Early atomic scientists may never have hypothesized that future, faraway plants would mistake a bomb product for a nutrient and ingest it over generations, with possible cascading negative repercussions on bees and other insects. Over the decades, however, scientists have learned that US nuclear bomb tests had devastating human and ecological consequences. From an environmental point of view, the Nevada Test Site and the Bikini, Enewetak, Moruroa, and Fangataufa atolls remain critically contaminated. Also, radioactive fallout from atomic bomb testing moved through atmospheric, terrestrial, and marine environments and, in the process, entered the global food chain.

The presence of cesium 137 in honey may seem ephemeral on a plate-tectonic time scale. Still, knowledge of radioactive material in this sweet treat today offers an important cautionary tale for anyone willing to listen: Human-made environmental pollutants travel far and wide—and some will last for generation upon generation.

To read more please visit:

https://thebulletin.org/2021/05/atomic-bomb-radiation-in-modern-us-honey-a-cautionary-tale/

Source: The Bulletin