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with thermonuclear weapons testing. The distribution of 137 Cs from the Chernobyl
incident, for example, affected large parts of Russia as well as other areas in the
surrounding regions (Fig. 3.1 ) (Golosov et al. 1999 , 2013 ), but cannot generally be
detected in soils located further from the site.
The cycling of 137 Cs in the near surface environment plays a key role in its use
as a geochemical tracer, and has been reviewed by Ritchie and McHenry ( 1990 )
and, more recently, by Parsons and Foster ( 2011 ) and Mabit et al. ( 2013 ) (Fig. 3.2 ).
In general, atmospheric 137 Cs is deposited directly on soils (and other geological
materials), upon water bodies, and on vegetation. A portion of the 137 Cs deposited
on vegetation is adsorbed where it may be washed off during subsequent precipitation
events and incorporated into the surrounding soils. The remainder of the Cs deposited
on vegetation is absorbed by the plants where it is transferred to the soil by litterfall,
or by incorporating Cs into the soil as plants die and decay. Since the Cs in the
overlying vegetation eventually reaches the ground surface, the amount of 137 Cs
within an undisturbed soil profile that has been subjected to no erosion or deposition
Fig. 3.1 Map showing 137 Cs (total, recalculated to 10 May 1986) in Eastern Europe and the
locations of the case study sites examined in Golosov et al. ( 2013 ), including: (1) Lokna River
basin; (2) Zusha River basin; (3) Vorobzha River basin; (4) Kalaus River basin; (5) Chern River
basin; (6) Severskiy Donets River basin; (7) Toshnya River basin; and (8) Turdei River basin (from
Golosov et al. 2013 )
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