A Chornobyl radiation-ecological biosphere reserve will be created on an area of 227,000 hectares in the Ivankivsky and Polisky districts of the Kyiv region, within the limits of the zone of exclusion and mandatory evacuation polluted by the Chornobyl nuclear accident.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signed an order to this effect on Tuesday.

The order will take effect simultaneously with the law regulating the allotment of lands in the exclusion and evacuation zones, and the nature conservancy regime for lands and reserve sites created in such areas, and repeals the demand for establishing biosphere reserves exclusively in nature reserves and national parks.

According to the order, the government will elaborate the nature reserve regulations within six months and will approve within two years the allotment of 226,965 hectares of land for the project. It will also provide a land management plan and will approve a project of the nature reserve's territorial organization. In addition, the government will assign funds for the reserve in state budget laws.