Variability of radiocaesium concentrations in freshwater fish caught in the United Kingdom following the Chernobyl accident: An assessment of potential doses to critical group consumers

Radiocaesium deposited from the Chernobyl reactor accident contaminated the aquatic environment in several parts of the United Kingdom. The Directorate of Fisheries Research of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food studies have shown freshwater fish, particularly indigenous brown trout, to be the most important pathway, radiologically. The paper highlights the temporal and spatial distribution of radiocaesium in brown trout between 1986 and 1989. The difference in concentrations for other species is discussed. By comparing theoretical doses assessed on the basis of pessimistically high consumption rates with information provided from specific fisheries, it is concluded that effective dose equivalents are likely to have been less than 1 mSv/a. (author). 14 refs, 3 figs, 2 tabs