Assessment of the impact of Tianwan Nuclear Power Plant on the adjacent marine ecosystem

Mar Pollut Bull. 2024 May:202:116378. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2024.116378. Epub 2024 Apr 27.

Abstract

Based on the monitoring data of 137Cs and 90Sr in Tian Bay in 2005-2023, the impacts of the operation of Tianwan Nuclear Power Plant on the marine ecosystem were assessed. The 137Cs and 90Sr activity concentrations in the seawater and sediment varied within the background ranges. The radiation dose rates derived from 137Cs and 90Sr for the marine organisms ranged from 2.4 × 10-5 to 2.2 × 10-4 nGy/h, it was far below the most conservative screening dose rate (10 μGy/h). The committed effective dose for humans was 0.070-0.094 μSv, 1/1500th of the world's mean annual effective dose (0.12 mSv) from ingesting food containing uranium and thorium series nuclides. Radiation risk assessment showed no radiation risk for the long-term discharge of nuclear wastes in the future. Overall, the long-term normal operation of TNPPs has almost no radiation impact on the adjacent marine ecosystem.

Keywords: (137)Cs; (90)Sr; Dose assessment; Radiation risk; Tianwan Nuclear Power Plant.

MeSH terms

  • Aquatic Organisms*
  • Cesium Radioisotopes* / analysis
  • China
  • Ecosystem*
  • Geologic Sediments / chemistry
  • Nuclear Power Plants*
  • Radiation Monitoring*
  • Risk Assessment
  • Seawater* / chemistry
  • Water Pollutants, Radioactive* / analysis

Substances

  • Water Pollutants, Radioactive
  • Cesium Radioisotopes