Chernobyl radioactivity persists in reindeer

Title: Chernobyl radioactivity persists in reindeer

Author: Lavrans Skuterud, Eldar Gaare, Inger Margrethe Eikelmann, Knut Hove, Eiliv Steinnes

Reference: Journal of Environmental Radioactivity, Volume 83, Issue 2, 2005, Pages 231-252

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvrad.2005.04.008

Keywords: Caesium-137; Effective half-life; Reindeer; Lichen; Plant; Food chain; Chernobyl

Abstract: Transfer of ¹³⁷Cs in the soil–plant/lichen–reindeer food chain was studied in central (Østre Namdal) and southern Norway (Vågå) during 2000–2003. Reindeer from these areas have been continuously subjected to countermeasure application since the 1986 Chernobyl accident. In both areas no decline in ¹³⁷Cs concentrations was detectable in reindeer slaughtered in autumn since 1995, or in reindeer slaughtered in winter since 1998–1999. Seasonal differences in ¹³⁷Cs concentrations in reindeer have been less pronounced in recent years, with ¹³⁷Cs concentrations occasionally higher in autumn than in winter. Soil-to-plant ¹³⁷Cs transfer was significantly higher in Østre Namdal than in Vågå. Climatic influences on lichen growth and abundance, and on soil properties that influence the availability of ¹³⁷Cs for plant uptake, are hypothesized to have a larger impact on long-term transfer of radiocaesium in the soil–plant/lichen–reindeer food chain than has been previously observed.

URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0265931X05001402

Analysis of 129I in lichens by accelerator mass spectrometry through a microwave-based sample preparation method

Title: Analysis of ¹²⁹I in lichens by accelerator mass spectrometry through a microwave-based sample preparation method

Author:　Go´mez-Guzma´n, J.M.; Lo´pez-Guti´errez, J.M.; Pinto, A.R.; Holm, M.E.; Garci´a-Leo´n, M.

Reference: Nuclear Instruments & Methods in Physics Research, Section B (Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms) April 2010, vol.268, no.7-8, pp. 1171-4.

DOI: 10.1016/j.nimb.2009.10.126

Keywords: Iodine-129; Lichen; Reprocessing plants; Fall-out; Chernobyl; AMS

Abstract: The presence of ¹²⁹I in the environment has been strongly influenced by the artificial nuclear emissions since the beginning of the nuclear era in the mid 20th century. In order to know more about the different sources and their relative impact in different zones, it is necessary to complete the amount of measurements of this radionuclide in environmental samples. In this work, ¹²⁹I has been determined in lichen samples (Cladonia alpestris) from Rogen Lake in Central Sweden. A method based on microwave digestion was developed for these measurements in order to improve speed and reduce contamination. Based on this method, ¹²⁹I concentrations in some lichen samples from Lake Rogen (Sweden) have been measured, showing the impact of the Chernobyl accident and nuclear fuel reprocessing plants.

URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168583X09011756

Radionuclide content in lichen thallus in the forests adjacent to the Chernobyl atomic power plant

• Title: Radionuclide content in lichen thallus in the forests adjacent to the Chernobyl atomic power plant

Author: Biazrov, L.G.

Reference: Science of The Total Environment, 157, p.25-28, Dec 1994

doi: 10.1016/0048-9697(94)90561-4

Keywords: Radionuclides; Lichens; Thalli; Chernobyl

Abstract: The concentrations of ¹⁰⁶Ru, ¹³⁴Cs, ¹³⁷Cs, and ¹⁴⁴Ce in thalli of lichens Hypogymnia physodes and Cladina mitis, in the bark of pine tree Pinus silvestris are very high in the immediate vicinity of the Chernobyl atomic power plant. They decrease with increasing distance from the centre of the accident. However, even outside the 30-km zone of population evacuation, they surpass concentrations of these radionuclides from global fallout by hundreds of times.

URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0048969794905614

Ecological half-life of 137Cs in lichens in an alpine region.

• Title: Ecological half-life of 137Cs in lichens in an alpine region.

Author: Machart, Peter / Hofmann, Werner / Türk, Roman / Steger, Ferdinand

Reference: Journal of environmental radioactivity, 97 (1), p.70-75, Jan 2007

doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvrad.2007.05.003

Keywords: Ecological half-life; ¹³⁷Cs; Activity concentrations; Lichens

Abstract: About 17 years after the Chernobyl accident, lichen samples were collected in an alpine region in Austria (Bad Gastein), which was heavily contaminated by the Chernobyl fallout. Measured 137Cs activity concentrations in selected lichens (Cetraria islandica, Cetraria cucullata, and Cladonia arbuscula) ranged from 100 to 1100 Bq kg(-1) dry weight, depending on lichen species and sampling site.

URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0265931X07001208