Surface contamination of radiocesium measured and calculated in South Piemonte (Italy)

Abstract This work presents the results of the measurements of 137 Cs soil contamination in South Piemonte (Alessandria, Asti and Cuneo Provinces, Italy), undertaken in order to test the effectiveness of a simple wash-out and environmental decay model in forecasting cesium deposition and residence time in undisturbed soils. The relationship between observed soil contamination and soil characteristics (pH, texture and organic matter content) was also explored.