Temporal trends of radio-cesium concentration in the marine environment after the Chernobyl and Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant accidents

Abstract

<p>European seas such as, Baltic, North, and Norwegian Seas are mostly affected areas by the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant (CNPP) in 1986. Since Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (FDNPP) is located on the coast of the North Pacific Ocean in east Japan, its accident resulted in the release of large amounts of radiocesium to the surrounding coastal marine environment (i.e. the waters off Fukushima and neighboring prefectures). The temporal change of radiocaesium concentration in seawater after both accidents was largely dependent on their submarine topography: The Baltic Sea is a semi-closed basin, while Norwegian and North Seas, and the waters off Fukushima and neighboring prefectures is directly connected to open-water. Although concentration of radioacesium (<sup>137</sup>Cs) in the surface water of the Baltic Sea (central part) continuously decreased, the values in 1996, ten years after the accident, were even higher than pre-accident level in 1985. On the other hand, in the waters off Fukushima and neighboring prefectures <sup>137</sup>Cs concentrations in 2020, nine years after the accident, are approaching the pre-accident levels of 2010. The quick decrease is attributable to the intrusion or mixing of water masses with low <sup>137</sup>Cs.</p>