title: Environmental-Impact Assessment of Natural Radioactivity Around a Traditional Mining Area in Al-Ibedia, Sudan.
abstract: Recently, in the Sudan, traditional gold mining has been growing rapidly and has become a very attractive and popular economic activity. Mining activity is recognized as one of the sources of radioactivity contamination. Hence, the radioactivity concentration and radiological hazard due to exposure of radionuclides (226)Ra, (232)Th, and (40)K were evaluated. The measurements were performed using gamma-ray spectrometry with an NaI (Tl) detector. The results show that (226)Ra, (232)Th, and (40)K activity concentration ranged from 2.66 to 18.47, 9.20 to 51.87, and 0.17 to 419.77 Bq/kg with average values of 7.54 ± 4.91, 20.74 ± 11.29, and 111.87 ± 136.84 Bq/kg, respectively. In contrast, (222)Rn in soil, (222)Rn in air, and (226)Ra in vegetables along with radiation dose were computed and compared with the international recommended levels. Potential radiological effects to miners and the public due to (226)Ra, (232)Th, (40)K, and (222)Rn are insignificant. (226)Ra transferred to vegetables appears to be negligible compared with the allowable limit 1.0 mSv/year set by United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR). The average value of the annual gonadal dose equivalent (AGDE) is lower than the global average of 300 µSv/year (UNSCEAR 2000). However, some locations exhibit values >300 µSv/year. To the best of our knowledge, so far there seems to be no data regarding radioactivity monitoring in traditional mining areas in the Sudan.
authors.affiliation: Committee on Radiation and Environmental Pollution Protection, Physics Department, College of Science, Al Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University, Riyadh, 11642, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. hjoidriss@gmail.com.|Sudan Atomic Energy Commission, Khartoum, Sudan. hjoidriss@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Hajo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Idriss
authors.affiliation: Sudan Atomic Energy Commission, Khartoum, Sudan.|Department of Physics, Taibah University, Al-Madinah Al-Munawarah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Isam
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Salih
authors.affiliation: Committee on Radiation and Environmental Pollution Protection, Physics Department, College of Science, Al Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University, Riyadh, 11642, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Abdulaziz S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Alaamer
authors.affiliation: Sudan Academy of Sciences, Khartoum, Sudan.
authors.forename: Almuaiz
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Saleh
authors.affiliation: Department of Mineral Wealth Faculty of Petroleum and Minerals, Al Neelain University, Khartoum, Sudan.
authors.forename: M Y
authors.initials: MY
authors.lastname: Abdelgali
mesh_terms: D004777:Environment; D008906:Mining; D011834:Radiation Monitoring; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry; D012990:Soil Pollutants, Radioactive / Q000032:analysis* / Q000592:standards; D013397:Sudan; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D012987:Soil; D012990:Soil Pollutants, Radioactive