Strontium-90 in Canada goose eggshells and reed canary grass from the Columbia River, Washington.
Strontium-90 ((90)SR) released to the ground near the N Reactor at the U.S. Department of Energy's Hanford Site enters the Columbia River through shoreline seeps. The (90)Sr is then potentially available for uptake by plants and animals. The life history and foraging behavior of nesting Canada geese is such that female geese could ingest (90)Sr while foraging on shoreline plants. Radichemical analyses showed that goose eggshells taken from an island, downstream from the N Reactor, contained more (90)Sr than did eggshells collected from other downstream islands. Reed canary grass samples taken from shoreline areas immediately downstream from the N Reactor contained higher concentrations of (90)Sr than samples from other downstream areas. All goose eggshells did not contain enhanced levels of (90)Sr, and all reed canary grass samples did not contain enhanced levels of (90)Sr, but a relationship exists between the releases of (90)Sr to the Columbia River and the enhanced levels of (90)Sr in some of the environmental samples analyzed.
Pacific Northwest Laboratory, P.O. Box 999, 99352, Richland, Washington, USA.
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