Radioactively contaminated forest mushrooms Chernobyl remains to this day

Radioactive contamination of wild mushrooms
In our forests there are many edible mushrooms. However, in some regions of Bavaria, even 30 years after the nuclear accident in Chernobyl, some species are heavily contaminated with radioactive cesium-137. This is reported by the Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS), which investigates fungi at typical forest sites in southern Germany every year. At each site, the fruiting bodies of a species are combined into a sample and tested in the laboratory.

In Bavaria, wild mushrooms are still heavily contaminated. Image: Stefan_Weis-fotolia

The fungi affected include, for example, trumpet chanterelles and carrot-head milklings from the Bavarian Forest, and brown-disced and orange-tailed snails from the Berchtesgadener Land. Not only classic edible mushrooms, but also mixed and spicy mushrooms are examined. They can still have up to several thousand becquerels (Bq) of cesium-137 (Cs-137) per kilogram. For wild mushrooms in the trade applies a limit of 600 Bq Cs-137 per kilogram.

Nationwide, the highest values ​​are to be expected in smaller areas in the Bavarian Forest, in the Donaumoos southwest of Ingolstadt and in the Mittenwald region.

The burden of wild mushrooms depends on the radiocesium content of the soil layer, which is permeated by the fungus network, but also on the special ability of the fungus to accumulate. Due to its half-life of about 30 years since the reactor accident in April 1986, the long-lived radiocesium has only decayed by about 50 percent. Gradually the burden of wild mushrooms will continue to decline, even if there are big differences depending on the location.

If the mushrooms are eaten in normal quantities, no health risks are to be feared. However, the consumption of wild mushrooms should generally be limited to 250 grams per week as they can accumulate toxic heavy metals such as lead, mercury and cadmium. Heike Kreutz, bzfe