Patterns of sediment accumulation in Watts Bar Reservoir based on sup 137 Cesium
The US Department of Energy has recently undertaken an environmental restoration program designed to achieve remediation of hazardous materials released from the Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR). The distribution of {sup 137}Cs was investigated in sediments from Watts Barr Reservoir and the Clinch River as a possible marker for other contaminants released from the ORR. We have performed additional analyses on the data gathered for this study to investigate possible relationships between {sup 137}Cs accumulation and reservoir characteristics. We found that {sup 137}Cs deposition correlates with sedimentation rate, and soft mud layers of cores have higher {sup 137}Cs levels than sandy mud or eroded soils. No correlation was found with water depth, distance from shore or distance from release source, but it is important to note the data were not collected to test for these effects. We estimate Watts Barr Reservoir contains 267 Ci of {sup 137}Cs, with 7% of this total in the top 16 cm of sediment, and potentially available for biological accumulation. 2 refs. (MHB)
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE; USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC05-84OR21400
- OSTI ID:
- 5193674
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9109234-6; ON: DE92000067; TRN: 91-028317
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 4. Tennessee water resources symposium, Knoxville, TN (United States), 24-26 Sep 1991
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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