Abstract
As a result of the earthquake and tsunami of March 2011, a large quantity of radioactive material was emitted into the sea from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FNPP). Seawater, sediments, and many marine organisms with high radiation levels have been reported from coastal areas in Fukushima Prefecture. Currently, fishing in Fukushima Prefecture has been banned. This projected study will examine the following issues: (1) diffusion of radioactive material via the food chain, (2) diffusion via migration/movement of various organisms, and, as a long-term project, (3) the biological half-life of selected radionuclide cesium within the fish body. Sampling of marine organisms was carried out between November 2011 and May 2013 by scuba diving, gillnetting, and seine netting. A rocky shore and a sandy beach at Yotsukura (35 km south of FNPP; depth, 0.5–1 m), Ena (50 km south of FNPP; depth, 5–6 m), and Souma (50 km north of FNPP; depth, 3–7 m) were selected as sampling locations. Sampled species included 15 seaweeds, 25 invertebrates, and 43 fish species. Concentrations of radioactive cesium (134+137Cs) were measured using a germanium semiconductor detector. In addition, an ultrasonic pinger was used to investigate the ranging behavior of the rockfish Sebastes cheni in an area contaminated with high concentrations of cesium. Immediately after the accident at FNPP, very high levels of radioactive cesium were recorded in coastal marine organisms, but these decreased with time. At present, the concentrations found in demersal coastal fish are higher than in pelagic species. The ranging behavior of rockfish, contaminated at comparatively high levels, was very limited, with the fish remaining within a small territorial area and thus limiting the diffusion of radioactive cesium. It is 3 years since the Fukushima accident; however, continuous monitoring of radioactive cesium concentrations in benthic and coastal fish is still required to implement suitable management policies.
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Acknowledgments
This research was supported by the Environment Research and Technology Development Fund (4ZD-1201) of the Ministry of the Environment, Japan. The authors appreciate the assistance from the Aquamarine Fukushima aquarium and the Fukushima Prefectural Fishermen’s Cooperative Association.
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Arakawa, H. et al. (2015). Distribution of Radioactive Material in Marine Ecosystems Off the Fukushima Coast: Radioactive Cesium Levels in Fukushima Marine Organisms. In: Ceccaldi, HJ., Hénocque, Y., Koike, Y., Komatsu, T., Stora, G., Tusseau-Vuillemin, MH. (eds) Marine Productivity: Perturbations and Resilience of Socio-ecosystems. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-13878-7_8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-13878-7_8
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