components of ecosystems are land and water areas contaminated by radioactive
substances of different etymology: oceanic islands and terrestrial polygons, where
were performed nuclear tests in the past and now, the surrounding area near the
nuclear reprocessing plants (Sellafield (the UK), Hanford (USA) radioactive accidents zones: near Windscale (the UK), Kyshtym (Russia), Chernobyl (Ukraine),
Fukushima (Japan) and so on, spacecraft crashes zone (“Kosmos–954”, “SNAP9A”), sunken nuclear boats and others (Transuranic elements 1985; Warner and
Harrison 1993; WOMARS 2005; Trapeznikov et al. 2007; Gulin et al. 2013; IAEA
2015). At present, the anthropogenic stock of plutonium radioisotopes exceed
tens of thousands of times the natural one, although the history of man–made
plutonium has only a little more than half a century (the most important plutonium
isotope
239
Pu was discovered in 1941) and the number of man–made plutonium
continues to increase as a result of the operation of nuclear technologies (Plutonium
2003). Significant rates of the plutonium content increase in the biosphere, its high
radiotoxicity (especially alpha–emitting isotopes and, in particular,
239 Pu), as well
as the further development of the nuclear industry make it necessary to study the
behavior of plutonium in the environment, including marine ecosystems and
develop approaches for assessing the impact of plutonium radionuclides on
hydrobionts.
16.1.2 Features of the Black Sea Ecosystem and Plutonium
The alpha–radioisotopes of plutonium
239,240 Pu belong to the technogenic radionuclides along with
90 Sr and
137 Cs that are the most abundant anthropogenic radioisotopes in the marine environment and the main dose–forming artificial
radionuclides in the currently radioecological situation in the Black Sea ecosystems
after accident on the Chernobyl nuclear power plant (ChNPP) (Polikarpov et al.
2008).
Alpha–radionuclides of Pu have long half-lives T 1/2 (T 1/2 of
239 Pu more than
24,000 and T 1/2 of
240 Pu over 6000 years) (Plutonium 2003), so their concentrations
in the ecosystem components do not decrease practically due to radioactive decay
for hundreds of years and their number increases in the environment from the
incident to the incident. Seas serve as a kind of buffer systems which receive
radioactive contamination and where many of the radionuclides are accumulated
as a result of atmospheric transport and with the river and surface runoff. This effect
is pronounced for the so–called “elements–divers” (including plutonium) which are
accumulated mainly in the bottom sediment. The Black Sea is at risk of radiation
contamination as an inland sea in the catchment area of which there was a major
radiation accident at the ChNPP and there are located developed countries using
nuclear technologies, in particular nuclear power industry. In 2016 in the Russian
Federation 10 nuclear power plants are in operation. Also 4 nuclear power plants
operating in Ukraine, located on the territory of the Black Sea basin, 146 nuclear
power plants operating in the territory of the European Union, 1 nuclear power plant
16 Levels of Activity Concentration, Migration and Dose Rates on Biota from. . .
249
substances of different etymology: oceanic islands and terrestrial polygons, where
were performed nuclear tests in the past and now, the surrounding area near the
nuclear reprocessing plants (Sellafield (the UK), Hanford (USA) radioactive accidents zones: near Windscale (the UK), Kyshtym (Russia), Chernobyl (Ukraine),
Fukushima (Japan) and so on, spacecraft crashes zone (“Kosmos–954”, “SNAP9A”), sunken nuclear boats and others (Transuranic elements 1985; Warner and
Harrison 1993; WOMARS 2005; Trapeznikov et al. 2007; Gulin et al. 2013; IAEA
2015). At present, the anthropogenic stock of plutonium radioisotopes exceed
tens of thousands of times the natural one, although the history of man–made
plutonium has only a little more than half a century (the most important plutonium
isotope
239
Pu was discovered in 1941) and the number of man–made plutonium
continues to increase as a result of the operation of nuclear technologies (Plutonium
2003). Significant rates of the plutonium content increase in the biosphere, its high
radiotoxicity (especially alpha–emitting isotopes and, in particular,
239 Pu), as well
as the further development of the nuclear industry make it necessary to study the
behavior of plutonium in the environment, including marine ecosystems and
develop approaches for assessing the impact of plutonium radionuclides on
hydrobionts.
16.1.2 Features of the Black Sea Ecosystem and Plutonium
The alpha–radioisotopes of plutonium
239,240 Pu belong to the technogenic radionuclides along with
90 Sr and
137 Cs that are the most abundant anthropogenic radioisotopes in the marine environment and the main dose–forming artificial
radionuclides in the currently radioecological situation in the Black Sea ecosystems
after accident on the Chernobyl nuclear power plant (ChNPP) (Polikarpov et al.
2008).
Alpha–radionuclides of Pu have long half-lives T 1/2 (T 1/2 of
239 Pu more than
24,000 and T 1/2 of
240 Pu over 6000 years) (Plutonium 2003), so their concentrations
in the ecosystem components do not decrease practically due to radioactive decay
for hundreds of years and their number increases in the environment from the
incident to the incident. Seas serve as a kind of buffer systems which receive
radioactive contamination and where many of the radionuclides are accumulated
as a result of atmospheric transport and with the river and surface runoff. This effect
is pronounced for the so–called “elements–divers” (including plutonium) which are
accumulated mainly in the bottom sediment. The Black Sea is at risk of radiation
contamination as an inland sea in the catchment area of which there was a major
radiation accident at the ChNPP and there are located developed countries using
nuclear technologies, in particular nuclear power industry. In 2016 in the Russian
Federation 10 nuclear power plants are in operation. Also 4 nuclear power plants
operating in Ukraine, located on the territory of the Black Sea basin, 146 nuclear
power plants operating in the territory of the European Union, 1 nuclear power plant
16 Levels of Activity Concentration, Migration and Dose Rates on Biota from. . .
249