Radiocaesium fallout in Ireland from the Chernobyl accident

Abstract

Presents a radiocaesium deposition pattern over Ireland resulting from the Chernobyl accident. Contaminated grassland soils from over 110 sites were analysed using gamma ray spectrometry. 134Cs, 137Cs and 40K were measured in all samples. The Chernobyl 137Cs was identified using an initial Chernobyl fallout 137Cs to 134Cs ratio of 1.90. The results show a mean deposition level of 3.2 kBq m-2 of 137Cs due to Chernobyl. The range of deposition was from 0.3 to 14.2 kBq m-2. The distribution pattern is presented both on a National Grid sub-zone basis and a higher resolution shaded map. A similarly shaded map shows the rainfall levels responsible for most of the washout. It is pointed out that some areas on both east and west coasts with maximum rainfall did not have maximum caesium deposition. In other areas a better correlation between rainfall and caesium deposition exists. A mean figure for the pre-Chernobyl 137Cs in surface soil is provided.

Sunlight-Exposed Biofilm Microbial Communities Are Naturally Resistant to Chernobyl Ionizing-Radiation Levels

“…This value is approximately five-fold lower than the least irradiated site sampled in Chernobyl and 300-fold less than the most irradiated one (Table 1). Ireland was also affected by the Chernobyl accident, and the initial 137 Cs- 134 Cs deposition reached concentrations 20-fold higher than pre-catastrophe levels [49], although this represented much lower quantities than those received by most European countries [50]. In past years, the average background radiation levels in Ireland oscillated between 0.05 and 0.12 µSv/h.…”

Wet Deposition of Fission-Product Isotopes to North America from the Fukushima Dai-ichi Incident, March 2011

“…For example, Lockhart and Patterson evaluated atmospheric measurements of fission products from nuclear weapons testing series at 25 sites along the 80th meridian (N. & S. America) and in the Pacific and identified correlation of low atmospheric concentrations, particularly for 137 Cs, during periods of rainfall and higher concentrations during dry periods. 4 Published measurements and modeling results of both wet and dry 131 I, 134 Cs, and 137 Cs deposition rates after the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Station (present day Ukraine) incident of April, 1986 include: the incident area itself, 5 Belarus soils, 6 Ireland/Northern Ireland, 7 Sweden, 8 the Greenland Ice Sheet, 9 New York City area, 10 and over multiple years in Germany, 11 Greece, 12 northern Croatia, 13 northern England, 14 the United Kingdom, 15 and the United States, 16 among others. In the UK, the 137 Cs species were mostly in the particulate phase, and removal was predominately wet deposition.…”

“…16 European 134 Cs and 137 Cs deposition from Chernobyl was up to 10 times higher than deposition in the U.S. from Fukushima. 7,8,10,14 Comparison of NADP-measured 137 Cs deposition to U.S. soil activity data collected during the 1960s through early 1970s by McHenry et al, 32 indicate that the maximum 137 Cs deposition from Fukushima would contribute approximately 3% additional radioactivity to that present in a common square meter (5 cm deep) of soil in Mississippi and Missouri, and an additional 10% in Iowa. The maximum NADP-measured 137 Cs wet deposition from Fukushima (240 Bq/m 2 ) is about 17% of the highest U.S. annual total wet-deposition estimated in New York, NY, and Birmingham AL (1,400 Bq/m 2 ) during atmospheric nuclear testing in 1963.…”

High spatial resolution observations of 137Cs in northern Britain and Ireland from airborne geophysical survey

“…Smith and Clark (1989) provided a large-scale description and analysis of the Chernobyl plume as it crossed Britain and Ireland following the accident in April 1986, but there are inevitable uncertainties associated with their 137 Cs estimates due to uncertainty over the exact location and composition of the Chernobyl plume, estimated rainfall which intercepted the plume and the density of their site observations. An assessment of Chernobyl fallout across Ireland, which distinguished between Chernobyl and weapons testing fallout using the 137 Cs to 134 Cs ratio of 1.90 in soil cores, showed a mean deposition level from Chernobyl of 3.2 kBq m À2 with a range of 0.3e14.2 kBq m À2 (McAulay and Moran, 1989). This study, based on soil analysis from 110 sites spread across Ireland, demonstrated a pre-Chernobyl 137 Cs range of 0.6e0.8 kBq m À2 to a depth of 30 cm, but this ranged up to 5 kBq m À2 on some shallow upland soils reflecting the high annual rainfall in these areas (McAulay and Moran, 1989).…”

“…An assessment of Chernobyl fallout across Ireland, which distinguished between Chernobyl and weapons testing fallout using the 137 Cs to 134 Cs ratio of 1.90 in soil cores, showed a mean deposition level from Chernobyl of 3.2 kBq m À2 with a range of 0.3e14.2 kBq m À2 (McAulay and Moran, 1989). This study, based on soil analysis from 110 sites spread across Ireland, demonstrated a pre-Chernobyl 137 Cs range of 0.6e0.8 kBq m À2 to a depth of 30 cm, but this ranged up to 5 kBq m À2 on some shallow upland soils reflecting the high annual rainfall in these areas (McAulay and Moran, 1989). Although extremely useful e especially as this study could distinguish between weapons testing fallout and Chernobyl derived 137 Cs e these data represent low-point-density observations and so cannot give the full spatial context and will almost certainly not capture the spatial distribution and full range of 137 Cs activities.…”