Radiation Doses to Waterfowl Using a Liquid Radioactive Waste Disposal Area

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Abstract
Radiation doses from radionuclides in a contaminated environment and from radionuclides ingested were determined for 7 species [Anas crecca, A. acuta, A. platyrhynchos, Aythya affinis, Bucephala clanugula, B. albeola, Fulica americana] of waterfowl by using a liquid radioactive waste disposal area in southeastern Idaho [USA]. Lifetime doses to wild watefowl from internally deposited radionuclides averaged 700 .+-. 1000 (SD) mrad with a projected maximum dose of 4000 mrad. External radiation doses from radionuclides in the waste pond environment averaged 80 .+-. 20 mrad/day for wing-clipped mallards (A. platyrhynchos). The average and maximum total doses to wild ducks, from external and internal radionuclides, were 1180 and 5600 mrad, respectively. Waterfowl contained higher radionuclide concentrations and received higher doses from internal radionuclides than other birds and small mammals studied in the liquid radioactive waste disposal environs. The ecological implications of waterfowl inhabiting a liquid radioactive waste disposal area were discussed.