Research Facilities of of the 

 Radiobiological Laboratory, Bureau of Commercial Fisheries 



Beaufort, North Carolina 



ABSTRACT 



The history, facilities, and organization are discussed. Research is performed 

 on estuarine ecology, biogeochemistry, pollution, and effects of radiation. 



INTRODUCTION 



The Radiobiological Laboratory is concerned 

 with research that can be summed up in the 

 term "radioecology." Radioecology is a rela- 

 tively new term that refers to the study of 

 radioactivity in our environment and the use 

 of radioactive elements in ecological studies. 

 Although the term radioecology was coined 

 only recently, radioactivity has been present 

 in man's environment since the earth was 

 formed, and references to principles that are 

 ecological in nature appeared in writings of 

 the early philosophers. The need for this 

 "new" division of ecology, however, was 

 brought about by technological advances of 

 modern man. Radioactivity has been added to 

 the environment by the explosion of nuclear 

 weapons in the atmosphere and by the release 

 of radioactive wastes into streams, estuaries, 

 and the oceans. Mannnade radioactivity did not 

 begin to appear in estuaries and the oceans 

 until 1945. 



The Bureau of Commercial Fisheries is 

 vitally concerned with any situation that nnight 

 adversely affect our fishery resources. The 

 introduction of radioactive materials into the 

 aquatic environment might constitute such a 

 situation, and those in the Bureau who so 

 quickly saw the need of a Radiobiological 

 Program to study these problems deserve 

 much credit for their insight. Although interest 

 in radiobiology is now widespread and nnany 

 organizations in this country and throughout 

 the world are engaged in radiobiological re- 

 search, the Bureau's progrann carried on at 

 the Radiobiological Laboratory was one of the 

 first and continues to be unique in many re- 

 spects. 



History 



The present aims are an expansion of the 

 objectives outlined in September 1948. The 

 following statements were included in the 



project outline submitted to the Atomic Energy 

 Commission (AEC) in November 1948. 



"Objective: 



(a) To ascertain the levels of activity which 

 will accumulate in various invertebrate 

 animals of littoral marine waters by the 

 selective absorption of radioactive ions. 



(b) To investigate the avenues of access to 

 marine organisms of radioactive ma- 

 terials through direct absorption or in- 

 gestion of dissolved or suspended fission 

 products, their transfer throughdifferent 

 levels in the food chainand their ultinnate 

 removal through metabolism, decay, 

 sedimentation, dilution, or transport." 



This proposal was subnnitted under the title 

 "A survey of accumulation of radioactive nna- 

 terials by marine invertebrate animals." A 

 supplennental progrann entitled "Uptake of 

 ra.Uoactive elements by fish, particularly 

 marine fish" was established in 1954, and 

 another project entitled "The effects of ioniz- 

 ing radiation on marine fishery organisms" 

 was added in 1956. 



Most of the earlier work was concerned with 

 the filter -feeding lamellibranch nnollusks-- 

 oysters, claims, and scallops. Ennphasis was 

 therefore placed on experimental work with 

 marine phytoplankton--the food of these mol- 

 lusks. Also, some studies were carried on dur- 

 ing the first 2 years on the accumulation and 

 retention of separated fission products by the 

 commercially important blue crab. Small tanks 

 and aquaria were used for these experiments, 

 and possible food-chain patterns were in- 

 terpreted fronn data on accumulation in tests 

 based on single species or limited segmients 

 of a food chain. 



When the program began in 1948, interest 

 was great in the effects of contamination of 

 coastal waters, harbors, and estuaries from 

 atomic bombs, such as were being tested in 



