EAPSI: Using Bioindicators as a Technique for Evaluating 137Cs Contamination in Fukushima Prefecture

2011年3月11日，福岛第一核电站因大地震发生熔毁。随之而来的是放射性物质向周围地区的释放，导致数千名居民流离失所，农田无法使用。这项研究将利用植物作为显示辐射危险的技术，并作为恢复不适合居住的土地的手段。这项研究将与农业领域的专家Kosuke Noborio博士一起进行。该合作提供了在Iitate村的现场采样，Meji大学的实验室访问，以及与Noborio博士的研究生合作的机会。 该项目的长期目标是使用植物作为生物指示剂来评估137Cs污染区的生态健康，同时追溯收集样品用于分析植物物种作为植物修复试验的潜在来源。本研究的目的是支持这一目标与系统的方法，其中污染和未污染的137Cs被选为样本和对照组。将监测植物生长，以确定137Cs吸收的副作用以及不同浓度的污染如何影响植物的物理外观。在研究生物指示剂的同时，还将采集植物样品，测量植物对137 Cs的吸收量，以确定植物修复是否是一种适用的技术。该奖项是东亚和太平洋夏季研究所计划的一部分，由美国国家科学基金会和日本科学促进会共同资助，资助一名美国研究生的夏季研究。

On 11 March 2011, the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant experienced a meltdown due to a large earthquake. What followed was a release of radioactive material to the surrounding area, leading to thousands of displaced citizens and unusable farmland. This research will use plants as a technique for showing the danger of radiation and serve as a means for restoring uninhabitable land. The research will be conducted with Dr. Kosuke Noborio, an expert in the field of Agriculture. The collaboration provides on-site sampling in Iitate Village, laboratory access at Meji University, and the opportunity to work with fellow graduate students of Dr. Noborio. The long-term objective of this project is to use plants as bioindicators to evaluate ecological health of 137Cs contaminated areas while retroactively collecting samples for analyzing the plant species as potential sources for phytoremediation trials. The aim of this research is to support this objective with a systematic approach, in which areas contaminated and uncontaminated with 137Cs are chosen to serve as sample and control groups. Plant growth will be monitored to establish side effects of 137Cs uptake and how varied concentrations of contamination affect plant physical appearance. While the bioindicators are being studied, samples from the plants will be collected for measuring the amount of 137Cs uptake to indicate whether phytoremediation will be an applicable technique.This award, under the East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes program, supports summer research by a U.S. graduate student and is jointly funded by NSF and the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.