Spatial distribution of natural and anthropogenic radionuclides in the soils of Naryan-Mar

The objective of the research is to identify the main patterns of spatial distribution of natural and anthropogenic radionuclides (RN) in Naryan-Mar. Urban soils are formed by means of natural soil transformation with the participation of technogenic sedimentogenesis, which leads to disturbance of n...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Arctic Environmental Research
Main Authors: Kriauciunas, Vidas V., Iglovsky, Stanislav A., Kuznetsova, Irina A., Shakhova, Evgeniya V., Bazhenov, Alexandr V., Mironenko, Kirill A.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:unknown
Published: Northern (Arctic) Federal University named after M.V. Lomonosov 2018
Subjects:
40K
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.3897/issn2541-8416.2018.18.3.82
Description
Summary:The objective of the research is to identify the main patterns of spatial distribution of natural and anthropogenic radionuclides (RN) in Naryan-Mar. Urban soils are formed by means of natural soil transformation with the participation of technogenic sedimentogenesis, which leads to disturbance of natural RN migration processes and contributes to the complex structure of natural and anthropogenic RNs contamination of tundra soils. The specific activity of anthropogenic ( 134 Cs, 137 Cs) and natural ( 226 Ra, 232 Th, 40 K) RNs in Naryan-Mar soil was determined. The local low-intensity anomalies (LLIA) of anthropogenic RNs result from transboundary transfer; 134 Cs and 137 Cs are concentrated in soils with a well-shaped vegetable layer. 226 Ra and 232 Th LLIAs are confined to regions with stone buildings. 40 K LLIAs are conditioned by high density of grassland vegetation involving 40 K in the biological cycle. The statistical manipulation of the acquired data involved correlation and factor analysis techniques. The statistical analysis demonstrated a moderate and salient correlation between the content of 232 Th and 40 K in the soils of the areas built up with wooden houses and the soils of the recreation area, respectively. There is a salient correlation between the content of 134 Cs and 40 K as well as between 134 Cs and 232 Th in the soils of the recreation area. The area occupied by technological buildings demonstrates salient and high negative correlations between the content of 226 Ra and radionuclides of 40 K and 234 Th. The multidirectional nature of the 226 Ra and 232 Th accumulation processes can be explained by their different mobility in the environment. A factor analysis of the specific activities of the radionuclides in the soils (based on the varimax method) revealed that the strongest factor (28%) conjointly regulates the 134 Cs and 40 K content, which testifies to their affiliation to non-mobile cationogenic elements. The second factor (25%) identified through an analysis of the overall data array ...