Archives2019Vol. 59, No. 6pp. 656-668

Article

Dynamics of 137Cs Accumulation in the Bottom Sediments of Shekino Reservoir During Post-Chernobyl Period

M.M. Ivanov1, A.L. Figurine1, N.N. Ivanova1, A.V. Konoplev2, E.A. Konstantinov3, N.V. Kuzmenkova4, E.V. Terskaya1, V.N. Golosov1,3

1 Lomonosov Moscow State University, Faculty of Geography, 2 Fukushima University, Institute of environmental radioactivity, Japan, 3 Institute of geography RAN, 4 Lomonosov Moscow State University, Faculty of Chemistry

Abstract

The results of an assessment of siltation and accumulation of particulate 137Cs of Chernobyl origin in the Shekino reservoir located in the upper reaches of the Upa River downstream from the most polluted part of its basin – the central part of the «Plavsk hot spot». The changes of 137Cs concentration in discharge of the Upa River based on the analysis of the vertical distribution of 137Cs in the bottom sediments were reconstructed for the period from 1986 to 2017. During the post-Chernobyl period, the activity of radionuclides in sediments almost fell to safe values, and their accumulation led to the burial of sediment layers with maximum concentrations of 137Cs. This contributes to minimizing the impact of the radionuclide on the quality of water and the biota of the Shekino reservoir. However, the accumulation of high 137Cs inventories in the bottom sediments of the reservoir should be taken into account when cleaning it up or in case of emergency situations in which significant amounts of bottom sediments can be discharged into the Upa River downstream of the reservoir.

Keywords

Chernobyl contamination, 137Cs, sediment discharge, reservoirs, modelling of radionuclides` migration

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