Feeding green-cut forage contaminated by radioactive fallout to dairy cows
Grass contaminated by radioactive fallout from the Chernobyl accident was cut with 150 mm (Treatment 1) and 50 mm (Treatment 2) stubble height and fed to 20 dairy cows. The transfer of 137Cs and 131I from the greencut forage to milk was studied during a four-week and a two-week period, respectively. The four-week period was followed by a three-week period with nearly uncontaminated feeds. Cutting with high stubble height significantly reduced the activity concentration in forage compared with low stubble cutting, the average contents kg-1 dry matter being 385 Bq 137Cs and 24 Bq 131I in Treatment 1 versus 6656 Bq 137Cs and 249 Bq 131I in Treatment 2. Apparent treatment effects were also demonstrated by the 137Cs concentration in milk, with maximum weekly means of 23 Bq kg-1 (Treatment 1) and 92 Bq kg-1 (Treatment 2). Single day maximum concentrations of 131I in milk were 4 Bq kg-1 (Treatment 1) and 9 Bq kg-1 (Treatment 2). The mean transfer coefficients (d kg-1) were calculated to be 0.67 X 10(-2) and 0.19 X 10(-2) for 137Cs (weeks 2-4) and 1.8 X 10(-2) and 0.2 X 10(-2) for 131I (week 2) in Treatments 1 and 2, respectively. The lower value for 137Cs might possibly be associated with an enhanced ash content of the forage. Feeding nearly uncontaminated rations rapidly decreased the 137Cs levels in milk in both treatments with calculated effective half-times over the three-week period of 10 and 7 d, respectively.
- Research Organization:
- Swedish Univ. of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala
- OSTI ID:
- 6514120
- Journal Information:
- Health Phys.; (United States), Vol. 55:6
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS
CESIUM 137
RADIOECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
FOOD CHAINS
CONTAMINATION
GRASS
IODINE 131
MILK
RADIONUCLIDE KINETICS
BIOLOGICAL HALF-LIFE
CATTLE
CHERNOBYLSK-4 REACTOR
FALLOUT
REACTOR ACCIDENTS
SWEDEN
ACCIDENTS
ALKALI METAL ISOTOPES
ANIMALS
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BODY FLUIDS
CESIUM ISOTOPES
DAYS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
DOMESTIC ANIMALS
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
ENRICHED URANIUM REACTORS
EUROPE
FOOD
GRAPHITE MODERATED REACTORS
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
IODINE ISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
LILIOPSIDA
LWGR TYPE REACTORS
MAGNOLIOPHYTA
MAMMALS
MATERIALS
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
PLANTS
POWER REACTORS
RADIOISOTOPES
REACTORS
RUMINANTS
SCANDINAVIA
THERMAL REACTORS
VERTEBRATES
WATER COOLED REACTORS
WESTERN EUROPE
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
560162* - Radionuclide Effects
Kinetics
& Toxicology- Animals
Plants
Microorganisms
& Cells
220900 - Nuclear Reactor Technology- Reactor Safety