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Purkis JM, Bardos RP, Graham J, Cundy AB. Developing field-scale, gentle remediation options for nuclear sites contaminated with 137Cs and 90Sr: The role of Nature-Based Solutions. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2022; 308:114620. [PMID: 35149404 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.114620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2021] [Revised: 12/29/2021] [Accepted: 01/25/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The remediation of contaminated land using plants, bacteria and fungi has been widely examined, especially in laboratory or greenhouse systems where conditions are precisely controlled. However, in real systems at the field scale conditions are much more variable and often produce different outcomes, which must be fully examined if 'gentle remediation options', or GROs, are to be more widely implemented, and their associated benefits (beyond risk-management) realized. These secondary benefits can be significant if GROs are applied correctly, and can include significant biodiversity enhancements. Here, we assess recent developments in the field-scale application of GROs for the remediation of two model contaminants for nuclear site remediation (90Sr and 137Cs), their risk management efficiency, directions for future application and research, and barriers to their further implementation at scale. We also discuss how wider benefits, such as biodiversity enhancements, water filtration etc. can be maximized at the field-scale by intelligent application of these approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jamie M Purkis
- School of Ocean and Earth Science, University of Southampton, National Oceanography Centre (Southampton), European Way, Southampton, SO14 3ZH, United Kingdom
| | - R Paul Bardos
- Centre for Aquatic Environments, University of Brighton, Brighton, BN2 4AT, UK; r3 Environmental Technology Ltd., Reading, United Kingdom
| | - James Graham
- National Nuclear Laboratory, Sellafield, Cumbria, CA20 1PG, UK
| | - Andrew B Cundy
- School of Ocean and Earth Science, University of Southampton, National Oceanography Centre (Southampton), European Way, Southampton, SO14 3ZH, United Kingdom.
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Togamura Y, Uchiyama K, Akiyama F, Hirano K, Yamada D, Shibuya T. Evaluation of tall fescue as a low radiocesium-uptake grass species to replace orchardgrass in Japan. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RADIOACTIVITY 2021; 237:106694. [PMID: 34229188 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvrad.2021.106694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2021] [Revised: 06/22/2021] [Accepted: 06/25/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Grasslands in Tohoku and North Kanto, Japan were contaminated with radiocesium released from the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant in March 2011. The dominant pasture species in the permanent grasslands of these areas is orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.). Two field studies were conducted to determine the potential of a low radiocesium-uptake forage grass to replace orchardgrass for remediation of contaminated grasslands. From 2012 to 2014, tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) showed lower 137Cs uptake than orchardgrass under harvesting condition. The annual mean 137Cs activity concentration and transfer factor in tall fescue were half of those in orchardgrass. There was no significant difference in the 137Cs activity concentration among the five cultivars of tall fescue at the third harvest in 2012. From 2016 to 2019, another field study was conducted in a pasture with tall fescue and orchardgrass introduced by overseeding under heavy grazing pressure after the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. Tall fescue and orchardgrass were collected in May, July, and September from four paddocks before rotational grazing. Three grasses that were originally present, Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.), perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.), and white clover (Trifolium repens L.), were collected each time that tall fescue and orchardgrass were sampled in 2016-2017. They were also collected at the sampling time in May of 2018 and 2019. Tall fescue showed a consistently lower transfer factor than orchardgrass during the four years. Tall fescue had the lowest transfer factor compared with the three originally grown plant species. The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan recommends an exchangeable K2O content of 0.3-0.4 g kg-1 in soil (0-15 cm depth) to keep the 137Cs activity concentration in forage grass below the provisional tolerance level for feed. The soil exchangeable K2O content in both field studies was lower than this. Tall fescue is considered a low radiocesium-uptake grass and a potential replacement for orchardgrass in Japan. The use of tall fescue might reduce the amount of potassium fertilizer needed in contaminated grasslands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasuko Togamura
- Institute of Livestock and Grassland Science, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, 768 Senbonmatsu, Nasushiobara, Tochigi, 329-2793, Japan.
| | - Kazuhiro Uchiyama
- Institute of Livestock and Grassland Science, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, 768 Senbonmatsu, Nasushiobara, Tochigi, 329-2793, Japan
| | - Fumiaki Akiyama
- Institute of Livestock and Grassland Science, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, 768 Senbonmatsu, Nasushiobara, Tochigi, 329-2793, Japan
| | - Kiyoshi Hirano
- Institute of Livestock and Grassland Science, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, 768 Senbonmatsu, Nasushiobara, Tochigi, 329-2793, Japan
| | - Daigo Yamada
- Institute of Livestock and Grassland Science, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, 768 Senbonmatsu, Nasushiobara, Tochigi, 329-2793, Japan
| | - Takeshi Shibuya
- Institute of Livestock and Grassland Science, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, 768 Senbonmatsu, Nasushiobara, Tochigi, 329-2793, Japan
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Nakamura AJ, Suzuki M, Redon CE, Kuwahara Y, Yamashiro H, Abe Y, Takahashi S, Fukuda T, Isogai E, Bonner WM, Fukumoto M. The Causal Relationship between DNA Damage Induction in Bovine Lymphocytes and the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Accident. Radiat Res 2017; 187:630-636. [PMID: 28240558 DOI: 10.1667/rr14630.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FNPP) accident, the largest nuclear incident since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, occurred when the plant was hit by a tsunami triggered by the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011. The subsequent uncontrolled release of radioactive substances resulted in massive evacuations in a 20-km zone. To better understand the biological consequences of the FNPP accident, we have been measuring DNA damage levels in cattle in the evacuation zone. DNA damage was evaluated by assessing the levels of DNA double-strand breaks in peripheral blood lymphocytes by immunocytofluorescence-based quantification of γ-H2AX foci. A greater than two-fold increase in the fraction of damaged lymphocytes was observed in all animal cohorts within the evacuation zone, and the levels of DNA damage decreased slightly over the 700-day sample collection period. While the extent of damage appeared to be independent of the distance from the accident site and the estimated radiation dose from radiocesium, we observed age-dependent accumulation of DNA damage. Thus, this study, which was the first to evaluate the biological impact of the FNPP accident utilizing the γ-H2AX assays, indicated the causal relation between high levels of DNA damage in animals living in the evacuation zone and the FNPP accident.
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Affiliation(s)
- Asako J Nakamura
- a Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science, Ibaraki University, Mito, Ibaraki, Japan.,b Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki, Osaka, Japan
| | - Masatoshi Suzuki
- c Department of Pathology, Institutes of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan
| | - Christophe E Redon
- d Laboratory of Molecular Pharmacology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
| | - Yoshikazu Kuwahara
- c Department of Pathology, Institutes of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan
| | - Hideaki Yamashiro
- e Faculty of Agriculture, Niigata University, Niigata, Niigata, Japan
| | - Yasuyuki Abe
- f National Research Center for Protozoan Diseases, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro, Hokkaido, Japan
| | - Shintaro Takahashi
- c Department of Pathology, Institutes of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan
| | - Tomokazu Fukuda
- g Laboratory of Cell Engineering and Molecular Genetics, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Iwate University, Morioka, Iwate, Japan
| | - Emiko Isogai
- h Graduate School of Agricultural Sciences, Tohoku University, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan
| | - William M Bonner
- d Laboratory of Molecular Pharmacology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
| | - Manabu Fukumoto
- c Department of Pathology, Institutes of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan
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Fukuda SY, Iwamoto K, Atsumi M, Yokoyama A, Nakayama T, Ishida KI, Inouye I, Shiraiwa Y. Global searches for microalgae and aquatic plants that can eliminate radioactive cesium, iodine and strontium from the radio-polluted aquatic environment: a bioremediation strategy. JOURNAL OF PLANT RESEARCH 2013; 127:79-89. [PMID: 24346654 PMCID: PMC3889918 DOI: 10.1007/s10265-013-0596-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2013] [Accepted: 09/03/2013] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
The Fukushima 1 Nuclear Power Plant accident in March 2011 released an enormously high level of radionuclides into the environment, a total estimation of 6.3 × 10¹⁷ Bq represented by mainly radioactive Cs, Sr, and I. Because these radionuclides are biophilic, an urgent risk has arisen due to biological intake and subsequent food web contamination in the ecosystem. Thus, urgent elimination of radionuclides from the environment is necessary to prevent substantial radiopollution of organisms. In this study, we selected microalgae and aquatic plants that can efficiently eliminate these radionuclides from the environment. The ability of aquatic plants and algae was assessed by determining the elimination rate of radioactive Cs, Sr and I from culture medium and the accumulation capacity of radionuclides into single cells or whole bodies. Among 188 strains examined from microalgae, aquatic plants and unidentified algal species, we identified six, three and eight strains that can accumulate high levels of radioactive Cs, Sr and I from the medium, respectively. Notably, a novel eustigmatophycean unicellular algal strain, nak 9, showed the highest ability to eliminate radioactive Cs from the medium by cellular accumulation. Our results provide an important strategy for decreasing radiopollution in Fukushima area.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shin-ya Fukuda
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572 Japan
| | - Koji Iwamoto
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572 Japan
| | - Mika Atsumi
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572 Japan
| | - Akiko Yokoyama
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572 Japan
| | - Takeshi Nakayama
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572 Japan
| | - Ken-ichiro Ishida
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572 Japan
| | - Isao Inouye
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572 Japan
| | - Yoshihiro Shiraiwa
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572 Japan
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Mimura T, Mimura M, Komiyama C, Miyamoto M, Kitamura A. Measurements of gamma (γ)-emitting radionuclides with a high-purity germanium detector: the methods and reliability of our environmental assessments on the Fukushima 1 Nuclear Power Plant accident. JOURNAL OF PLANT RESEARCH 2013; 127:91-97. [PMID: 24338059 DOI: 10.1007/s10265-013-0594-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2013] [Accepted: 08/17/2013] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
The severe accident of Fukushima 1 Nuclear Power Plant due to the Tohoku Region Pacific Coast Earthquake in 11 March 2011 caused wide contamination and pollution by radionuclides in Fukushima and surrounding prefectures. In the current JPR symposium, a group of plant scientists attempted to examine the impact of the radioactive contamination on wild and cultivated plants. Measurements of gamma (γ) radiation from radionuclides in "Fukushima samples", which we called and collected from natural and agricultural areas in Fukushima prefecture were mostly done with a high-purity Ge detector in the Graduate School of Maritime Sciences, Kobe University. In this technical note, we describe the methods of sample preparation and measurements of radioactivity of the samples and discuss the reliability of our data in regards to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Interlaboratory comparisons and proficiency test (IAEA proficiency test).
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Affiliation(s)
- Tetsuro Mimura
- Department of Biology, Graduate School of Science, Kobe University, Rokkodai, Nada, Kobe, 657-8501, Japan,
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