Monitoring and assessment of radionuclide discharges from Temelín Nuclear Power Plant into the Vltava River (Czech Republic)

• Published in: Journal of environmental radioactivity 2009-02, Vol.100 (2), p.131-138
• Main Authors: HANSLIK, Eduard, IVANOVOVA, Diana, JURANOVA, Eva, SIMONEK, Pavel, JEDINAKOVA-KRIGOVA, Vera
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Activation and fission products; Applied sciences; Biological and medical sciences; Biological effects of radiation; Cesium - analysis; Continental surface waters; Czech Republic; Earth sciences; Earth, ocean, space; Ecological half-time; Engineering and environment geology. Geothermics; Environmental half-life; Exact sciences and technology; Freshwater; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Geography; Geologic Sediments - analysis; Natural water pollution; Nuclear Power Plants; Pollution; Pollution, environment geology; Radioactive wastewater; Radiocontamination; Rivers; Sediment; Strontium - analysis; Surface water; Tissues, organs and organisms biophysics; Tritium; Tritium - analysis; Water Pollutants, Radioactive - analysis; Water treatment and pollution
• ISSN: 0265-931X; 1879-1700
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvrad.2008.11.001

The paper summarizes impacts of the Temelín Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) on the Vltava and Labe River basins. The study is based on the results of long-term monitoring carried out before the plant operation (1989–2000), and subsequently during the plant operation (2001–2005). In the first period, the main objective was to determine background radionuclide levels remaining in the environment after global fallout and due to the Chernobyl accident. A decrease in the concentrations of 90Sr, 134Cs and 137Cs, which was observed before the plant operation, continued also during the subsequent period. Apart from tritium, the results of the observation did not indicate any impacts of the plant on the concentrations of activation and fission products in the hydrosphere. The annual average tritium concentrations in the Vltava River were in agreement with predicted values. The maximum annual average tritium concentration (13.5 Bq L −1) was observed in 2004 downstream from the wastewater discharge in the Vltava River at Solenice. Estimated radiation doses for adults due to intakes of river water as drinking water contaminated by tritium are below 0.1 μSv y −1.