Beresford, Nicholas; Barnett, Catherine 
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9723-7247; Norton, Lisa ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1622-0281; Wells, Claire; Wood, Mike; Entwistle, Neil; Shaw, George; Young, Scott; Kasparov, Valery; Churilov, Andrii; Morozova, Valeriia; Gaschak, Sergii; Salbu, Brit.
2017
RED FIRE: radioactive environment damaged by fire: a forest in recovery.
In: ICRP 2017 - 4th International Symposium on the System of Radiological Protection & ERPW 2017 - 2nd European Radiological Protection Research Week, Paris, 10-12 Oct 2017.
(Unpublished)
Severe and acute radiation from the Chernobyl accident killed
coniferous trees in a 4-6 km2 area of forest. This area, now
known as the ‹Red Forest›, subsequently regenerated with
understorey vegetation and deciduous trees. In July 2016,
a fire burnt c.80% of the Red Forest presenting a unique
opportunity to study the effect of fire on radionuclide biogeochemistry
and the impact of radiation on the recovery
of forest ecosystems exposed to a secondary stressor (fire).
The objectives of RED FIRE are to: (i) assess the impact of
fire on radionuclide behaviour by determining changes in
radionuclide mobility in soil; (ii) determine if there is any
impact of radiation on the recovery of the forest ecosystem.
To achieve these objectives we are using approaches novel to radioecology: bait lamina sticks to measure soil biological
activity; aerial drone vegetation and contamination mapping;
wildlife camera traps and bioacoustic recorders.
RED FIRE is building upon pre-fire baseline measurements
collected by the TREE project and collaborating Ukrainian
scientists. This gives an opportunity to contrast pre- versus
post-fire ecosystem states.
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