Effects of Ionizing Radiation on Aquatic Organisms and Ecosystems

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172
TECHNICAL REPORTS SERIES No.
Effects of Ionizing Radiation
on
Aquatic Organisms and Ecosystems
0
J
í INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, VIENNA, 1 976
EFFECTS OF IONIZING RADIATION
ON AQUATIC ORGANISMS AND ECOSYSTEMS
The following States are Members of the International Atomic Energy Agency:
AFGHANISTAN HOLY SEE PHILIPPINES
ALBANIA HUNGARY POLAND
ALGERIA ICELAND PORTUGAL
ARGENTINA INDIA REPUBLIC OF
AUSTRALIA INDONESIA SOUTH VIET-NAM
AUSTRIA IRAN ROMANIA
BANGLADESH IRAQ SAUDI ARABIA
BELGIUM IRELAND SENEGAL
BOLIVIA ISRAEL SIERRA LEONE
BRAZIL ITALY SINGAPORE
BULGARIA IVORY COAST SOUTH AFRICA
BURMA JAMAICA SPAIN
BYELORUSSIAN SOVIET JAPAN SRI LANKA
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CAMBODIA KENYA SWEDEN
CANADA KOREA, REPUBLIC OF SWITZERLAND
CHILE KUWAIT SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC
COLOMBIA LEBANON THAILAND
COSTA RICA LIBERIA TUNISIA
CUBA LIBYAN ARAB REPUBLIC TURKEY
CYPRUS LIECHTENSTEIN UGANDA
CZECHOSLOVAKIA LUXEMBOURG UKRAINIAN SOVIET SOCIALIST
DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE'S MADAGASCAR REPUBLIC
REPUBLIC OF KOREA MALAYSIA UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST
DENMARK MALI REPUBLICS
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC MAURITIUS UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
ECUADOR MEXICO UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT
EGYPT MONACO BRITAIN AND NORTHERN
EL SALVADOR MONGOLIA IRELAND
ETHIOPIA MOROCCO UNITED REPUBLIC OF
FINLAND NETHERLANDS CAMEROON
FRANCE NEW ZEALAND UNITED REPUBLIC OF
GABON NIGER TANZANIA
GERMAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC NIGERIA UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
GERMANY, FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NORWAY URUGUAY
GHANA PAKISTAN VENEZUELA
GREECE PANAMA YUGOSLAVIA
GUATEMALA PARAGUAY ZAIRE
HAITI PERU ZAMBIA
The Agency's Statute was approved on 23 October 1956 by the Conference on the Statute of the IAEA
held at United Nations Headquarters, New York; it entered into force on 29 July 1957. The Headquarters of
the Agency are situated in Vienna. Its principal objective is "to accelerate and enlarge the contribution of
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© IAEA, 1976
Permission to reproduce or translate the information contained in this publication may be obtained by
writing to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Kärntner Ring 11, P.O. Box 590, A-1011 Vienna, Austria.
Printed by the IAEA in Austria
March 1976
TECHNICAL REPORTS SERIES No. 172
EFFECTS OF IONIZING RADIATION
ON
AQUATIC ORGANISMS AND ECOSYSTEMS
INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY
VIENNA, 1976
EFFECTS OF IONIZING RADIATION
ON AQUATIC ORGANISMS AND ECOSYSTEMS
IAEA, VIENNA, 1976
STI/DOC /10/172
ISBN 92-0-125076-2
FOREWORD
In recent years ecologists and environmentalists have shown a growing concern for conser-
vation of ecosystems, especially marine ecosystems, in addition to the well established regard
for the protection of human health. This concern was echoed at the UN Conference on the
Human Environment in Stockholm, June 1972, which recognized that the over-all object of
pollution control is to protect and enhance human well-being and that within this framework
one of the principal objectives should be the protection of biotic populations other than man.
As part of the IAEA's environmental protection programme, a panel was convened in Vienna
in November 1970 to consider the principles for limiting the introduction of radioactive waste
into the sea. The panel members noted that one important area in which research is required is
the assessment of the effects of ionizing radiation on aquatic organisms, with special regard to
effects at the genetic, population and ecosystem level. With this in mind, the IAEA assembled a
group of experts from the fields of aquatic ecology and radiobiology to discuss the effects of
ionizing radiation in the aquatic environment. At two panel meetings held in Vienna in
November 1971 and April 1974, the experts assessed radiation exposure to aquatic organisms
from a wide range of toxonomic groups and proposed models for calculating estimates.of dose
rates which would be received by these organisms as a consequence of natural background radi-
ation, fallout from nuclear tests and radioactive waste disposal practices. In addition, the panel
reviewed existing literature dealing with the somatic and genetic effects of ionizing radiation on
aquatic organisms from various toxonomic groups. As a third objective the panel reviewed and
discussed scientific thought on the effects on aquatic populations and ecosystems resulting from
radiation dose received by individuals.
The present book contains the results of the deliberations of both panels. It is hoped that
it will prove to be of general interest, especially to those groups involved with radioecological
studies and environmental assessments of radioactive discharges.
The views expressed represent the common opinions of the panel members acting in their
capacity as individual scientists, and thus do not necessarily reflect the attitudes of any body
or authority with which these scientists may normally be associated in the course of their
employment.

CONTENTS
GENERAL SCOPE AND OUTLINE OF THE REPORT 1
CHAPTER 1. CONCENTRATIONS OF RADIONUCLIDES IN AQUATIC
ENVIRONMENTS AND THE RESULTANT RADIATION
DOSE RATES RECEIVED BY AQUATIC ORGANISMS 5
1.1. Concentrations of natural radionuclides in aquatic environments 5
1.1.1. Sea water
1.1.2. Seabed
1.1.3. Marine organisms
1.1.4. Fresh water
1.1.5. Fresh-water sediments
1.1.6. Fresh-water organisms
1.2. Concentrations of artificial radionuclides in aquatic environments 9
1.2.1. Concentrations of fallout radionuclides in aquatic environments
1.2.2. Concentrations of artificial radionuclides in aquatic environments from
waste disposal operations
1.2.3. Considerations for the future
1.3. Radiation dose rates to aquatic organisms from environmental radioactivity 21
1.3.1. Dose rates from incorporated radionuclides
1.3.2. Dose rates from radionuclides in the water
1.3.3. Dose rates from radionuclides in the sediment
1.4. Discussion 31
1.5. Measurement of radiation dose rates in aquatic environments 36
1.6. Summary 41
Appendix A Alpha-particle energy deposition within a small spherical volume 46
Appendix B Beta-particle absorbed dose rate within a small spherical volume 49
Appendix C Beta-particle absorbed dose rate within a small cylindrical volume 50
Appendix D Example of a dose rate calculation 51
CHAPTER 2. EFFECTS OF IONIZING RADIATION ON AQUATIC
ORGANISMS 57
2.1. Introduction 57
2.2. Somatic effects 57
2.2.1. Acute exposure
2.2.2. Chronic exposure
2.3. Genetic effects 74
2.4. Repair 79
2.5. Behaviour and metabolic stimulation 81
2.6. Influence of environmental factors on radiation effects 83
2.7. Summary 86
CHAPTER 3. EFFECTS OF IONIZING RADIATION ON AQUATIC POPULATIONS
AND ECOSYSTEMS 89
3.1. Introduction 89
3.2. Somatic effects 90
3.2.1. Possible effects of irradiation on recruitment to marine fish populations
3.2.2. Possible effects of irradiation on the exploited part of fish stocks
3.2.3. Possible effects of irradiation on other species
3.2.4. Observations on irradiated populations
3.2.5. Stability of ecosystems
3.3. Genetic effects 97
3.3.1. Population genetics
3.3.2. Effects of increased mutation rates on populations
3.3.3. Radiation induced mutation rate in fish
3.3.4. Predicted effects
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH 101
GENERAL CONCLUSIONS 103
REFERENCES 105
GLOSSARY 121
SECRETARIAT OF THE PANEL 127
PARTICIPANTS AND OBSERVERS OF THE PANELS IN 1971 AND 1974 128
GENERAL SCOPE AND OUTLINE OF THE REPORT
As outlined during the 1972 UN Conference on the Human Environment,
the overall objective of pollution control is to protect and enhance human
well-being; however, within this framework one prime objective should
be the protection of organisms and populations other than man. The need
for assessing criteria concerning the protection of biotic populations other
than man and the conservation of aquatic ecosystems, especially those
which are important to man, has also been stressed in several recent
international meetings.
In 1958 the UN Conference on the Law of the Sea recommended that the
IAEA be given the responsibility of promulgating standards and drafting
internationally acceptable regulations to prevent marine pollution by amounts
of radioactive materials which could adversely affect man and his resources.
Since that time the IAEA has sponsored a number of meetings on various
matters related to the disposal of radioactive wastes into the sea as well
as into rivers, lakes and estuaries. In November 1970 the IAEA convened
a panel of experts to assess the principles for limiting the introduction of
radioactive waste into the sea. This panel, in its conclusions, recommended
pursuing some general areas of research, one of which was the study of
the effects of ionizing radiation on organisms and their sensitive life stages
with special regard to effects at the genetic, population and ecosystem level.
From 15 to 19 November 1971 a panel of experts was convened by the
IAEA to specifically consider the effects of ionizing radiation on aquatic
organisms and ecosystems and to formulate more detailed suggestions for
research in this area. The composition of the panel was not such that it
could effectively evaluate radiation effects on population dynamics in eco-
systems, so a supplementary panel meeting was held in October 1972 to
review in depth several topics that would lead to an evaluation of possible
effects of radiation exposure on population dynamics in ecosystems. Both
panel meetings concluded that, on the basis of the present state of knowledge,
it was impossible to demonstrate or predict radiation effects on populations
and ecosystems at the low dose rates attributable to radioactive waste
discharges. The difference between existing radiation levels and those
levels that have been demonstrated to cause effects on organisms was felt
to be so great that the control of discharges on the basis of the protection
of man would usually also provide adequate protection for other organisms
and populations.
Nevertheless, the participants also felt that the effects of ionizing
radiation on aquatic biota are certainly factors which must be taken into
account when considering the disposal of radioactive wastes into the environ-
ment. Therefore a second panel meeting, from 22 to 26 April 1974, was
held, in which experts on genetics and population dynamics took part, aiming
at a clearer picture of the effects of ionizing radiation on aquatic organisms
and ecosystems.
The results of the work of the panels of November 1971 and April 1974
are presented in this report. The working papers and interim conclusions
of the October 1972 supplementary meeting were studied by and used in
the work of the April 1974 panel. The present report is divided up as follows.
The first chapter discusses the concentrations of natural and artificial
radionuclides in aquatic environments and the radiation dose rates received
1