Uptake rates of thorium progeny in a semiarid environment.

The release rates and transformation processes that influence the mobility, biological uptake, and transfer of radionuclides are essential to the assessment of the health effects in the food chain and ecosystem. This study examined concentrations of 222Th in both soil and vegetation at a closed military training site, Kirtland Air Force Base (KAFB), New Mexico. Brazilian sludge was intentionally introduced into the topsoil in the early 1960s to simulate nuclear weapon accidents.