The reference may be outdated, but there may be more currant information on the web.
In Finland, one of the countries strongly affected by Chernobyl fallout, STUK or the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority, did their own research on local, wild mushrooms. Their results indicated contamination with cesium-137 in their own exclusion zone, but also showed that radioactive readings were not uniform; growing conditions, uneven fallout and even the species of wild mushrooms affected how well radionuclides were absorbed [5].
After reading these references, I still do not really know what to tell people who may want to eat wild mushrooms while traveling in Europe. If, however, you definitely want to eat wild mushrooms and you suspect the possibility of contamination, there are some precautions you may take. The Finish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) has published a very valuable leaflet which provides pertinent information about what to do if you suspect your mushrooms are contaminated with cesium. This well illustrated pamphlet entitled Guidelines for Handling of Mushrooms, Reduction of Radioactive Cesium provides several options depending upon the state and species of mushroom – for example you can boil fresh or salted mushrooms in large quantities of water and then rinse thoroughly, or you can heat mushrooms in order for them to release their own liquid which is then discarded, or you may soak fresh or dried mushrooms, also discarding the water afterwards. Just follow the steps and you can achieve 70% to 90% reduction of cesium [6]. This pamphlet is a ‘must-have’ for health officers and an excellent reference for travelers. In fact, I highly recommend this leaflet to everyone (http://www.evira.fi/uploads/WebShopFiles/1219147520340.pdf)
There is, however, another issue. The pamphlet mentions that you discard any water after use. That raises another question — how and where should the water should be discarded? Radiation fallout will not be removed by boiling, chlorination or purification tablets. The American Army Corp of Engineers recommends the following method to remove fallout (radioactive dust and dirt). It is called a fallout filter:
“Punch holes in the bottom of a large bucket, and put a layer of gravel in the bucket about 1-1/2 inches high. Cover the gravel with a towel cut in a circle slightly larger than the bucket. Cover the towel with six inches of grayish soil dug from at least four inches below ground level. Cover the soil with a towel, place the filter over a large container, and pour contaminated water through. Then, disinfect the filtered water using either boiling, chlorination or purification tablets. Change the soil in your filter after every 50 quarts of water [7].”
The soil in the pail can be recycled, but the filter will have to be discarded. Since filters are considered low level radioactive waste, they can be disposed of by shallow land burial or by incineration [8].
[5] Radioactive cesium levels in mushrooms can be easily reduced. (2008). STUK, Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority. (On-line) Available: http://www.stuk.fi/stuk/tiedotteet/en_GB/news_503/
Cited 2008 Nov 14.
[6] Guidelines for handing of mushrooms to reduce levels of cesium-137 (2007) Guidelines for handling of mushrooms Reduction of radioactive cesium, Evira, Stuk (On-line). Available: http://www.evira.fi/uploads/WebShopFiles/1219147520340.pdf. Cited 2008 Nov 14.
[7] Welcome to the US Army Corps of Engineers (2008) Alaska District. (On-line) Available: http://www.poa.usace.army.mil/CO/Dis/provis.htm. Cited 2008 Nov 17.
[8] Radio active Wastes(2001) World Nuclear Association. (On-line) Available: http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf60.html Cited 2008 Nov 17.
