Unveiling the extreme environmental radioactivity of cryoconite from a Norwegian glacier

0553582 - ÚŽFG 2023 RIV NL eng J - Journal Article
Łokas, E. - Wachniew, P. - Baccolo, G. - Gaca, P. - Janko, Karel - Milton, A. - Buda, J. - Komedera, K. - Zawierucha, K.
Unveiling the extreme environmental radioactivity of cryoconite from a Norwegian glacier.
Science of the Total Environment. Roč. 814, MAR 25 (2022), č. článku 152656. ISSN 0048-9697. E-ISSN 1879-1026
Institutional support: RVO:67985904
Keywords : cryoconite * artificial radionuclides * ecosystems
OECD category: Biology (theoretical, mathematical, thermal, cryobiology, biological rhythm), Evolutionary biology
Impact factor: 9.8, year: 2022
Method of publishing: Limited access
https://asep.lib.cas.cz/arl-cav/cs/csg/?repo=crepo1&key=56243303076

This study is a first survey of the occurrence of artificial (Cs-137, Am-241, Bi-207, Pu isotopes) and natural (Pb-210, Ac-228, Bi-214, K-40) radionuclides in Norwegian cryoconitc. Cryoconitc samples were collected before (12 samples) and after (5 samples) a rainfall event, after which 7 cryoconitc holes dissapeared. The concentrations of radionuclides in cryoconite samples from the Blaisen Glacier arc compared with data from the Arctic and Alpine glaciers. Cryoconitc samples from the studied glacier had extremely high activity concentrations of Cs-137, Am-241, Bi-207 and 239+240PU (up to 25,000 Bq/kg, 58 Bq/kg, 13 Bq/ks and 131 Bq/kg, respectively) and also high concentrations of organic matter (OM), comparing to other Scandinavian and Arctic glaciers, reaching up to similar to 40% of total mass. The outstandingly high concentrations of (CS)-C-137, Am-241, Pu isotopes, and Bi-201 on the Bltisen Glacier are primarily related to bioaccumulation of radionuclides in organic-rich cryoconite and might be enhanced by additional transfers of contamination from the tundra by lemmings during their population peaks. The presumed influence of intense rainfall on radionuclide concentrations in the cryoconite was not confirmed.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0330625