A screening assessment of external radiation levels on the shore of Lake Issyk-Kyol in the Kyrghyz Republic.
The Kyrghyz Republic, located in the southeastern region of the former Soviet Union, holds a long history of atomic weapons development activities. Historical surveys, conducted primarily for geological exploration, have indicated that areas of shoreline on Lake Issyk-Kyol in the Kyrghyz Republic have relative radiation levels in excess of background by as much as a factor of ten. Nuclear testing in China and uranium mining operations in the mountains surrounding the lake may have resulted in the contamination of a number of areas on the lake's southern shore. The valley region maintains a population of more than one-half-million persons and is heavily dependent on the lake to draw tourists to the area and its utilization by some as a food and recreation source. In this note, we show the results of a screening assessment of relative radiation levels along the shoreline of Lake Issyk-Kyol to pin-point areas of relatively high exposure rates.
Hamby
D M
DM
Department of Environmental and Industrial Health, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor 48109-2029, USA. dmhamby@umich.edu
Tynybekov
A K
AK
D003906:Developing Countries; D005618:Fresh Water / Q000032:analysis*; D005843:Geography; D007707:Kyrgyzstan; D009688:Nuclear Reactors; D009689:Nuclear Warfare; D011886:Radon / Q000032:analysis*; D012621:Seasons; D012990:Soil Pollutants, Radioactive / Q000032:analysis*; D014878:Water Pollution, Radioactive / Q000032:analysis*
D012990:Soil Pollutants, Radioactive; D011886:Radon