Tritium levels in milk in the vicinity of chronic tritium releases

• Published in: Journal of environmental radioactivity Vol. 151; pp. 282 - 292
• Main Authors: Le Goff, P., Guétat, Ph, Vichot, L., Leconte, N., Badot, P.M., Gaucheron, F., Fromm, M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.01.2016; Elsevier
• Subjects: Animals; Cattle; Dairying; Environment; Environmental Sciences; Food chain; France; Isotopic fractionation; Milk; Milk - chemistry; OBT; Radiation Monitoring; Radioactive Pollutants - analysis; Tritium; Tritium - analysis; France; OBT; Tritium; Environment; Isotopic fractionation; Food chain; Milk; tritium; contamination radioactive; isotopic fractionation; contamination alimentaire; chaine alimentaire; milk; dairy product; radionucleids; isotope radioactif; fractionnement isotopique; lait; radioactive contamination; produit laitier; environnement
• ISSN: 0265-931X; 1879-1700
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvrad.2015.10.022

Tritium is the radioactive isotope of hydrogen. It can be integrated into most biological molecules. Even though its radiotoxicity is weak, the effects of tritium can be increased following concentration in critical compartments of living organisms. For a better understanding of tritium circulation in the environment and to highlight transfer constants between compartments, we studied the tritiation of different agricultural matrices chronically exposed to tritium. Milk is one of the most frequently monitored foodstuffs in the vicinity of points known for chronic release of radionuclides firstly because dairy products find their way into most homes but also because it integrates deposition over large areas at a local scale. It is a food which contains all the main nutrients, especially proteins, carbohydrates and lipids. We thus studied the tritium levels of milk in chronic exposure conditions by comparing the tritiation of the main hydrogenated components of milk, first, component by component, then, sample by sample. Significant correlations were found between the specific activities of drinking water and free water of milk as well as between the tritium levels of cattle feed dry matter and of the main organic components of milk. Our findings stress the importance of the metabolism on the distribution of tritium in the different compartments. Overall, dilution of hydrogen in the environmental compartments was found to play an important role dimming possible isotopic effects even in a food chain chronically exposed to tritium. •Tritium can be incorporated in all the hydrogenated components of milk.•Components' isotopic ratios T/H of chronically exposed milk remain in the same range.•In environmental conditions, distribution of tritium in milk components varies.•Metabolism plays a role in the distribution of tritium in the components of milk.•In environmental conditions, dilution of hydrogen dims possible isotopic effects.