Use of tritium in characterizing the leachate migration from a landfill - Central de tratamento de resíduos sólidos (CTRS) BR040 (Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil).

Landfills often become a source of environmental impact due to the percolation of the leachate (liquid resulting from the decomposition of buried waste), which can eventually disperse and contaminate the soil and water bodies. This study aimed to evaluate quantitatively and spatially the leachate plume from the former Belo Horizonte landfill in the Coqueiros and Taiobas watersheds by using tritium (H) concentration in nineteen (19) sampling points: 14 groundwater, 4 surface water and 1 leachate. Among the methodologies applied to determine the H content in the leachate, pre-filtration proved to be the most effective due to the ease treating of the sample, as well as the identical results obtained compared to the traditional method.

Quantification of soil erosion using Be in a steep watershed used for natural grazing in Brazil.

Cosmogenic Be was used to evaluate soil loss in a mountainous micro-watershed near Belo Horizonte, Southwest Brazil. Two nearby sites were selected, a reference site in a flat area and an eroded site in a hill slope. At the reference site, soil samples were collected monthly throughout the year in order to evaluate seasonal variations of Be inventory in soil and its relation with the precipitation regime.