RADIOACTIVE BOAR IN THE NORTHERN ITALIAN REGION POSE NEW QUESTIONSONTHE SOURCE OF CESIUM RADIOACTIVITY

 photo : magicgrove.net

A routine test for ascarid worms in wild boar in the Northern Italian region near Turin has found that 27 boars tested were exposed to radioactive Cesium 137.

The findings were obtained when local authorities requested a test for Cesium radioactivity in the wild beasts. However, no information has been given as to why the authorities were looking for Cesium in the wild animals.

The findings revealed that the boars had been exposed and carried Cesium 137 radioactive particles at a rate above that of the safety threshold. The findings also pointed to a contamination that occurred in the feeding activities of the beasts, since the radioactive traces were found in the tongue and diaphragm tissue.

Immediately controls have been ordered of the environment surrounding the animals' feeding grounds. The authorities have already pointed the finger at a possible soil contamination from the Chernobyl radioactive plume emitted during the core meltdown at Chernobyl. The malfunction of the cooling tower and the subsequent melting of the nuclear core caused a disaster that is till considered the worse in history. 

The boar, by nature, is a bellwether animal in the food chain, because its feeding habits make it one of the first and more intensively affected animal. It is in fact often used to ascertain soil condition and contamination.

The authorities have also ordered soil and water sources testing and samples have been sent for evaluation.

 Source: La Repubblica 3.7.13