Assessing the present levels of 137Cs in the remote ecosystem of Bjornoya (South Svalbard)

• Published in: Marine pollution bulletin 2023-12, Vol.197, p.115736-115736, Article 115736
• Main Authors: Saniewski, Michał, Wietrzyk-Pełka, Paulina, Węgrzyn, Michał Hubert, Balazy, Piotr, Saniewska, Dominika, Klajman, Kamila
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0025-326X; 1879-3363
• DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2023.115736

The remoteness and small size of Bjornoya (S Svalbard) make the island one of the most unreachable places in the Arctic. Limited accessibility contributes to still-existing knowledge gap on isotope accumulation in compartments of its ecosystem. Therefore, in this study we aimed to investigate the current concentration of 137Cs in the terrestrial samples of vascular plants, cryptogams, and soil collected on Bjornoya in 2021. The measured average activity of 137Cs in bryophytes was 56.5 Bq kg-1, lichens 27.6 Bq kg-1, vascular plants 7.26 Bq kg-1, and soil 9.63 Bq kg-1. In the case of bryophytes, 137Cs activity was negatively correlated with δ15N. Our results suggest that bird guano was the main source of nitrogen and 137Cs for vascular plants. For bryophytes, significantly lower values of δ15N than in vascular plants suggests that this group is more sensitive to atmospheric N intake, with fallout being the main source of 137Cs.