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Inflow/Outflow of Radiocesium in a Dam Lake and Its Accumulation in Sediments

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Impacts of Fukushima Nuclear Accident on Freshwater Environments

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Abstract

In river environments affected by the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident, dams can suppress the release of soils containing radiocesium from forested areas. However, they also act as a source of bioavailable radiocesium (137Cs) that is stored in and desorbed from lake sediments. This study investigated the migration and accumulation of particulate 137Cs in the Matsugabo Dam Lake, which is located about 50 km from the nuclear power plant. We used continuous observations of water turbidity and flow rate at two sites: the inflow point into the lake from a small forested watershed and the dam discharge point. The results showed that >85% of the particulate 137Cs that flowed into the lake had been stored from 2014 to 2017. In particular, a heavy rainfall event in September 2015 was estimated to contribute 41% of the particulate 137Cs that entered the lake during the period from 2011 to 2015. Through investigation of undisturbed cylindrical sediments collected from the lake inlet, central area, and near the embankment, the maximum sedimentary 137Cs concentration was observed near the embankment where the sediment had been undisturbed because of the water depth (>30 m), and relatively fine-grained mineral particles with high concentrations of 137Cs were deposited. The surface sediment contained >1 kBq kg−1 of 137Cs and this layer became thicker after 2015, suggesting that heavy rainfall in September 2015 significantly increased 137Cs storage in the lake. The increase in 137Cs storage in November 2015 compared with the initial 137Cs fallout in 2011 was roughly estimated at 6.4 × 1010 Bq, which was less than the amount of 137Cs deposited on the lake bottom by the initial fallout (1.06 × 1011 Bq), and equivalent to only 1.2% of the total 137Cs deposited in the Matsugabo Dam watershed.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (KAKENHI 15K16129) from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. We thank Dr. Nishikori and Dr. Ito for their help in surveying the rivers around the dam lake, and Dr. Ozaki for help in collecting bottom sediments of the dam lake. Hydrological data of the dam lake were provided by the Matsugabo dam management office and sedimentation data were provided by Soma land improvement district; we thank both organizations for their help. We also thank Kara Bogus, PhD, from Edanz Group (https://en-author-services.edanzgroup.com/ac) for editing a draft of this manuscript, and the two reviewers for their many helpful suggestions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fukushima Branch, National Institute for Environmental Studies, Tamura, Fukushima, Japan

    Hideki Tsuji & Seiji Hayashi

  2. Center for Regional Environmental Research, National Institute for Environmental Studies, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan

    Ayato Kohzu

  3. Fukushima Prefectural Centre for Environmental Creation, Tamura, Fukushima, Japan

    Takayuki Satou

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  1. Hideki Tsuji
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  2. Ayato Kohzu
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  3. Takayuki Satou
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  4. Seiji Hayashi
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Correspondence to Hideki Tsuji .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Nature and Environmental Technology, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan

    Seiya Nagao

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Tsuji, H., Kohzu, A., Satou, T., Hayashi, S. (2021). Inflow/Outflow of Radiocesium in a Dam Lake and Its Accumulation in Sediments. In: Nagao, S. (eds) Impacts of Fukushima Nuclear Accident on Freshwater Environments. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-3671-4_5

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