BRYANSK, Russia (REUTERS) - Thirty years may have passed, but Chernobyl is still a dangerous place to live in.

On April 26, 1986, a botched systems test sent clouds of nuclear material across Europe and sent radiation levels soaring. It was the worst nuclear meltdown in history.

Video from the time showed a facility in ruins, as rescue workers surveyed the damage.

Now, as the 30th anniversary approaches, a Greenpeace campaigner says little has changed.

Greenpeace senior nuclear campaigner Rashid Alimov said in Russian: "The radiation levels are high. Many areas are considered to be contaminated and are not acceptable for agriculture and other things."

Here in Russia's Bryansk region, the radiation has touched every aspect of people's lives.

It is in the food they eat, in the milk and water they drink, on childrens' playgrounds, and in the soil where their vegetables grow.

Despite the contaminated food supply, residents say they have no choice but to eat it anyway.

"What is the point of checking the radiation levels? Do you agree? We check them and they are beyond acceptable. What do we do then? Throw it away? We are hungry. Everybody wants to eat, our children and us," said local resident Tatyana.

The disaster affected some 745 settlements, including 26 in evacuation zones.

One of the worst effects was the significant decline in health.

Another local resident, Mr Alexei, said: "All of our bones ache… everything, arms, legs, even lifting hands is painful. At 70, merchants would be married, and us, we all have one foot in the grave."

Even as officials build a new steel-clad casement to block radiation, the surrounding zone - roughly the size of Luxembourg - is expected to remain largely uninhabitable.