IOCS MEMORANDUM BMI-10

BMI- 820. 01

BIOENVIRONMENTA L AND RADIOLOGICAL- SAFETY FEASIBILITY STUDIES

ATLANTIC-PACIFIC INTEROCEANIC CANAL

PHASE I - FINAL REPORT

AGRICULTURAL ECOLOGY

by

John F. Gamble, Hugh Popenoe, and Associates

University of Florida

Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences

Center for Tropical Agriculture

April 14, 1967

Prepared for Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus

Laboratories under Atomic Energy Commission prime

Contract No. AT(26-1)-171

BATTELLE MEMORIAL INSTITUTE

Columbus Laboratories

505 King Avenue

Columbus, Ohio 432011

IAY 1 1967

INTEt NATIONAL

PROGRAMS










4

Wherever possible the specific-activity or dilution approach will be used. This

assumes that a radionuclide will react in a manner similar to its stable isotope or in

conjunction with a chemically similar element.

Babcock (1962), in discussing the uses of radioisotopes of iron, manganese, zinc,

molybdenum, and chlorine in soil and plant studies, sounds a note of caution. He notes

that isotopic exchange can occur and that when it occurs it has frequently been ignored

with the result that specific activities of exchange, assumed to be constant, have varied

and resulted in a misinterpretation of the results. Thus, an assessment of the stableelement concentration in the ecological systems is a first step in calculating the potential

hazard from anticipated injections of radioactivity into the environment.

Soil chemistry is a necessary part of predicting plant uptake of stable and radionuclides, but this is generally limited to inorganic soil chemistry. Schulz (1965) notes

in particular the complementary ion effect and states that in considering the mobility of

any particular ion in a soil mass, the effect of all other ions must be taken into account.

Expressed in another way it could be stated that any assessment of element mobility

(availability) or interrelationships should include a total analysis of the system.

Chemical analyses of soil-plant systems are generally confined to major nutrients

such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, and calcium. As other elements

were demonstrated to be essential to plant growth, they were determined more often as

a specific procedure rather than in a comprehensive system. Early trace-element studies in agricultural systems followed geochemical procedures and a total analysis was

generally made.

In linking the soil-plant analyses, two basic assumptions are made: (1) a soil extract represents ''available nutrient supply" and (2) the plant tissue analyzed is representative of the elemental status of the plant for the particular element.

Foliar studies have revealed wide variations in minor element content among

plants and plant parts. Bear (1954) found that weed plants contained much higher quantities of trace elements than crop plants on the same soil. Biogeochemical prospecting

has contributed many data on trace-element distributions in native vegetation (Cannon,

1960). Accelerated interest in ecological recycling, coupled with the sophistication of

analytical techniques has brought about a simultaneous increase in the number of element

cycling studies and an increased scope of elements included in the investigation

(Gamble, 1963).

An awareness of potential radiation hazard in the human diet from weapons testing

and later Civil Defense studies of possible nuclear attacks lead to environmental-hazard

analysis for critical nuclides. A common approach has been to study a stable element

closely associated chemically with the radionuclide of interest. In agriculture-food

chain relationships, the studies have been concerned primarily with 9 0 Sr, 1 3 7 Cs, and

1311. 9 0 Sr and Ca have been studied together and 1 3 7 Cs and K have been linked. Iodine

is not considered a critical nuclide in the present study because of its half-life of 8. 05

days. Further, the agricultural systems in which the uptake and transfer studies have

been conducted have all been large systems and in temperature-zone latitudes. Thus,

out of about 15 elements of primary interest, compositional data are readily available

for four; radioisotopes of two have been studied extensively but not in agricultural systems similar to those under consideration in the present study.







1 2

TABLE 4. (Continued)

Cs, Ca, Sr, Mg,

Crop ppm %/ ppm 0

1. Rice leaf 0.24-0.44 0.46-0.67

grain 0.08 0. 014

2. Corn leaf 0. 06-0. 98 9. 6-25. 0 0. 1-1. 5

grain 0.02 0.013

3. Plantain leaf 0. 54-5. 70 0. 12-0.40

(Banana) fruit 0. 006-0.007

4. Yuca leaf

(Cassava) root 0.027-0.054

5. Avocado leaf 0.007-0.008 0. 3-0. 6

fruit 0.018-0.064 0.091-0.218

6. Pejibaye leaf

(Pixbae) fruit

7. Cacao leaf 1.29-1.46

bean

husk

8. Coffee leaf 0, 5-2.0 0. 08-1. 30

bean

9. Pineapple leaf 0. 55-1. 52

fruit 0. 01-1. 25

10. Sugar cane leaf 0. 23 0. 13

11. Beans leaf

bean

12. Coconut stipule 0.08 0.07

L. stalk 0.27 0.44

leaflet 0. 28 0. 57

husk 0. 09-0. 34 0. 19-0.21

meat 0. 006-0. 12 0, 02-0. 17

milk 0.69 0.59

13. Yams leaf 0. 006-0. 027

(Otoe) root

14. Name leaf

root

15. Oil Palm leaf 0.25-0. 92 0. 16-0.47

fruit 0. 05-0. 19 0. 036-0. 039

14

TABLE 4. (Continued)

Zn, Cu, Al, Pb,

Crop ppm ppm ppm ppm

1. Rice leaf 40

grain

2. Corn leaf 15-145 8-14 63-698 7-24

grain 17.6 2.8 10.7

3. Plantain leaf

(Banana) fruit

4. Yuca leaf

(Cassava) root

5. Avocado leaf 15

fruit 11. 9-34. 1

6. Pejibaye leaf

(Pixbae) fruit

7. Cacao leaf

bean

husk

8. Coffee leaf 5. 1-52. 1 3. 5-101. 0

bean 8.0

9. Pineapple leaf

fruit

10. Sugar cane leaf 7.2-31.0 20

11. Beans leaf 20

bean 7. 0

12. Coconut stipule

L. stalk

leaflet

husk

me at

milk

13. Yams leaf 15. 5

(Otoe) root 7. 0

14. Name leaf

root

15. Oil Palm leaf

fruit

Note: No information concerning the elements Be, W, Zr and Ce has been found for these crops.

16

Kankiah, S., and Podrigo, D. M. (1954), Evidence of Magnesium Deficiency in Ceylon

Soils. Tropical Agric. 110: 21-24.

(corn, cocoa, Mg)

Mikkelsen, D. S. , et al. (1963), Effects of Liming and Fertilizing Cotton, Corn and Soybeans on Campo Cerrado Soils - State of Sao Paulo, Brazil. IRl Research Inst.

Bull. #29.

(corn, N, Ca, Mg)

Mulder, E. G. , and Gerretsen, F. C. (1952), Soil Manganese in Relation to Plant

Growth. Adv. Agron. 4: 221-277.

(corn, Mn)

Nye, P. H. , and Greenland, D. J. (1960), see "Rice".

Prince, A. L. (1957), Influence of Soil Types on Mineral Composition of Corn Tissues

as Determined Spectrographically. Soil Science 83: 399-405.

(corn, P, K, Ca, Sr, Mg, Mn, Zn, Cu, Al, Pb)

Thorne, W. (1957), Zinc Deficiency and Its Control., Adv. Agron. 9: 31-65.

(corn, bean, Zn)

Urrutia, Victor (1967), Personal Communication.

(corn, yield)

Plantain

Bhangoo, M. S. , Altman, F. G. , and Karon, M. L. (1962), Investigations on the Giant

Cavendish Banana. 1. Effect of Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium on Fruit

Yield in Relation to Nutrient Content of Soil and Leaf Tissue in Honduras. Trop.

Agric. Trin. 39: 189-201.

(plantain, N. P, K, Ca, Mg, yield)

Bhangoo, M. S. , and Karon, M. L. (1962), Investigations of the Giant Cavendish

Banana. 11. Effect of Minor Elements and Dolomite Lime on Fruit Yield. Trop.

Agric. Trin. 39: 203-210.

(plantain, yield)

Murray, D. B. (1960), The Effect of Deficiencies of the Major Nutrients on Growth and

Leaf Analysis of the Banana, Trop. Agric. Trin. 37: 97-106.

(plantain, N, P, K, Ca, Mg)

Nye, P. H. , and Greenland, D. J. (1960), see "Rice".

Watt, B. K., et al. (1959), A Table of Food Values. Food, USDA, Yearbook of Agric.

pp. 231-266.

(plantain, avocado, pineapple, yam, Ca, Fe)

Yuca

Growing and Marketing Florida Truck Crops (1950), Fla. Dept. of Agric. pp. 160-168.

(cassava, yield)





22

order of bismuth, le ad, copper > strontium, zinc > nickel > molybdenum, beryllium,

germanium, cobalt, chromium > manganese, vanadium.

Little is known of tungsten in plants. Romney and Childress (1965) thought tungsten could replace molybdenum in the nitrogen fixation process if no molybdenum was

present. Lead, plutonium, and polonium have also been studied recently. Berger (1965)

thought lead and polonium were absorbed from air by dead, moist plant materials.

Wisconsin work (Berger 1965) confirmed this but Tso, et al. (1966) thought lead was absorbed from soils. Wilson and Cline (1966) measured 2 3 9 Pu 1 8 5 W and 2 1 0 Pb uptake

from soils by different plants. They concluded that extracting procedures in common

use do not give reliable estimates of the quantities of these radioisotopes that can be removed by plants. Romney and Childress (1965) also studied beryllium in plants and soil,

Several crop plants showed inhibited growth at levels of beryllium above 2 ppm in nutrient solution. Phosphorus uptake was increased, calcium and magnesium uptake decreased in beryllium-treated plants. Beryllium applications to soil displaced some adsorbed divalent cations, including barium, calcium, magnesium, and strontium.

The most recent and comprehensive review on this subject of soil-plant relationships of radioactive elements is by R. G. Menzel (1965). His review is devoted primarily to the problem of radioactive element uptake and possible concentration in plants

or certain plant parts. He groups the elements according to whether they are concentrated or excluded in the plant. Table 6, extracted from his review, shows this

classification.

TABLE 6. RELATIVE CONCENTRATION OF ELEMENTS IN THE FIRST CROP

PLANTS GROWN AFTER THE ELEMENTS HAVE BEEN APPLIED

IN WATER-SOLUBLE FORM AND MIXED INTO SURFACE SOIL

Relative Concentration Factor, ppm in dry plant material

ppm in dry soil

10-1000 1-100 0.1-10 0.01-1 <0.01

Strongly Slightly Not Slightly Strongly

Concentrated Concentrated Concentrated Excluded Excluded

K Mg Ba Cs Sc

Rb Ca Ra Be Y

N Sr Si Fe Zr

P B F Ru Ta

S Se I W

Cl Te Co Ce

Br Mn Ni Pm

Na Zn Cu Pb

Li Mo Pu

Sb

Source - Menzel, 1965.

Menzel discusses unequal distribution of elements in plant parts, possible radiation effects and the influence of plants on movement of radionuclides in soils. His conclusion is that the role of plants in movement of radionuclides in soil is minor except

over very long periods of time. In the present study the burning of successional growth

in the shifting cultivation system brings the plants into a more active role in the pattern

of redistribution.











34

The geographic survey of the Pacific side, being conducted at the same time as the

soils reconnaissance, will be correlated with the soils to delineate the probable numbers

of detailed agricultural surveys needed and, from the travel logistics, the number of investigators needed.

Agricultural ecosystems to be studied in detail on representative sites will be:

(1) Coconut palm micro-environmental relations along the Caribbean shore.

The investigator will be in the field the latter part of February. Following his studies along the Caribbean coast, we will have more details on

coconuts of the Pacific coast and the investigator will survey the Pacific

groves for comparison with the Caribbean coast.

(2) Characterization of shifting cultivation, plantation, livestock, riverine,

and dooryard systems in the interior and on the Pacific side. This will

include yield and areal estimates of principal food types. The cultivations systems are complex on the Pacific side and cannot be separated

using the aerial photos presently available. From Map 1 it is also apparent that we know little of the El Real-Yaviza area and the area below

La Palma from Garachine to Piiia and Jaque. Mr. Paganini will initiate

a reconnaissance of the above areas. Based on his findings, other investigators will be placed in the area, beginning in June. Current plans

are to place four investigators between Chiman-Rio Congo, GarachinePiiaa, La Palma, and El Real.

By June, Mr. Paganini will have 5 months of experience in the area and

will know how the additional investigators may be best utilized. In addition, the detailed coconut study and riverine study in Uala area will be

completed by that time. Timing of the placement of additional field help

is coincident with the annual crops which will be planted in late April

and May.

(3) Special studies of the livestock operations will begin following the February reconnaissance and data collected before the end of the dry season.

Forage samples will be correlated with animals and estimates made of

forage yield, animal consumption, and weight gains. The forage and

animals will be analyzed for elements of interest. The same studies will

be repeated during the wet season as research has shown a change in

forage composition between the dry and wet seasons. University of

Florida pasture experts currently carrying on investigations in Central

America will work with Florida Animal Nutrition Laboratory personnel

in the livestock investigations.

(4) Evaluation of the dooryard agriculture will be the most difficult. We will

work closely with the Human Ecology group. Planning may be formulated

during the study in Uala.






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