Polesia

Polesia Пале́ссе, Полісся Polesie
Natural and historical region
Ubort river near the city of Olevsk (Zhytomyr Oblast, Ukraine)
Polesia marked in dark green
Countries	Ukraine, Belarus, western Russia and Poland

Polesia, Polesie or Polesye (Belarusian: Пале́ссе Paliessie, Ukrainian: Полі́сся Polissia or Polisia, Polish: Polesie [pɔˈlɛɕɛ], Russian: Поле́сье Poles'e [pɐˈlʲesʲɪ]) is a natural and historical region of Eastern Europe, stretching from parts of Eastern Poland, straddling the Belarus - Ukraine border and into western Russia. One of the largest forest areas on the continent, Polesie is located in the south-western part of the Eastern-European Lowland, the Polesian Lowland. On the western side, Polesie originates at the crossing of the Bug River valley in Poland and the Pripyat River valley of Western Ukraine. The swampy areas of central Polesie are known as the Pinsk Marshes (after the major local city of Pinsk). Large parts of the region were contaminated after the Chernobyl disaster and the region now includes the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone and Polesie State Radioecological Reserve, named after the region.