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Temporal variation of radionuclides contamination of marine plants on the Fukushima coast after the East Japan nuclear disaster

Bioaccumulation_in_the_sea
July 16, 2019
As a result of the Great East Japan Earthquake and associated tsunami in March 2011, the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP) released a large amount of radioactive materials into the environment, resulting in contamination of many marine organisms.
In this study, 15 marine algal and a seagrass species were collected from the sublittoral zone of the Iwaki Coast of Fukushima Prefecture from May 2012 to June 2015 and analysed for variations in 110mAg, 134Cs, and 137Cs with time.
The results indicated that (1) 110mAg, 134Cs, and 137Cs were present in all marine plants collected in May 2012; (2) the concentration of 110mAg in the seagrass Phyllospadix iwatensis decreased significantly with time, while the ecological half-life of 110mAg in P. iwatensis was longer at locations closer to the FDNPP; and (3) the 110mAg/137Cs radioactivity ratio of P. iwatensis was remarkably high until 2015, indicating that detectable 110mAg was present in the coastal environment 4 years after the accident.
The concentration of 110mAg in P. iwatensis was higher than those in other marine algae, demonstrating a species-specific mechanism of accumulation.
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July 27, 2019 Posted by | fukushima 2019 | , , | 1 Comment