Analysis of the alleged Kyshtym disaster

The alleged Kyshtym disaster has been an intriguing intelligence puzzle for almost 25 years. Zhores Medvedev, a Soviet dissident, has written numerous journal articles as well as two books on the subject. He has argued that a vast contaminated area exists east of the city of Kyshtym in the southern Ural Mountains. Further, he has alleged that a nuclear waste disposal accident in 1957 to 1958 caused the contamination. The authors of this report are in partial disagreement with Medvedev's first allegation and in complete disagreement with his second. A contaminated area does exist east of Kyshtym, but Soviet carelessness coupled with general disregard for the citizenry and the environment are the prime causative factors, not a nuclear waste accident.