ABSTRACT
The dissolution of the USSR and the transition to democracy of its former constituent republics has revealed a deeply alarming legacy of environmental degradation and damage across the land, air and sea space of the former Soviet Union. The Chernobyl disaster and the startling retreat of the Aral Sea provide us with the most graphic illustration of the ecological excesses arising from Soviet economic policies. These policies gave little consideration to long-term environmental impacts or mitigation strategies. In many instances, the newly independent countries of the former Soviet Union have inherited substantial environmental problems requiring extensive and expensive remediation activities.
