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Food chain contamination with radiocaesium (RCs) in the aftermath of the Fukushima accident calls for an analysis of the specific factors that control the RCs transfer. Here, soil-to-plant transfer factors (TF) of RCs for grass were predicted from the potassium concentration in soil solution ( m K ) and the Radiocaesium Interception Potential (RIP) of the soil using existing mechanistic models. The m K and RIP were (a) either measured for 37 topsoils collected from the Fukushima accident affected area or (b) predicted from the soil clay content and the soil exchangeable potassium content using the models that had been calibrated for European soils. An average ammonium concentration was used throughout in the prediction. The measured RIP ranged 14-fold and measured m K varied 37-fold among the soils. The measured RIP was lower than the RIP predicted from the soil clay content likely due to the lower content of weathered micas in the clay fraction of Japanese soils. Also the measured m K was lower than that predicted. As a result, the predicted TFs relying on the measured RIP and m K were, on average, about 22-fold larger than the TFs predicted using the European calibrated models. The geometric mean of the measured TFs for grass in the affected area ( N = 82) was in the middle of both. The TFs were poorly related to soil classification classes, likely because soil fertility ( m K ) was obscuring the effects of the soil classification related to the soil mineralogy (RIP). This study suggests that, on average, Japanese soils are more vulnerable than European soils at equal soil clay and exchangeable K content. The affected regions will be targeted for refined model validation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent events at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan have raised questions about the accumulation of radionuclides in soils and the possible impacts on agriculture surrounding nuclear power plants. This article summarizes the knowledge gained after the nuclear power plant accident in Chernobyl, Ukraine, on how soil parameters influence soil vulnerability for radiocesium bioavailability, discusses some potential agrochemical countermeasures, and presents some predictions of radiocesium crop concentrations for areas affected by the Fukushima accident. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2011;7:374-378. © 2011 SETAC [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent events at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, in Japan, have raised questions about the accumulation of radionuclides in soils, the transfer in the food chain, and the possibility for restricted land use in the foreseeable future. This article summarizes what is generally understood about the application of agricultural countermeasures as a land management option to reduce the transfer of radionuclides in the food chain and to facilitate the return of potentially affected soils to agricultural practices in the vicinity of the Fukushima plant. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2011;7:385-387. © 2011 SETAC [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]