nuclear-news

How radiation has damaged plants and animals: Chernobyl and Fukushima

Timothy Mousseau explains the often dramatic effects of radiation on many species of plants and animals, as found in painstaking research in Chernobyl and Fukushima

Fukushima Catastrophe and its Effects on Wildlife

Since 1999, Professor Mousseau and his collaborators (esp. Dr. Anders Pape Møller, CNRS, University of Paris-Sud) have explored the ecological and evolutionary consequences of the radioactive contaminants affecting populations of birds, insects and people inhabiting the Chernobyl region of Ukraine, and more recently, in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. Their research suggests that many species of plants and animals experience direct toxicity and increased mutational loads as a result of exposure to radionuclides stemming from the Chernobyl and Fukushima disasters. In many species (e.g. the barn swallow, Hirundo rustica), data suggests that this mutational load has had dramatic consequences for development, reproduction and survival, and the effects observed at individual and population levels are having large impacts on the biological communities of these regions. Dr. Mousseau’s current research is aimed at elucidating the causes of variation among different species in their apparent sensitivity to radionuclide exposure.

December 24, 2015 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, environment