Impacts of freeze-thaw processes and subsequent runoff on ¹³⁷Cs washoff from bare land in Fukushima

Project Assitant Professor Yasunori Igarashi

Research Overview

This study investigated soil erosion from artificially bare soil and the amount of ¹³⁷Cs released from the soil on mountain slopes in Fukushima. Freezing up destroys the structure of the soil surface and accelerates soil erosion from the soil surface. Therefore, it was found that ¹³⁷Cs deposited on the surface layer was more selectively released from early spring to summer (Fig. 1). We consider that the eroded sediment will flow into the river and be transported downstream. In the future, we will continue our research with a view to the impact on rivers.

Figure

The Significance of the Study

In this study, we focused on ¹³⁷Cs runoff due to soil erosion from seasonal change of soil surface condition, and revealed that the change of soil surface condition affects the concentration of ¹³⁷Cs in the eroded sediment and the amount of ¹³⁷Cs discharge.

Publication

This study is available online in January 2021.

Journal	Science of The Total Environment
Title	Impacts of freeze-thaw processes and subsequent runoff on 137Cs washoff from bare land in Fukushima
URL	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.144706
Authors	Yasunori Igarashia, Yuichi Ondab, Yoshifumi Wakiyamaa, Kazuya Yoshimurac, Hiroaki Katob, Shohei Kozukad, Ryo Manomee *aInstitute of Environmental Radioactivity, Fukushima University *bDepartment of Integrative Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba *cSector of Fukushima Research and Development, Japan Atomic Energy Agency *dMinistry of the Environment *eDisaster Prevention Technology Division, Geo-hazard & Risk Mitigation, Railway Technical Research Institute