Tracking local radiocarbon releases from nuclear power plants in southern Ontario (Canada) using annually-dated tree-ring records

Understanding the radiocarbon (14C) content of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) underlies many fields of research. This study shows how one can track the influence of nuclear power plants at the local and regional scale in Canada’s largest urban area. This area is subject to significant 14CO2 depletion due to CO2 emissions from fossil fuel burning. Tree cores collected across southern Ontario in 2018 show that tree-rings dated annually record …