Date:
May 2, 2017
Source:
University of Georgia
Migratory
waterfowl around the world travel hundreds to thousands of miles annually,
stopping at lakes, ponds and marshes to refuel and breed. Some of these aquatic
rest stops may be at sites polluted by remnants of radioactive waste from
nuclear production or accidents, exposing the birds to contamination that they
take with them. This poses a potential risk to humans if the waterfowl enter
the food chain.
Now
scientists at the University of Georgia have identified two factors that affect
the accumulation of a radioactive contaminant in waterfowl. The study,
published recently in the Journal of Environmental Radioactivity, reveals that
the wild birds' uptake of radiocesium is influenced by two main factors -- the
amount of time the bird inhabits a contaminated body of water and the bird's
foraging habits.
Robert
Kennamer, lead investigator on the study, guided a team of researchers that
examined American coots and ring-necked ducks at the U.S. Department of
Energy's Savannah River Site, a former nuclear production facility. Every year
thousands of migrant waterfowl visit SRS, which is closed to waterfowl hunting.
These birds forage in contaminated areas before resuming their journeys.
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