Latitudinal variation and residence time of 137 Cs in Indian coastal environment

Anthropogenic 137Cs activity concentration, in surface sea water along the western and eastern coast of India has been estimated using the in-situ pre-concentration approach. Activity levels of 137Cs ranges from 0.09–1.30Bqm−3 with an overall mean of 0.69±0.29Bqm−3. Latitudinal variation and higher depletion in activity concentration of 137Cs at few locations were observed. Temporal change of 137Cs in sea water along Indian coast unveils a lower effective half-life of 13.8±0.7y in comparison to Asia Pacific regional sea water. The results prevailed that the spatial distribution confers no fresh input of 137Cs in Indian coastal region.