Page "Geography of Estonia" Paragraph 13

In a 1992 government report to the United Nations Conference on the Environment and Development, Estonia detailed other major environmental concerns.

For instance, for several consecutive years Estonia had led the world in the production of sulfur dioxide per capita.

Nearly 75 % of Estonia's air pollution was reported to come from two oil shale-based thermal power stations operating near Narva.

The mining of oil shale in northeastern Estonia has also left large mounds of limestone tailings and ash dotting the region.

Near the town of Sillamäe, site of a former uranium enrichment plant, about 1, 200 tons of uranium and about 750 tons of thorium had been dumped into a reservoir on the shore of the Gulf of Finland.

This was said to have caused severe health problems among area residents.

In the coastal town of Paldiski, the removal of waste left by Soviet army nuclear reactors was also a major concern.

The combined cost of environmental cleanup at both towns was put at more than EKR3. 5 billion.