Chapter 17
Radionuclides
137 Cs and
90 Sr in Components
of the Black Sea Ecosystems: Contemporary
Status and Prognosis
Natalya Yu. Mirzoyeva, Viktor N. Egorov, and Sergey B. Gulin
Abstract Over the period from 1986 to 2016 the data for the
90 Sr and
137 Cs
horizontal and vertical distribution in the surface water and in the water column
of the Black Sea, accordingly, were analyzed. The results of full-profile measurements of
137 Cs in the deep water column were obtained in 2015 for the first time for
the whole post-Chernobyl period. The time constants of exponential functions were
determined and the forecast of
90 Sr and
137 Cs concentrations reduction to the
pre-accident levels in the components of the ecosystem of the Sevastopol bay was
made. The estimations of the balance components of these radionuclides in the
Black Sea were obtained. It is shown that to the present time the steady-state
equilibrium between entry and elimination of
90
Sr and
137 Cs in the oxygen zone
of the Black Sea was formed, at the same time their accumulation in the hydrogensulphidous zone has been increasing. By 2013 the
90 Sr and
137 Cs content in the
Black Sea was evaluated as 1670 and 2843 TBq, respectively, that was in 3.6–6.4
and in 1.2–1.6 times higher, than the content of these radionuclides at the sea in
2000. At the same time 66% of
137 Cs and 67% of
90 Sr of the total content of
radionuclides in the whole water column was in the hydrogen-sulphidous zone of
the Black Sea. The period of circulation of
137
Cs and
90 Sr in the oxygen and
hydrogen-sulphidous zones of the Black Sea is about 14 and 94 years, respectively.
17.1 Introduction
A significant amount of long-lived radionuclides entered into the Black Sea after
the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (ChNPP) accident, which happened in 1986. In
subsequent years, they migrated along whole water area of the sea, gradually
penetrating into the depth of the water column and bottom sediments. At that
there was a problem of the assessment and prediction of the ecological hazard, as
N.Y. Mirzoyeva (*) • V.N. Egorov • S.B. Gulin
Radiation and Chemical Biology Department, FSBIS Institute of marine biological research
RAS (IMBR), 2, Nakhimov Av., Sevastopol 299011, Russian Federation
e-mail: natmirz@mail.ru
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
C.W. Finkl, C. Makowski (eds.), Diversity in Coastal Marine Sciences, Coastal
Research Library 23, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-57577-3_17
275
Radionuclides
137 Cs and
90 Sr in Components
of the Black Sea Ecosystems: Contemporary
Status and Prognosis
Natalya Yu. Mirzoyeva, Viktor N. Egorov, and Sergey B. Gulin
Abstract Over the period from 1986 to 2016 the data for the
90 Sr and
137 Cs
horizontal and vertical distribution in the surface water and in the water column
of the Black Sea, accordingly, were analyzed. The results of full-profile measurements of
137 Cs in the deep water column were obtained in 2015 for the first time for
the whole post-Chernobyl period. The time constants of exponential functions were
determined and the forecast of
90 Sr and
137 Cs concentrations reduction to the
pre-accident levels in the components of the ecosystem of the Sevastopol bay was
made. The estimations of the balance components of these radionuclides in the
Black Sea were obtained. It is shown that to the present time the steady-state
equilibrium between entry and elimination of
90
Sr and
137 Cs in the oxygen zone
of the Black Sea was formed, at the same time their accumulation in the hydrogensulphidous zone has been increasing. By 2013 the
90 Sr and
137 Cs content in the
Black Sea was evaluated as 1670 and 2843 TBq, respectively, that was in 3.6–6.4
and in 1.2–1.6 times higher, than the content of these radionuclides at the sea in
2000. At the same time 66% of
137 Cs and 67% of
90 Sr of the total content of
radionuclides in the whole water column was in the hydrogen-sulphidous zone of
the Black Sea. The period of circulation of
137
Cs and
90 Sr in the oxygen and
hydrogen-sulphidous zones of the Black Sea is about 14 and 94 years, respectively.
17.1 Introduction
A significant amount of long-lived radionuclides entered into the Black Sea after
the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (ChNPP) accident, which happened in 1986. In
subsequent years, they migrated along whole water area of the sea, gradually
penetrating into the depth of the water column and bottom sediments. At that
there was a problem of the assessment and prediction of the ecological hazard, as
N.Y. Mirzoyeva (*) • V.N. Egorov • S.B. Gulin
Radiation and Chemical Biology Department, FSBIS Institute of marine biological research
RAS (IMBR), 2, Nakhimov Av., Sevastopol 299011, Russian Federation
e-mail: natmirz@mail.ru
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
C.W. Finkl, C. Makowski (eds.), Diversity in Coastal Marine Sciences, Coastal
Research Library 23, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-57577-3_17
275