Current ionising radiation doses in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone do not directly impact on soil biological activity.

ABSTRACT: Although soil organisms are essential for ecosystem function, the impacts of radiation on soil biological activity at highly contaminated sites has been relatively poorly studied. In April-May 2016, we conducted the first largescale deployment of bait lamina to estimate soil organism (largely soil invertebrate) feeding activity in situ at study plots in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone (CEZ). Across our 53 study plots, estimated weighted absorbed dose rates to soil organisms ranged from 0.7 μGy h-1 to 1753 μGy h-1. There was no significant relationship between soil organism feeding activity and estimated weighted absorbed dose rate. Soil biological activity did show significant relationships with soil moisture content, bulk density (used as a proxy for soil organic matter) and pH. At plots in

SUBMITTER: Beresford NA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8865656 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature