Effects of Large-Scale Wildfires on the Redistribution of Radionuclides in the Chornobyl River System

Overview

A paper by a research group led by Associate Professor Yasunori Igarashi of Tsukuba University and Project Professor Alexei Konoplev of Fukushima University has been joint press released.

The study investigated the impact of a large forest fire in April 2020 in the Chornobyli controlled area of Ukraine on the redistribution of radioactive materials. After the fire, the abundance of ¹³⁷Cs and ⁹⁰Sr in carbonized residues and soil was identified, and long-term monitoring of concentrations in streams showed that the fire enhanced the redistribution of ¹³⁷Cs and ⁹⁰Sr. *Press release (PDF 404KB)

Publication Information

Effects of Large-Scale Wildfires on the Redistribution of Radionuclides in the Chornobyl River System
Yasunori Igarashi, Valentyn Protsak, Gennady Laptev, Igor Maloshtan, Dmitry Samoilov, Serhii Kirieiev, Yuichi Onda, Alexei Konoplev, Environmental Science & Technology, 2024, DOI:10.1021/acs.est.4c07019

Media Coverage

• AGU Eos（2025年1月30日）
  Wildfires Raise Concern About Remobilized Radioactive Contamination
  Researchers collected soil and ash after the 2020 wildfires in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone. Chemical tests suggested that the fires made it easier for contaminants to wash into nearby rivers.

Related Links

• University of Tsukuba Press Release
• Press Release (PDF)
• DOI：10.1021/acs.est.4c07019