1) The Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster in 1986 exposed large areas of Ukraine and Belarus to radioactive contamination through radioactive material released into the air, water and soil from a melted reactor. 2) A study found that sunflowers were effective at removing radioactive cesium-137 and strontium-90 from contaminated pond water near Chernobyl, with 60 sunflowers able to remove all contaminants after 4-8 weeks of growth. 3) Further research is needed to fully understand and improve the ability of phytoremediation to remove radioactive contamination from soils, but it shows promise as a versatile, inexpensive and natural in situ remediation method.