Government to pay €2m towards Chernobyl shelter

THE Government is to pay over €2 million toward building a protective shell around the destroyed Chernobyl nuclear reactor, it emerged yesterday.

Foreign Affairs Minister Dermot Ahern said almost €2.6m would be donated to the Chernobyl Shelter Fund (CSF) before the end of 2006.

The decision means over €7m has been made available since 1997 to help secure the stricken area and ensure the destroyed nuclear reactor is stable and environmentally safe.