The anthropogenic radiotoxic element of 137Cs accumulate to biota in the Mediterranean Sea

Akbar Abbasi; Hesham M H Zakaly; Ali Badawi

doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112043

The anthropogenic radiotoxic element of ¹³⁷Cs accumulate to biota in the Mediterranean Sea

Mar Pollut Bull. 2021 Mar:164:112043. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112043. Epub 2021 Jan 29.

Authors

Akbar Abbasi¹, Hesham M H Zakaly², Ali Badawi³

Affiliations

¹ Faculty of Engineering, University of Kyrenia, Kyrenia, TRNC, via Mersin 10, Turkey. Electronic address: akbar.abbasi@kyrenia.edu.tr.
² Institute of Physics and Technology, Ural Federal University, Yekaterinburg, Russia; Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Assiut, Egypt. Electronic address: h.m.zakaly@azhar.edu.eg.
³ Department of Physics, College of Science, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi Arabia.

PMID: 33524829
DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112043

Abstract

The abundance of ¹³⁷Cs radionuclide in the Mediterranean Sea has limited study despite its environmental effects in seafood chains. For this purpose, the activity concentration of ¹³⁷Cs in sediment and seawater have been determined using a high-resolution HPGe gamma-spectrometry system. The average activity concentrations in sediment and water were 14.16 Bq kg^-1 and 1.74 mBq L^-1, respectively. The results were used as input data of ERICA Tool modelling software to assess marine organisms' accumulation and dose. The highest and lowest accumulate activity concentration values were observed in birds (9.24E-01 Bq kg^-1) and the Vascular plant (1.37E-02 Bq kg¹), respectively. The total dose rate value was ranged between 1.94E-06 μGy h^-1 (Phytoplankton) to 4.70E-03 μGy h^-1 (Polychaete worm). The total dose rates of ¹³⁷Cs to the selected organisms were all <0.001 μGy h^-1, and there is no significant risk to marine biota in the study area.

Keywords: (137)Cs radionuclide; Activity concentration; Biota; ERICA tool; Gamma-spectroscopy.

MeSH terms

Biota
Cesium Radioisotopes / analysis
Mediterranean Sea
Radiation Monitoring*
Water Pollutants, Radioactive* / analysis

Substances

Cesium Radioisotopes
Water Pollutants, Radioactive
Cesium-137