Trace levels of Fukushima disaster radionuclides in East Pacific albacore.
The Fukushima Daiichi power station released several radionuclides into the Pacific following the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami. A total of 26 Pacific albacore (Thunnus alalunga) caught off the Pacific Northwest U.S. coast between 2008 and 2012 were analyzed for (137)Cs and Fukushima-attributed (134)Cs. Both 2011 (2 of 2) and several 2012 (10 of 17) edible tissue samples exhibited increased activity concentrations of (137)Cs (234-824 mBq/kg of wet weight) and (134)Cs (18.2-356 mBq/kg of wet weight). The remaining 2012 samples and all pre-Fukushima (2008-2009) samples possessed lower (137)Cs activity concentrations (103-272 mBq/kg of wet weight) with no detectable (134)Cs activity. Age, as indicated by fork length, was a strong predictor for both the presence and concentration of (134)Cs (p < 0.001). Notably, many migration-aged fish did not exhibit any (134)Cs, suggesting that they had not recently migrated near Japan. None of the tested samples would represent a significant change in annual radiation dose if consumed by humans.
Department of Nuclear Engineering & Radiation Health Physics, and ‡College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences (CEOAS), Oregon State University , Corvallis, Oregon 97331, United States.
Delvan R
DR
Neville
A Jason
AJ
Phillips
Richard D
RD
Brodeur
Kathryn A
KA
Higley
D000818:Animals; D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes / Q000032:analysis*; D062406:Fukushima Nuclear Accident; D007564:Japan; D015205:Northwestern United States; D010140:Pacific Ocean; D011834:Radiation Monitoring; D014413:Tuna; D014875:Water Pollutants, Radioactive / Q000032:analysis*
D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes; D014875:Water Pollutants, Radioactive