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Occurrence of natural radioactivity and corresponding health risk in groundwater with an elevated radiation background in Juban District, Yemen

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Abstract

This study aims to investigate the occurrence of natural radiation in groundwater with an elevated background level in Juban District, Yemen, and to assess the corresponding health risk. The mean concentrations of U, Th, and K in groundwater were 11.25, 0.15, and 17.35 mg l−1, respectively. The mean activity concentrations of 226Ra, 228Ra, and 40K were 94, 216, and 3306 mBq l−1, respectively. 65 % of the groundwater samples were above the WHO guidance level for 228Ra in water. The maximum concentrations of 226Ra, Th, and 228Ra were found around the fault zones in the basement aquifer while the concentrations of U increase down-gradient of Juan District. The principal factors controlling the occurrence and concentrations of radionuclides are aquifer type, leaching behaviour, characteristics of fracture systems, salinity, and water flow path. The annual effective doses due to ingestion of the water were estimated for infant and adult groups. The mean annual effective dose for infants was 1.97 mSv year−1 which is almost twenty times the WHO guideline level for drinking water. The ingestion dose deduced for adults and infants is dominated by 228Ra, where the average contribution from 228Ra in infants amounted to 90 % and in adults 76 %.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia for financial support. This study is supported by Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) through Research University Grant scheme project number Vot no Q.J 30000.2642.10J86. The field work was supported and funded through collaboration with American Institute for Yemeni Studies (AIYS). The authors are thankful to the staff of Nuclear Laboratory at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (En. Saiful Bin Rashid). The authors are thankful to the staff of the Analytical Chemistry Laboratory at Malaysian Nuclear Agency (Shamsiah A. Rahman, Ms Ezwiza Sanuri, and Mr Abdul Halim Baharuddinin). The authors would also like to thank Mr. Ali Alsuremi, President of National Water Resources Authority, for his great assistance. The authors also acknowledge, with thanks, technical support of the National Atomic Energy Commission and Yemeni Geological Survey and Mineral Resources Board (GSMRB), Yemen.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310, Skudai, Johore Bahru, Johore, Malaysia

    Wedad Ali Abdurabu & Ahmad Termizi Ramli

  2. National Atomic Energy Commission (NATEC), Sana’a, Yemen

    Wedad Ali Abdurabu & Muneer Aziz Saleh

  3. Nuclear Engineering Programme, Faculty of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310, Skudai, Johore Bahru, Johore, Malaysia

    Muneer Aziz Saleh

  4. Center for Climate Risk and Opportunity Management Southest Asia and Pacific (CCROM-SEAP), Bogor Agricultural University, Bogor, Indonesia

    Arien Heryansyah

Authors
  1. Wedad Ali Abdurabu
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  2. Muneer Aziz Saleh
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  3. Ahmad Termizi Ramli
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  4. Arien Heryansyah
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Correspondence to Wedad Ali Abdurabu.

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Abdurabu, W.A., Saleh, M.A., Ramli, A.T. et al. Occurrence of natural radioactivity and corresponding health risk in groundwater with an elevated radiation background in Juban District, Yemen. Environ Earth Sci 75, 1360 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-016-6142-z

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