biostudies-literatureUnknown47(23)Payne TERadioactive waste containing a few grams of plutonium (Pu) was disposed between 1960 and 1968 in trenches at the Little Forest Burial Ground (LFBG), near Sydney, Australia. A water sampling point installed in a former trench has enabled the radionuclide content of trench water and the response of the water level to rainfall to be studied. The trench water contains readily measurable Pu activity (~12 Bq/L of (239+240)Pu in 0.45 μm-filtered water), and there is an associated contamination of Pu in surface soils. The highest (239+240)Pu soil activity was 829 Bq/kg in a shallow sample (0-1 cm depth) near the trench sampling point. Away from the trenches, the elevated concentrations of Pu in surface soils extend for tens of meters down-slope. The broader contamination may be partly attributableEnvironmental science & technology13284-93https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC3854837biostudies-literatureTrench 'bathtubbing' and surface plutonium contamination at a legacy radioactive waste site.PMC3854837Hughes CEZawadzki AHarrison JJPayne TEHankin SIThiruvoth SJohansen MPRowling BWilsher KLCendon DIfalseTrench 'bathtubbing' and surface plutonium contamination at a legacy radioactive waste site.Radioactive waste containing a few grams of plutonium (Pu) was disposed between 1960 and 1968 in trenches at the Little Forest Burial Ground (LFBG), near Sydney, Australia. A water sampling point installed in a former trench has enabled the radionuclide content of trench water and the response of the water level to rainfall to be studied. The trench water contains readily measurable Pu activity (~12 Bq/L of (239+240)Pu in 0.45 μm-filtered water), and there is an associated contamination of Pu in surface soils. The highest (239+240)Pu soil activity was 829 Bq/kg in a shallow sample (0-1 cm depth) near the trench sampling point. Away from the trenches, the elevated concentrations of Pu in surface soils extend for tens of meters down-slope. The broader contamination may be partly attributable2013-01-01T00:00:00Z20132025-04-04T12:47:14.03Z2019-03-27T01:18:08ZS-EPMC38548372425647310.1021/es403278r