Scientists understand how radionuclides accumulate in fish after the Fukushima accident

Research in Japan was conducted after the accident at the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant in 2011.Then radioactive materials

In large volumes, they have seeped into the soil and water bodies, as a result of which they have become heavily polluted.In view of this, a ban on fishing in lakes and rivers was introduced.Scientists are trying to find out when the use of natural resources in the affected areas after man-made disasters will becomeScientists from Japan's National Institute for Environmental Research, led by Dr. Yumiko Ishii, have identified biotic and abiotic factors that influence the accumulation of radionuclides in fish.The information obtained helped predict and manage environmental pollution at Fukushima.

It remains to be seen how these differbasic factors in different ecosystems. The team analyzed monitoring data for 30 species of fish and aquatic organisms from five rivers and three lakes in the Fukushima area. They conducted their study two to four years after the nuclear power plant accident. In their work, they statistically correlated radiocesium measurements with a number of biotic and abiotic factors. Radiocesium, especially cesium-137, has a long half-life—about 30 years—and is a major pollutant in the area. As Dr. Ishii explains: “After the accident at «Fukushima-1» Radiocaesium has become a major pollutant in the region, and the risk of exposure to its radiation has become a matter of serious concern.”

Scientists considered the following factors: fish characteristics - feeding habit, body size and habitat; water chemistry - salinity, total organic carbon and concentration of suspended solids. Their analysis showed that factors affecting the levels of radiocaesium in river organisms do not necessarily affect its levels in organisms from the lake. In particular, the concentration of suspended solids, total organic carbon and salinity were significant factors in rivers, but not in lakes. Food habits have affected fish-eating fish in lakes more, but not in rivers; this became clear from the fact that a significant biomagnification of radiocaesium (that is, an increase in its concentration as it moves along the food chain) was observed only in lakes. Finally, the size of the individual influenced those fish that live both in lakes and in rivers.

Overall, these results indicate thatThe biotic and abiotic factors influencing the accumulation of radionuclides in fish clearly depend on the ecosystem - and they differ between lakes and rivers. The results of this study could potentially lead to the implementation of more effective strategies to respond to environmental disasters in the future.