Radioactivity Levels in Kola Bay

Sediment samples were collected in May 1995 from 16 locations in Kola Bay, North-west Russia, during an expedition starting from Murmansk and ending at Kildin Island in the Barents Sea. The purpose was to study the contamination level in an area with several potential sources of civilian and military radioactive pollution. 137Cs concentrations in the sediments, algae and benthic samples were low, but small particles containing 137Cs were separated from the sediment samples. All the sediments between the nuclear icebreaker base Atomflot and the open Barents Sea contained 60Co. Traces of 125Sb, 134Cs, 95Zr, 154Eu and 152Eu were also detected in some of the samples. Plutonium levels were low, but the increased 238Pu/239,240Pu ratio at Atomflot indicated a fresh release from the facility or from the waste storage vessels, Lepse and Imandra, lying in front of it. An increased 238Pu/239,240Pu ratio was also found in sediment collected in the outlet of Kola Bay in the Barents Sea. (author)