Ep17 - Iodine-129 in Philippine corals record nuclear activities

Dr. Angel T. Bautista VII is a Scientist I and the current Section Head of the Nuclear Materials Research Section of the DOST – Philippine Nuclear Research Institute. He obtained his BS Chemistry and MS Environmental Science degrees from UP Diliman, and PhD in Nuclear Engineering and Management from the University of Tokyo. He has been working at DOST-PNRI since 2009, where he specializes in the environmental aspects and applications of nuclear energy, science, and technology. His work related to the Fukushima Accident was awarded “Excellent Researcher of the Forum for Nuclear Cooperation in Asia” by the Government of Japan in 2021. His current research involvements and interests include the Nuclear Fuel Cycle Research Program Phase 1 (as Program Leader), Food Authenticity and Traceability Program (as Program Leader), investigating the elevated radioactive iodine-129 in the West Philippine Sea (as Project Leader), addressing arsenic contamination in Luzon (as Co-Project Leader), Philippine Remediation of Mine Tailings (as Study Leader), reconstruction of paleoenvironments using natural archives such as coral and sediment cores, and radiometric age dating (e.g., radiocarbon). Article spotlight: Bautista VII et al. 2016. Historical record of nuclear activities from 129I in corals from the northern hemisphere (Philippines). Journal of Environmental Radioactivity. 164:174–181. Bautista VII et al. 2021. A historical record of the impact of nuclear activities based on 129I in coral cores in Baler, Philippines: An update. Journal of Environmental Radioactivity. 227:106508. #BehindTheSciencePodcast is presented to you by the Marine & Earth Science Learning Hub and UP Resilience Institute.