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Long-term 137Cs contamination of mushrooms following the Chernobyl fallout

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Abstract

In the aftermath of the Chernobyl accident high concentrations of 137 Cs were found in mushrooms in several European countries and inSweden. Two edible mushrooms species were selected for a long-term investigationin order to evaluate the 137Cs contamination over a long time.Samples of Suillus variegatus and Cantharellus spp. were collected from 1986to 1998 and their 137 Cs contents assessed. The results show thatthe activity of 137Cs remained more or less constant in Suillusvariegatus, while it increased in Cantharellus spp. This reflects the forestecosystem of the mushrooms, where nutrient-poor substrates, rich in organicsubstance and with high pH maintain 137Cs available for uptake.A decay-correction of the time distribution shows that radioactive decay appearsto be the main factor affecting the content of 137Cs in mushrooms,at least in the medium term.

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Mascanzoni, D. Long-term 137Cs contamination of mushrooms following the Chernobyl fallout. Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry 249, 245–249 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1013263114576

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