Groundwater, river water, and soil in the Minamisanriku town affected by the 2011 tsunami

Abstract

Samples from groundwater, river water, and soil were collected in Minamisanriku town eight months after the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Radioactivity level, heavy metal, and major ion concentration were determined for these samples. The Stiff patterns of groundwater collected at Sukezukuri were of Na-Cl type. It appears thus that groundwater here was affected by the seawater flooding caused by the tsunami. Also, the Pb concentration of groundwater and river water exceeded water quality standard for drinking water. For radioactivity, low levels of Cs-134 and Cs-137 were detected in the soil surface which is an effect of the nuclear accident.