Study of the transfer of 137Cs from fodder to cow milk in the region around Narora Atomic Power Station NPP Site, India.

ABSTRACT

Site-specific transfer coefficient from feed to cow's milk, for (137)Cs in the villages around Narora, a nuclear power station site in India, determined over a period of 17 y, is presented in this paper. In the transport model for the prediction of the concentration of (137)Cs in milk, the transfer coefficient from feed to milk, Fm, is an important parameter. The transfer coefficient value is determined from (137)Cs concentration in milk and grass samples of the Narora region, and the result ranged from 4.28E-03 to 3.30E-02 d l(-1) with a geometric mean value of 1.15E-03 d l(-1). The highest and the lowest values were only below one order of magnitude different from the mean, regardless of the type of diet, milk yield and age of the cow. The result is compared with that for (40)K, determined concurrently at the same region and ranged from 6.92E-03 to 8.01E-03 d l(-1) with a geometric mean value of 7.45E-03 d l(-1). This parameter is quite useful in decision-making for implementing countermeasures during a large-area contamination with (137)Cs in tropical areas like Narora. The ingestion dose from fallout (137)Cs through milk intake for adult and child is also estimated.