[H-CG27] Nuclear Energy and Geoscience

[HCG27-06] Effects on environmental dynamics of radiocesium related to the wildfire in mountainous forest of the Abukuma Mountains, Fukushima

*Tadafumi Niizato¹, Yoshito Sasaki¹, Takayoshi Watanabe¹, Katsuaki Mitachi¹, Satomi Ito¹, Takayuki Kuramoto², Hirotsugu Arai², Naoki Nomura², Seiji Hayashi³, Masanori Tamaoki³ (1.Japan Atomic Energy Agency, 2.Fukushima Prefectural Centre for Environmental Creation, 3.National Institute for Environmental Studies)

Keywords:wildfire, radiocesium, mountainous forest, TEPCO's Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant accident

¹³⁷Cs released from the TEPCO’s Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant accident has a long half-life of about 30 years, it is necessary to monitor the distribution and its radioecological impact over the long term. Mountainous forests, which accounts for about 70% of Fukushima Prefecture, tend to be a sink of radiocesium contamination rather than a source for the contamination of other ecosystems. An understanding of the environmental dynamics of radiocesium in various forest conditions is important issue under the situation which the return of evacuated residents is in progress.

In this paper, we report on the results of the field investigation into the ¹³⁷Cs distribution and the ¹³⁷Cs outflow in the mountainous forest of Fukushima, where the wildfire broke out in the spring of 2017.