137Cs distributions in soil and trees in forest ecosystems after the radioactive fallout – Comparison study between southern Finland and Fukushima, Japan

Pumpanen, Jukka; Ohashi, Mizue; Endo, Izuki; Hari, Pertti; Bäck, Jaana; Kulmala, Markku; Ohte, Nobuhito

doi:10.1016/j.jenvrad.2016.04.024

Cited by 19 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…It is possible that changes in the location of foraging as hard masts drop from treetops to the ground during late autumn may play a role in the increase in muscle 137 Cs of Asian black bear. In the forest environment, radionuclides are more heavily concentrated at the forest floor, which is the habitat of the Asian black bear and wild boar [ 52 , 53 ]. Thus, it is possible that intake of radionuclides increased when the bears foraged hard masts on the ground through foraging soil and litter along with the hard masts.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seasonal variation of Cesium-137 concentration in Asian black bear (Ursus thibetanus) and wild boar (Sus scrofa) in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan

2018

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To elucidate and reduce the risk of radionuclide contamination in wildlife caused by the Tokyo Electric Power Company Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Station accident, it is important to understand radionuclide variations in the wild animal population. Here, we used environmental monitoring data and muscle samples collected from Asian black bear (Ursus thibetanus) and wild boar (Sus scrofa) from May 2011 to March 2016 to examine seasonal variation in radiocesium (137Cs) concentrations in muscle tissues (hereafter, muscle 137Cs) of these important game species in Fukushima Prefecture. We measured muscle 137Cs of bears and wild boars killed by hunters or in animal control culls. First, using a linear mixed model (LMM), we tested for a positive relationship between muscle 137Cs and 137Cs in the soil at the site of capture (hereafter, soil 137Cs) estimated from a soil 137Cs deposition map produced by the Japan Atomic Energy Agency. In the LMM, muscle 137Cs was positively related to estimated soil 137Cs, which corroborates the results of previous studies. The LMM regression coefficients differed between the two species, with wild boar muscle 137Cs being higher than that of bears sampled at the same locations. We then employed a generalized additive mixed model (GAMM) to estimate seasonal variation in the muscle 137Cs of the target species. GAMM showed that muscle 137Cs varied seasonally and that this seasonal variation also differed between the two species. In bears, muscle 137Cs decreased from spring to early autumn, before increasing in winter. Wild boar muscle 137Cs remained low during spring and summer and was high during autumn and early spring. These patterns are likely influenced by differences in diet, habitat use, and physiology between these two species.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seasonal variation of Cesium-137 concentration in Asian black bear (Ursus thibetanus) and wild boar (Sus scrofa) in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan

2018

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“…137 Cs, which is highly reactive, will perform as a cation like K + , H + or NH 4 + as well as other competitive minerals like Na + , Ca 2+ or Mg 2+ 12 . Thus, the vertical migration of 137 Cs can be quicker in places with large coarse soil particles holding lower cation exchange capacity than in fine soil particles 13 . Furthermore, the soil pH also plays a major role in determining the transport of 137 Cs within soil profile.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vertical distribution and radiological risk assessment of 137Cs and natural radionuclides in soil samples

Ahmad

Al-Ghouti

AlSadig

et al. 2019

Sci Rep

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The aims of this study were to investigate the vertical distributions of natural radionuclides 232 Th, 226 Ra and 40 K as well as anthropogenic radionuclide 137 Cs in soil samples and to analyze the correlation among the radioactivity of these radionuclides and the physiochemical characteristics of soil samples namely pH, grain size, carbonate content and organic matter. Risk assessment of the radiological hazard has also been estimated. Forty-four soil samples were collected from eleven locations in Qatar at four depth levels from 0 to 16 cm. The average concentrations of 232 Th, 226 Ra, 40 K and 137 Cs in the soil depth of 16 cm were 10, 17, 201 and 4 Bq/kg, respectively, which were within the reported world mean. The external absorbed gamma dose rate, the annual effective dose, the mean radium equivalent activity, the external hazard index and the lifetime cancer risk were 22 nGy/h, 0.027 mSv/y, 47 Bq/kg, 0.125 and 0.096 × 10 −3 , respectively. These values were far below the minimum recommended international values. The level of radioactivity concentrations in the soil was affected by the physiochemical characteristics of the soil. The positive correlation with highest R 2 value was found among the radioactivity concentrations of 232 Th and 40 K and the soil clay content. Total organic carbon was also positively correlated for 226 Ra and 137 Cs activity concentrations, whereas, carbonate content was negatively correlated with the radioactivity concentrations of 232 Th and 40 K. As far as soil moisture content is concerned, the positive correlation with highest R 2 value was obtained for 226 Ra activity concentrations.

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“…However, Okuma town is a residential area where wildlife is not able to live, and thus the use of the deposition density for the town seems somewhat unrealistic for predicting the radiation dose for wildlife. The deposition density of 137 Cs in forests due to the Fukushima accident was known to be within the range 5 × 10 4 to 5 × 10 5 Bq • m -2 [2,10], which was about 10-times smaller than that of the Okuma town. In this study, among the deposition density measurements in the Fukushima forest area, the maximum value (10 5 Bq • m -2 ) was applied as the deposition density of 137 Cs in the forest.…”

Section: Assumption and Input Data 1) Deposition Densitymentioning

confidence: 90%

“…The daily ingestion rate of dietary components for animals is calculated by the following allometric equations for herbivores, omnivores, and carnivores, respectively [9]. (10) The allometric constants of the above equations were assumed to be the same for both herbivores and omnivores because the foods of these animals were assumed to be mainly wild crops. The rate of biological loss through metabolism is calculated using the following allometric relationship [9].…”

Section: Jrprmentioning

confidence: 99%

Radiation Dose Assessment Model for Terrestrial Flora and Fauna and Its Application to the Environment near Fukushima Accident

et al. 2020

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Background: To investigate radiological effects on biota, it is necessary to assess radiation dose for flora and fauna living in a terrestrial ecosystem. This paper presents a dynamic model to assess radioactivity concentration and radiation dose of terrestrial flora and fauna after a nuclear accident. Materials and Methods: Litter, organic soil, mineral soil, trees, wild crops, herbivores, omnivores, and carnivores are considered the major components of a terrestrial ecosystem. The model considers the physicochemical and biological processes of interception, weathering, decomposition of litter, percolation, root uptake, leaching, radioactive decay, and biological loss of animals. The predictive capability of the model was investigated by comparison of its predictions with field data for biota measured in the Fukushima forest area after the Fukushima nuclear accident. Results and Discussion: The predicted radioactive cesium inventories for trees agreed well with those for evergreens and deciduous trees sampled in the Fukushima area. The predicted temporal radioactivity concentrations for animals were within the range of the measured radioactivity concentrations of deer, wild boars, and black bears. The radiation dose for the animals were, for the whole simulation time, estimated to be much smaller than the lower limit (0.1 mGy• d-1) of the derived consideration reference level given by the International Commission on Radiological Protection for terrestrial flora and fauna. This suggested that the radiation effect of the accident on the biota in the Fukushima forest would be insignificant. Conclusion: The present dynamic model can be used effectively to investigate the radiological risk to terrestrial ecosystems following a nuclear accident.

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137Cs distributions in soil and trees in forest ecosystems after the radioactive fallout – Comparison study between southern Finland and Fukushima, Japan

Cited by 19 publications

References 47 publications

Seasonal variation of Cesium-137 concentration in Asian black bear (Ursus thibetanus) and wild boar (Sus scrofa) in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan

Seasonal variation of Cesium-137 concentration in Asian black bear (Ursus thibetanus) and wild boar (Sus scrofa) in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan

Vertical distribution and radiological risk assessment of 137Cs and natural radionuclides in soil samples

Radiation Dose Assessment Model for Terrestrial Flora and Fauna and Its Application to the Environment near Fukushima Accident

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