Input contribution and vertical migration of plutonium, americium and cesium in lake sediments (Belham Tarn, Cumbria, UK)

The record of the global atmospheric fallout could be found in the lake sediments. A mass balance for fallout radionuclides in Blelham Tarn and its catchment is established. The sediment activity contribution is coming from direct atmospheric fallout and from indirect atmospheric fallout via the catchment. The catchement activity is conveyed to the sediment by the rivers and the direct streaming. A comparison of the fallout and the sediment inventory allows the activity estimation of these different contributions and to understand the mobility of these elements on the catchment and in the sediments. The study of activity profile in sediment core allows to characterise the different radioactive events occurred in the past. For the lake Blelham, the results show two cesium activity peaks and only one peak for transuranic activities. The deepest peaks correspond to the atmospheric nuclear test fallout in the sixties (1963) and the second peak to the Chernobyl accident (1986). The activity ratio 239-240Pu/137Cs allows estimating the ratio between cesium activities in sediments coming from these two events. Plutonium and cesium diffusion coefficients are calculated with a simple analytical model. (orig.)