Influence of climatic conditions and soil properties on 137 Cs vertical distribution in selected Chilean soils

• Published in: Zeitschrift für Pflanzenernährung und Bodenkunde
• Main Authors: Schuller, Paulina, Ellies, Achim, Handl, Josef
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 1997
• Subjects: Antarctic; The Antarctic; Antarc*
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jpln.19971600312; https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1002%2Fjpln.19971600312; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/jpln.19971600312

Abstract Long‐term downward distribution of global fallout 137 Cs was studied in different soil types, in natural and semi‐natural environments of four Chilean climatic zones. The 137 Cs soil content showed an exponential decrease with depth; relaxation depth ranged from 0.9 cm in the polar climate environment up to 6.8 cm in the mesothermal warm summer one. In the Antarctic and Westpatagonic ecosystems the long freezing periods delayed the 137 Cs leaching. In temperate and tropical climate zones, primarily the rates of annual rainfall and volume of coarse soil pores control the radionuclide's distribution in the soil profiles.