Contamination of Slovak Bilberry (Vaccinium Myrtillus L.) with Radiocaesium 137Cs in Selected Slovak Locations
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2021 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Folia Veterinaria |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Web | https://www.sciendo.com/article/10.2478/fv-2021-0017 |
| Doi | http://dx.doi.org/10.2478/fv-2021-0017 |
| Keywords | gamma-ray spectrometry; radioactivity; radiocaesium; Vaccinium myrtillus L.; transfer factor |
| Description | The aim of this study was to determine the activi-ty of post-Chernobyl 137Cs in Slovak bilberry (Vaccin-ium myrtillus L.) from selected locations of Slovakia depending upon: the season, location and the soil-plant transfer factor (TF). The 137Cs activity was de-termined in samples of forest soil and bilberry bushes (stems, leaves and fruits) growing on the soil in three locations: Arboretum Mlyňany (1), Hodruša-Hámre (2) and Javorníky (3). Altogether we collected 35 sam-ples; namely 15 samples from Arboretum Mlyňa-ny, 10 samples from Hodruša-Hámre and 10 from Javorníky. The samples of soil were examined also for the activity of 40K. The samples were collected in the spring, summer and autumn in the years 2019 and 2020 and were analysed by a gamma-ray spectrometry method. The highest levels of 137Cs activity concentra-tions were determined in Hodruša-Hámre in Septem-ber where they reached 161 ± 13 Bq.kg–1 in the soil, 3.95 ± 1.07 Bq.kg–1 in the stems and 14.7 ± 4.26 Bq.kg–1 in the leaves. The lowest levels were determined in the Arboretum Mlyňany in October where the 137Cs activ-ity in the soil reached 13.1 ± 1 15 Bq.kg–1, while in the stems, leaves and fruits it was lower than the mini-mum detectable level. In the latter location, we also determined the highest activity of 40K, the radioactive isotope physiologically and metabolically similar to 137Cs. The mass activity of 137Cs in all samples of bilber-ries were lower than the minimum detectable activity (MDA). The comparison of the results obtained in this study with the limit for total mass activity of radiocaesi-um (134Cs + 137Cs) in the food (600 Bq.kg–1) allowed us to conclude that the fruits, stems and leaves of Slovak bil-berries present neither health nor environmental risk. |