High Levels Of Radioactive Contamination Research Articles

DOSE ESTIMATION TO WILD MEDAKA AROUND FUKUSHIMA DAI-ICHI NUCLEAR POWER PLANT.

More than 10y have passed since the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant (F1-NPP) accident, but there are still many areas with high levels of radioactive contamination, especially reservoirs and lakes, where the levels decrease slowly. The exposed dose to non-human biota is of great concern. In this work, the exposure dose to wild medaka (small aquarium fish) around F1-NPP was measured/estimated by two approaches: in situ measurement and with the ERICA assessment tool. S2 is a reservoir located 7.5km from F1-NPP, and the ambient dose rate was 25.0μSv per h in 2012, but decreased to 4.82μSv per h in 2021. The external exposure dose rate to wild medaka living there was 0.8-11.8 μGy per h (2017-21) by in situ measurement, and the estimated dose rate with the ERICA assessment tool was 0.6-54.5 μGy per h (2012-21). The estimated and measured doses to wild medaka are not expected to cause any significant radiation effects.

ПРОВЕДЕНИЕ САНИТАРНОЙ ОБРАБОТКИ НА ЭТАПАХ ОКАЗАНИЯ МЕДИЦИНСКОЙ ПОМОЩИ ПОСТРАДАВШИМ В РАДИАЦИОННОЙ АВАРИИ

Purpose: To summarize and analyze the results of research and practical recommendations on the decontamination of victims in the event of radiation accidents, including taking into account the authors’ experience gained in the initial period of the Chernobyl accident (April – August 1986) and in other local radiation accidents (incidents), as well as during emergency exercises.
 Results: The indications for carrying out decontamination and the technique of its implementation were considered, a comparative assessment of the effectiveness of skin decontamination agents was presented. Recommendations were formulated for determining the priority (urgency) of carrying out decontamination, depending on the level of external radioactive contamination of the victims. Criteria, rules and methods for carrying out decontamination were proposed for use in relation to the practice of medical and hygienic measures at the stages of medical evacuation (accident site, enterprise health center, enterprise sanitary inspection department, triage site, hospital admission department). The features of decontamination of victims with combined radiation injuries and contaminated wounds (burns) were considered, issues of ensuring the radiation safety of medical personnel who provide assistance to victims are touched upon.
 Conclusion: Timely and correctly performed decontamination reduces the exposure of the skin, prevents the entry of radioactive substances into the body and the transfer (spread) of radioactive substances to the subsequent stages of medical evacuation. The main criteria for the urgency (priority) of carrying out decontamination are the levels of radioactive contamination of the skin, contamination nature (radionuclide composition, physicochemical form, etc.) and the presence of victim’s skin lesions (wounds, burns). Decontamination of victims with high levels of radioactive contamination should be considered as a part of the first and subsequent emergency health care and should be carried out as prescribed or with the direct participation of a healthcare professional. At the stages of medical evacuation, decontamination can be carried out if the victim’s condition is stabilized. In the case of a serious condition of the victim, the priority is evacuation to a hospital, while in the prehospital period, as a rule, only partial decontamination of skin areas with high levels of contamination can be carried out. The procedure and rules for decontamination, including the use of skin decontaminating agents, should be reflected in the action plans of the personnel of radiation hazardous enterprises and the plans for medical support of medical units of the FMBA of Russia.

Разработка и реализация единой концепции управления территориями отселения и отчуждения Беларуси и России в части обеспечения защиты населения

Разработана единая концепция управления территориями отселения и отчуждения Беларуси и России в части обеспечения защиты населения. Составлены мероприятия по трем направлениям работ в ходе реализации Единой стратегии: обеспечение безопасной жизнедеятельности граждан Беларуси и России, проживающих на территориях, прилегающих к зонам отчуждения и отселения; обеспечение устойчивого социально-экономического развития территорий, подвергшихся радиоактивному загрязнению; обеспечение взаимодействия России и Беларуси по предупреждению и ликвидации чрезвычайных ситуаций на приграничных территориях с высокими уровнями радиоактивного загрязнения.

Mammal assemblages recorded by camera traps inside and outside the evacuation zone of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident

AbstractIn 2011, the Fukushima Daiichi Power Plant accident resulted in the evacuation of about 81,000 people from the evacuation zone, which suffered from high levels of radioactive contamination. Large‐scale and long‐term land abandonment can cause changes in species assemblages. Despite the extensive global attention this incident received, open and spatially‐explicit datasets of mammal fauna from Fukushima remain quite limited. We established a continuous monitoring protocol using camera traps for mammals both inside and outside the evacuation zone; this paper presents our first dataset. These data represent the monitoring results from 45 camera traps from May 2014 to October 2014, including the location and actuation time of each camera, and the list of video records. After the publication of this initial data paper, we intend to continue monitoring until 2023 and the dataset will be hereafter updated with new observations.

The influence of the Great East Japan Earthquake on tuberculosis control in Japan.

WPSAR Vol 6, No 4, 2015 | doi: 10.5365/wpsar.2015.6.2.009 www.wpro.who.int/wpsar 30 a Nishinari District Public Health Offi ce, Osaka City, Japan. b The Research Institute of Tuberculosis, Japan Anti-Tuberculosis Association, Tokyo, Japan. Submitted: 4 June 2015; Published: 21 December 2015 doi: 10.5365/wpsar.2015.6.2.009 The Great East Japan Earthquake and subsequent tsunami hit the Pacific Ocean side of north-eastern Japan on 11 March 2011,1 resulting in more than 18 000 deaths and missing people in three prefectures: Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima.2 Of those deaths, 65% were aged 60 years and older, and more than 90% were caused by drowning.3 The earthquake also destroyed nuclear power plants in Fukushima, causing high levels of radioactive contamination.4 As a result, there were 386 739 evacuees staying in 2182 temporary shelters such as community centres, schools and gymnasiums one week after the disaster.5

Radiation-induced cytogenetic and hematologic effects on aquatic biota within the Chernobyl exclusion zone

During 1998–2014 the rate of chromosomal aberrations in embryo tissues of the pond snail (Lymnaea stagnalis) and root meristems of higher aquatic plants, and also hematologic indexes of mantle liquid of the adult snails and peripheral blood of fishes in water bodies within the Chernobyl exclusion zone (EZ) was studied. The absorbed dose rate for hydrobionts from water bodies of the EZ registered in a range from 0.25 to 420 μGy h−1 and in the reference ones – up to 0.09 μGy h−1. The level of chromosomal aberrations in the molluscs from the most contaminated water bodies of the EZ was registered within range of 18–27% and for the molluscs from the reference lakes this index was on the average 1.5% with the maximal values 2.3%. The rate of chromosomal aberrations in root meristematic cells of higher aquatic plants from the contaminated lakes of the EZ was in range of 7–17% and in the plants from reference water bodies was not exceed 2.1%. The positive correlation between chromosomal aberration rate and absorbed dose rate in the pond snail's embryos and root meristems of higher aquatic plants in water bodies of the EZ was registered. Analysis of hemolymph structure of snails from the most contaminated water bodies showed a high rate of dead and phagocytic cells as well as decrease of the young amoebocytes quantity. Hematologic research of fish allows to determine on the one hand an insignificant changes of leukogram structure, and from the other hand a high level of red cells with different abnormalities in the peripheral blood of fishes from the water bodies with high levels of radioactive contamination. It is suppose that qualitative indexes of red cells in peripheral blood of fish are more sensitive to long-term radiation impact in comparison with elements of white blood, which can be used for conducting of the hematologic monitoring of radioactive contaminated water bodies.

Atmospheric precipitation on the soils of Belarusian Polesye

The article considers the influence of atmospheric precipitation in the form of dust and dry residue with rain and snow in the formation of technogenic situations in the soils of the Belarusian Polesye. Anthropogenic impact on the soil is formed as a result of entering into the soil of technogenesis product, is made up of atmospheric precipitation in the form of dust and rain, as well as key components of chemical reclamation (Ca, Mg, K, N, P) of soil. Based on field research and data of the Hydrometeorological Service of Belarus there was generalized the information and disclosed the regularities of dust deposition and mineral residue precipitation in Belarusian Polesye. Mapping the anthropogenic impact on the soil was performed using software packages ESRI ArcView and ESRI ArcGIS. It is set a noticeable spatial heterogeneity in the level of anthropogenic impact on the soil of the Belarusian Polesye, ranging from 6,3 t/ha per year in the district of Gantsevichi to 17,6 t/ha in Malorita district, Brest region. There is a general tendency of increasing of the given parameter in the direction from north-east to south-west of Polesye. The level of anthropogenic impact is largely dependent on natural (soil properties and structure of the soil) and economic (level of development and specialization of industry and agriculture) factors. The lowest value of the anthropogenic impact (less than 7,5 t/ha per year) is characteristic for areas with underdeveloped industry and a high proportion of drained peat soils: Gantsevichi, Oktyabrsky, Narovlya and Zhitkovichi. For the western part of the Belarusian Polesye (Malorita, Stolin, Ivanovo, Berezovsky, Drogichin areas) other than large areas of sandy soils, characterized by increased loads on agropochvy (12,1 or more t/ha per year), the largest contribution falls on the organic fertilizers. Technogenic situation in the soils was estimated based on the amount of annual agrotechnogenic load on the soil, air emissions from stationary sources and the level of radioactive contamination, formed as a result of the Chernobyl accident. As a result, we allocated favorable, satisfactory, conflict, tension, and critical situation. Favorable technogenic situation is typical for soils under forests and within specially protected areas (national parks and nature reserves) with anthropogenic load of less than 1 t/ha, not contaminated and distant from industrial centers. Such conditions correspond to 15 % of the Belarusian Polesye near major rivers and their tributaries in the region (the area between the Dnieper and the Sozh, the middle flow for the Pripyat and its tributaries Sluch, Yaselda, Ubort). A satisfactory situation has developed for 28,5 % of the territory, mainly within the northern part of the Pripyat Polesye due to a moderate level of anthropogenic pressure, in part – in the border of forest and wetland areas due to contamination with radionuclides. The conflict situation is typical for the northern part of Brest and Mozyr Polesye, on the right bank of the Dnieper and Berezina rivers, as well as in the area between Pina and Goryn rivers (27,7 %). In the southern part of the Brest Polesye, as well as in the countryside and along the Goryn river valley there is a tense situation (22,2 %), due to high anthropogenic pressure and intensive agricultural activities, in the latter case – also complicated by radioactive contamination. Critical man-made situation (7 %), which is observed in the south-east of Polesye, is due to high levels of radioactive contamination within the Polesye State Radiation Ecological Reserve and adjacent areas, despite the relatively low levels of air and agrotechnogenic pollution.

Modeling radiocesium transport from a river catchment based on a physically-based distributed hydrological and sediment erosion model

The accident at the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP) in March 2011 resulted in the deposition of large quantities of radionuclides, such as 134Cs and 137Cs, over parts of eastern Japan. Since then high levels of radioactive contamination have been detected in large areas, including forests, agricultural land, and residential areas. Due to the strong adsorption capability of radiocesium to soil particles, radiocesium migrates with eroded sediments, follows the surface flow paths, and is delivered to more populated downstream regions and eventually to the Pacific Ocean. It is therefore important to understand the transport of contaminated sediments in the hydrological system and to predict changes in the spatial distribution of radiocesium concentrations by taking the land-surface processes related to sediment migration into consideration. In this study, we developed a distributed model to simulate the transport of water and contaminated sediment in a watershed hydrological system, and applied this model to a partially forested mountain catchment located in an area highly contaminated by the radioactive fallout. Observed discharge, sediment concentration, and cesium concentration measured from June 2011 until December 2012 were used for calibration of model parameters. The simulated discharge and sediment concentration both agreed well with observed values, while the cesium concentration was underestimated in the initial period following the accident. This result suggests that the leaching of radiocesium from the forest canopy, which was not considered in the model, played a significant role in its transport from the catchment. Based on the simulation results, we quantified the long-term fate of radiocesium over the study area and estimated that the effective half-life of 137Cs deposited in the study area will be approximately 22 y due to the export of contaminated sediment by land-surface processes, and the amount of 137Cs remaining in the catchment will be reduced to 39% of the initial total within 30 y after contamination. This study provides a perspective on the transport of suspended sediments and radiocesium in catchments with similar land use and radiocesium contamination.

Typology of rural settlements in Central Russia: Demoecological aspect

The article analyzes the specific character of villages as a special type of social and natural environment relationship. A typological analysis of rural settlements in Central Russia (17 administrative regions of the Central Federal District) is conducted using demoecological indicators. A complex analysis was conducted using 11 selected types of settlements, including the specific features of subsystems, dominating processes of their interaction, and the main development trends (comfort, compromise, conflict, and crisis). The polar types are determined: empty villages and new settlement elements—cottage settlements. The role of the most problematic type with a particularly low level of living standards—hostages of Chernobyl in the zone of high levels of radioactive contamination—is shown. The specific territorial features of the modern typological demoecological structure of rural settlements are shown. The four main contrasting regions are singled out: Northwestern, Central, Southern Black Soil, Moscow, and areas around Moscow. The dominating features of the structure, as well as problems and the development trends of their settlement, are revealed.

The Effect of Hydrogen Peroxide on the Growth of Microscopic Mycelial Fungi Isolated from Habitats with Different Levels of Radioactive Contamination

The effect of hydrogen peroxide ( 10(-9)-10(-1) M) on the mycelial growth of the fungi Alternaria alternata, Cladosporium cladosporioides, Mucor hiemalis, and Paecilomyces lilacinus has been studied. The growth of fungi isolated from habitats with a background level of radioactive contamination was stopped by H2O2 concentrations equal to 10(-3) and 10(-2) M, whereas the growth of fungi that were isolated from habitats with high levels of radioactive contamination was only arrested by 10(-1) M H2O2. The response of the different fungi to hydrogen peroxide was of three types: (1) a constant growth rate of fungal hyphae at H2O2 concentrations between 10(-9) and 10(-4) M and a decrease in this rate at 10(-3) M H2O2, (2) a gradual decrease in the growth rate as the H2O2 concentration was increased, and (3) an increase in the growth rate as the H2O2 concentration was increased from 10(-7) to 10(2)-5 M. The melanin-containing species A. alternata and C. cladosporioides exhibited all three types of growth response to hydrogen peroxide, whereas the light-pigmented species M. hiemalis and P. lilacinus showed only the first type of growth response. A concentration of hydrogen peroxide equal to 10(-1) M was found to be lethal to all of the fungi studied. The most resistant to hydrogen peroxide was found to be the strain A. alternata 56, isolated from the exclusion zone of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.

Radioecological Effects on Aquatic Organisms in the Areas with High Levels of Radioactive Contamination: Environmental Protection Criteria

A comparative analysis of radioactive contamination levels was performed for aquatic ecosystems affected by chronic discharges of radionuclides and radiation accidents. Based on the observed data and radioecological models, doses to aquatic organisms were calculated in Lake Karachai, the Techa River, lakes of the Southem Urals, the cooling pond of the Chernobyl NPP, and the marine cooling area of the Leningrad NPP. Radioecological effects of ionising radiation on aquatic organisms show themselves over a wide range of dose rates from 0.002 to 800 Gy.d -1 . Methodology problems of the selection of criteria of radioecological risk for aquatic organisms were considered at high levels of radioactive contamination of the aquatic environment.

Radioactivity in polar regions—Main sources

The common source of anthropogenic radioactivity of the polar regions has been global fallout from nuclear weapons testing in the atmosphere. The depositions from this source are at a minimum in the polar regions. Nevertheless polar ecosystems may contain relatively high levels of radioactive contamination. This is true, in particular, for the Arctic regions, which beside global fallout have received significant amounts of radioactivity from a number of other sources. Some of the sources viz discharges from nuclear reprocessing in Western Europe and the Chernobyl accident are well described. Others, such as local fallout from the Novaya Zemlya test site, discharges from nuclear facilities to the Siberian rivers Ob, Yenisey and Lena and dumping of nuclear waste in the Barents and Kara Seas are less well documented, but may contribute significantly to the observed and future contamination of the Arctic.Although the radioecological sensitivity of food products from Arctic regions tend to be higher than we know it from temperature regions, the very low productivity of Nordic regions imply low collective doses from these regions. However, high individual doses from radioactive contamination may be seen in the Arctic as it has been observed for, e.g. reindeer breeders. Radiocaesium is concentrated from lower to higher trophic levels. The marine animals contain orders of magnitude lower 137Cs levels than terrestrial animals in Arctic regions and the transfer of 137Cs is one to two orders of magnitude greater than that of 90Sr to meat of animals.The Antarctic continent is apparently characterized with extremely low levels of anthropogenic radioactive contamination. However data are sparse compared to the Arctic.

Radioactive contamination of Russia's Techa River

From 1949 to 1956, the ecosystem of the Techa River in the Chelyabinsk region of Russia was contaminated by the discharge of liquid radioactive wastes from the radiochemical production complex [open quotes]Mayak.[close quotes] Further distribution of radionuclides resulted in contamination of riverside territories such as the settlement Muslyumovo and was most pronounced in places used as pastures, for laying in fodder, and for fishing and swimming. First, the Techa River is simultaneously a depository-dump and the main source of such radionuclides as [sup 137]Cs, [sup 90]Sr, and [sup 239]Pu in the riverside environment. Secondly, the land formations and geochemical properties of the soils and sediments in the Techa River floodplain promote the accumulation of radionuclides in vegetation and, as a result, their further migration to animals that come in contact with or consume the vegetation. In addition, the contamination of Muslyumovo is exacerbated by high levels of radioactive contamination of living organisms with [sup 137]Cs and [sup 90]Sr, as well as by the presence of alpha-emitting isotopes. Data suggest that the respiratory system in humans is the most probable path of exposure to alpha-emitters. 4 refs.

Possible Falsification of Survey Data: An Analysis of a Mail Survey in the Soviet Union

Possible Falsification of Survey Data: An Analysis of a Mail Survey in the Soviet Union