of the cleanest energy sources.
Wide-spread myths do their job well, however, and coming closer to the power plant will send shivers down your spine. It is not only myths that cause the shivering 's architecture lovers, especially those interested in the industrial branch of this art, will be pleased with the appeal Ignalina power plant has.
When in the power plant, the guide will assure you that there is nothing to be worried about. Everyone who comes here asks the same question 's how can we be sure that Ignalina will follow in the tragic footsteps of Chernobyl?
The answer is always the same: the power plant is actually one of the safest in the world because of hundreds of millions that have been invested in high-tech Japanese and German security technologies. And ensuring the safety of the power plant was one of the main conditions for Lithuania to join the European Union.
A range of procedures are necessary to get inside the building, creating the eerie feeling of the great importance of the place. Local people even call it the "heart of the country," as it produces the majority of energy Lithuania consumes. The general admission is restricted to the information center, which will provide you with any information you require.
Visaginas itself is a unique city. Not only it is among the youngest in Lithuania, it is also the most diverse and multicultural one 's almost 50 different ethnic backgrounds and nationalities, ranging from Germans and Russians to Tatars and Uzbeks, form the face of the 29,000-strong city. This is the only place in the country where Lithuanians have ethnic minority status. Everyone living here is somehow involved in the nuclear power industry.
The shape of the city is meant to have looked like a butterfly, to symbolize the diversity and optimism that can be found there. But the third reactor was never built and the idea of finishing the butterfly is left for future generations. That is, if there will be anything keeping the population there after the nuclear power plant is closed.
Although the city has only two butterfly wings, and coming years look depressing, people still do not lose their optimism and hope they will find a way to struggle through the hard times ahead and take advantage of the beautiful natural surroundings.
