Exposure of a herbivorous fish to 134Cs and 137Cs from the riverbed following the Fukushima disaster. (March 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Tsuboi, Jun-ichi; Abe, Shin-ichiro; Fujimoto, Ken; Kaeriyama, Hideki; Ambe, Daisuke; Matsuda, Keishi; Enomoto, Masahiro; Tomiya, Atsushi; Morita, Takami; Ono, Tsuneo; Yamamoto, Shoichiro; Iguchi, Kei'ichiro
• Is Part Of: Journal of environmental radioactivity. Volume 141(2015:Mar.)
• Page Start: 32
• Page End: 37
• Publication Date: 2015-03
• Subjects: Radioecology -- Bioaccumulation -- Soil contamination -- Nuclear accident -- Radioactive cesium -- Ayu; Radioactivity -- Periodicals; Radiation, Background -- Periodicals; Radioecology -- Periodicals; Radioactive pollution -- Periodicals; Environmental Pollutants -- Periodicals; Radioactive Pollutants -- Periodicals; Radioactivity -- Periodicals; Radioécologie -- Périodiques; Pollution radioactive -- Périodiques; Fond de rayonnement -- Périodiques; 539.752
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvrad.2014.11.012
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0265-931X

Abstract

Abstract: Ayu Plecoglossus altivelis, a herbivorous fish, is an important fishery resource and key component of the foodweb in many Japanese streams. Radionuclide contamination of this species is likely transferred to higher trophic levels, include humans, in the food chain. After the Fukushima accident in March 2011, ayu were exposed to highly contaminated silt while feeding on algae attached to the riverbed stones. To understand the route by which herbivorous fish are exposed to radionuclides, the activity concentrations of sum of 134 Cs and 137 Cs (radiocesium) were analyzed in riverbed samples (algae and silt) and in the internal organs and the muscle of ayu in five river systems in the Fukushima Prefecture between summer 2011 and autumn 2013. Although there was a positive correlation between the radiocesium activity concentrations in the muscle and the internal organs of ayu, the median activity concentration in the muscle was much lower than those in the internal organs. The activity concentrations of radiocesium in the riverbed samples and the internal organs and the muscle of ayu were correlated with contamination levels in soil samples taken from the watershed upstream of the sample sites. The results of the generalized linear mixed models suggest that the activity concentrations in both the internal organs and the muscle of ayu declined over time. Additionally, the activity concentrations in the internal organs were correlated with those in the riverbed samples that were collected around the same time as the ayu. The activity concentrations in the muscle were correlated with ayu body size. Our results suggest that ayu ingest 134 Cs and 137 Cs while grazing silt and algae from the riverbed, and a part of the 134 Cs and 137 Cs is assimilated into the muscle of the fish. Highlights: The radiocesium (sum of 134 Cs and 137 Cs) concentrations in a herbivorous fish were measured following the Fukushima disaster. The muscle concentrations were correlated with, but much lower than those in the internal organs. The radiocesium concentrations in both the internal organs and muscle declined over time. The internal organ concentrations were correlated with those in the riverbed samples (i.e., fish dietary items). The muscle concentrations were correlated with body size.