24
RADIOACTIVE CONTAMINATION OF AREAS IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN FROM NUCLEAR TESTS
Unlike localization in the liver of mammals,
Zn™ was found distributed fairly uniformly
among the tissues. The Co found in clams
Table 24—Radiostrontium, Radiocesium and
Radiocerium-Praseodymium in Biological
Samples, December 1954~January 1955 (AFL)
IsLaND
ORGANISM
PERCENTAGE OF ToTaL
ACTIVITY
8r®
Rongelap Atoll:
Sr
June-July
1055°
31 seconut milk. ..-- <0.1 |<0.1
37 Caulerpa.....----
Cais?
Sept.,
Oct.
1065"
81.
0.0
30 coconut milk....-
72,
39 coconut crab
muscle.
41 mullet muscle... -| 0.0
67.
38 Halimeda._....---
0.0
0.0
Lebaredj.....- 20 coconut milk. -... <0.5 1<0.5
42 tern bone.....--.-] 0.0
43 tern bone....-.--- 0.0
Mellu_-.-..-.- 40 dogtooth tuna
‘| 0.0
muscle.
Rongelap...--- 27 coconut meat... -- 0.0
28 coconut mik...-- 0.0
32 pandanus fruit.../>0.1]
34 papaya meat. .._- >0.1/
33 squash meat....-. >O1/
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
1.3
25
LE
0.0
76.
0.0
0.0
4.8
26.
78.
10.
88.
51.
accounted for the major portion of the activity.
(The ability of clams to concentrate Co® selectively was verified by laboratory experiments.)
Table 25—Sr™ in Biological and Lagoon Bottom
Samples from Rongelap Atoll, October 1955
(AFL)
Istanp
Celt
Pritt
July,
Aug.
1068*
0.0
71
0.0
28.
1.0
15
0.0
B.
2.
0.6
<0.4
<0.2
0.7
3.7
1.0
*Dates of analysis.
ToTaL
SaMPLE
Activity
d/mjg*
Rongelap._.| Coconut meat.....-..----------Labaredj...
110
180
47
40
Kabelle....-
440
Coconutcrab liver......-------1, 200
Coconut crab salts of carapace_-..|.--.--..---.
Coconut crab cuticle of carapace_|.-..-..----Labaredj...| Giant clam mantle and muscle-1,700
Do....-
Giant clam kidney.........-----
Kabelle_....
5, 200
fraction
containing 1 inch “~
Particles >0.074
mim diameter.
0
21
46
3.2
29
12,
50.0
29.0
0
0
150
1, 700
300
31
0
0
<0.6
0
42
61
G
0
5, 500
Labaredj...| Tern muscle.........--.---..--Eabelie..... Lagoon bottom,
depth of water 6’, Topinch...
5r®,
Prescent
or ToTaL
ACTIVITY
40, 000
25,' 000
0
0.73
0.71
.
*Wet weight basis except lagoon bottom which ts on a dry weight basis.
Table 26—Radiostrontium in Plants Collected at Rongelap Atoll July 23-24, 1956
Counted September 4, 1966 (AFL)
PLANT
TISSUE
IsLAND
Rongelap--_..- wee nec een nae
Percgiveteies
Eee
TOTAL
P activity
a/m/g wet
Sr
d/m/g wet
42.0
80.4)
79.7
108
262
64.6
36.9
148
0.8240. 03
3140.1
2.2+0.6
2. 540. 6
0
0
0
a
Catcrom
g/g wet
0. 000628
0. 00136
0. 00450
0. 00333
“SUNSHINE
Units’’
591470
60440
150444
204439
-
Sr: Sr
1. 7720.10
3. 680. 22
0. 760. 06
1.48+0.05