title: Radiocesium in migratory aquatic game birds using contaminated U.S. Department of Energy reactor-cooling reservoirs: A long-term perspective.
abstract: Low-level releases of radiocesium into former nuclear reactor cooling-reservoirs on the U.S. Department of Energy's Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina, USA, dating primarily to the late 1950s and early 1960s, have allowed examination of long-term contaminant attenuation in biota occupying these habitats. Periodic collections of migratory game birds since the 1970s have documented137Cs (radiocesium) activity concentrations in birds of SRS reservoirs, including mainly Par Pond and Pond B. In this study, during 2014 and 2015 we released wild-caught American coots (Fulica americana) and ring-necked ducks (Aythya collaris) onto Pond B. We made lethal collections of these same birds with residence times ranging from 32 to 173 days to examine radiocesium uptake and estimate the rate of natural attenuation. The two species achieved asymptotic whole-body activity concentrations of radiocesium at different times, with ring-necked ducks requiring almost three times longer than the 30-35 days needed by coots. We estimated ecological half-life (Te) for Pond B coots over a 28-yr period as 16.8 yr (95% CI = 12.9-24.2 yr). Pond B coot Tewas nearly four times longer than Tefor coots at nearby Par Pond where radiocesium bioavailability had been constrained for decades by pumping of potassium-enriched river water into that reservoir. Tecould not be estimated from long-term data for radiocesium in Pond B diving ducks, including ring-necked ducks, likely because of high variability in residence times of ducks on Pond B. Our results highlight the importance: (1) for risk managers to understand site-specific bio-geochemistry of radiocesium for successful implementation of countermeasures at contaminated sites and (2) of residence time as a critical determinant of observed radiocesium activity concentrations in highly mobile wildlife inhabiting contaminated habitats.
authors.affiliation: University of Georgia, Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, P.O. Drawer E, Aiken, SC 29802, USA. Electronic address: rkennamer@srel.uga.edu.
authors.forename: Robert A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Kennamer
authors.affiliation: University of Georgia, Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, P.O. Drawer E, Aiken, SC 29802, USA; University of Georgia, D.B. Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, Athens, GA 30602, USA.
authors.forename: Ricki E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Oldenkamp
authors.affiliation: University of Georgia, Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, P.O. Drawer E, Aiken, SC 29802, USA; University of Georgia, D.B. Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, Athens, GA 30602, USA.
authors.forename: James C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Leaphart
authors.affiliation: University of Georgia, Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, P.O. Drawer E, Aiken, SC 29802, USA; University of South Carolina Aiken, Department of Biology and Geology, Aiken, SC 29801, USA.
authors.forename: Joshua D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: King
authors.affiliation: University of Georgia, Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, P.O. Drawer E, Aiken, SC 29802, USA.
authors.forename: A Lawrence
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Bryan
authors.affiliation: University of Georgia, Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, P.O. Drawer E, Aiken, SC 29802, USA; University of Georgia, D.B. Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, Athens, GA 30602, USA.
authors.forename: James C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Beasley
mesh_terms: D025041:Animal Migration; D000818:Animals; D001717:Birds / Q000378:metabolism*; D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D006207:Half-Life; D009688:Nuclear Reactors; D011834:Radiation Monitoring; D014875:Water Pollutants, Radioactive / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes; D014875:Water Pollutants, Radioactive
keywords: (137)Cs; Ecological half-life; Lentic ecosystems; Nuclear industry; USDOE Savannah River Site; Wintering waterfowl