The sample collected on Feb. 19 in Ucluelet, British Columbia, contained trace amounts of cesium-134 and -137 that are believed to be below internationally established levels of concern to humans and marine life.
“If someone were to swim for 6 hours a day every day of the year in water that contained levels of cesium twice as high as the Ucluelet sample, the radiation dose they would receive would still be more than one thousand times less than that of a single dental x-ray,” according to a statement published by Woods Hole.