The results of a new one scientific study reveal that the often high level of radioactive contamination of wild boars in Germany, especially in Bavariais largely due to this check on weapons nuclear what has been achieved in recent years, and not just the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. As Der Spiegel reports, the scientists who wrote the study told the journal Environmental Science and Technology that the fallout from the nuclear tests was widespread in Bavaria, as around the world, and that in some cases two-thirds of the radioactive cesium fell out Amounts present in the animals studied came from tests of nuclear weapons detonated on the surface, particularly in the USA 1950s.
The researchers led by the radioecologist came to these conclusions Georg Steinhauser from the Vienna University of Technology have now examined around 50 wild boars killed in Bavaria 2019 and that 2021 and found contamination with the radioactive isotope cesium 137 of 370 to 15,000 becquerels (Bq) per kilogram, assuming it exceeds Border EU of 600 Bq/kg. Until now, it was generally assumed that the Chernobyl accident in 1986 was the main source of cesium-137 in wildlife, scientists led by Steinhauser said. However, it has now been discovered that the cesium-137 produced during the nuclear weapons tests made a significant contribution to the creation of cesium-137 and contributed to the detection of wild boars. As Steinhauser pointed out, this is the first study to quantify cesium from nuclear weapons tests, and previous estimates suggested that only about 10% of the radioactive material came from those tests, with about 90% coming from Chernobyl.
The Cesium-137 It is a radioactive isotope that does not occur in nature German Cancer Research Center (Dkfz) can accumulate in bone tissue and damage its genetic material, which in the long term can lead to the formation of bone tissue Cancer down to the bone and leukemia. Steinhauser’s team calculated that up to 68% nuclear weapons residue could be present: a surprisingly high percentage. “Even if Chernobyl had not happened, some samples would have exceeded the limit. Elaphomyces, a type of fungus also known as deer truffle, which occurs underground, is probably responsible for this,” said the radioecologist. Especially when surface food becomes scarce towards the end of winter, the animals are forced to dig and feed on it Mushroom. This also explains why pigs killed in winter tended to be more contaminated. The Federal Office for Radiation Protection reported last Monday that many mushrooms, especially in Bavaria, were still contaminated with radioactive cesium. The southern and eastern areas of Bavaria are particularly affected, where most of Germany’s radioactive cesium was deposited after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.