Long-term monitoring of radioactivity in fish from New York waters.
As part of an environmental surveillance program operated by the New York State (NYS) Department of Health, measurements of various radionuclides in aquatic life (primarily fish) collected from waterways in NYS have occurred for decades. An investigation was undertaken to gain a better understanding of the occurrence, activity levels, and extent of radionuclide variations in aquatic life obtained from local waterways in relation to concentrations reported in fish from sites outside NYS (e.g., Pacific Ocean tuna). The man-made isotopes (137)Cs and (90)Sr were detectable at activities below 1 Bq/kg in the edible portions of fish from most NYS waterways, with the exception of greater activities in fish collected downstream of Brookhaven National Laboratory. Calculated effective doses resulting from eating the fish, estimated as 11-390 nSv/yr for (137)Cs and 0.3-7.9 nSv/yr for (90)Sr, are considered extremely low.
Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, PO. Box 509, Albany, NY 12201, USA; School of Public Health, University at Albany, State University of New York, Rensselaer, NY 12144, USA. Electronic address: michael.kitto@health.ny.gov.
Michael E
ME
Kitto
Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, PO. Box 509, Albany, NY 12201, USA.
Joseph C
JC
Marrantino
Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, PO. Box 509, Albany, NY 12201, USA.
Eileen M
EM
Fielman
Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, PO. Box 509, Albany, NY 12201, USA.
Douglas K
DK
Haines
Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, PO. Box 509, Albany, NY 12201, USA; School of Public Health, University at Albany, State University of New York, Rensselaer, NY 12144, USA.
Thomas M
TM
Semkow
Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, PO. Box 509, Albany, NY 12201, USA.
Abdul
A
Bari
D000818:Animals; D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes / Q000378:metabolism*; D005399:Fishes / Q000378:metabolism*; D005507:Food Contamination, Radioactive / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D009518:New York; D011829:Radiation Dosage; D011834:Radiation Monitoring; D012016:Reference Values; D013326:Strontium Radioisotopes / Q000378:metabolism*; D014875:Water Pollutants, Radioactive / Q000378:metabolism*
D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes; D013326:Strontium Radioisotopes; D014875:Water Pollutants, Radioactive
Effective dose; Environmental surveillance; Fish; Radioisotopes