Monitoring 210Po and 210Pb in Some Pelagic Fishes Collected from Malabar Coast of India

Abstract

Marine fish are included as potential bioindicators as they strive to incorporate the target radionuclide into their tissues from the surrounding medium. They contribute significantly to the natural radiation dose to human beings through intake. Marine fishes are also sensitive to radiation and regular monitoring of radionuclides in fish is essential. Pelagic fishes of economic importance are collected along the south-west coast (Malabar Coast) of India and analysed for 210 Po and 210 Pb in muscle tissues using alpha spectrometry The range of 210 Po concentration ranged between 29.9 ± 2.2 and 42.5 ± 3.6 Bq kg -1 wet, while, the concentration of 210 Pb varied between 10.2 ± 3.2 to 16.9 ± 5.2 Bq kg -1 wet. Statistically significant variation was observed between the radionuclides between species (p0.05). The 210 Po daily intake of each fish muscle tissue ranged from 6.0 to 8.5 Bq d -1 . The range of the predicted dose caused by ingestion of both 210 Po and 210 Pb are comparable with the higher end values reported internationally.