Radiological impact in Greece of the Chernobyl accident--a 10-y retrospective synopsis.

ABSTRACT

The present study summarizes the published results of the studies of the Environmental Radioactivity Laboratory on the radiological impact in Greece of the Chernobyl nuclear accident. Some unpublished data from personal communications also have been used to present the time evolution of the studies. The radiological impact in Greece of the Chernobyl accident is examined in two separate phases that of the acute effects and that of the delayed effects. Some measurements cover the whole period from the accidental pollution to the return to pre-accident levels and are used for estimations of ecological half-lives. The composition of radioactive fallout is examined, and the integrated concentrations of the principal radionuclides in the fallout are presented. The variations in the air concentrations of certain radionuclides and those of the gamma-ray intensity are presented as well. Some results from the study of hot particles detected during the acute phase are also given. The radioactive contamination of abiotic environmental components, food, and crops during the acute and the delayed effects phases are discussed in relation to the radiological impact on the population.