title: Natural and anthropogenic radioactivity in the environment of Kopaonik mountain, Serbia.
abstract: To evaluate the state of the environment in Kopaonik, a mountain in Serbia, the activity concentrations of (4) K, (226)Ra, (232)Th and (137)Cs in five different types of environmental samples are determined by gamma ray spectrometry, and radiological hazard due to terrestrial radionuclides is calculated. The mean activity concentrations of natural radionuclides in the soil are higher than the global average. However, with an exception of two sampling locations, the external radiation hazard index is below one, implying an insignificant radiation hazard. Apart from (40)K, content of the natural radionuclides is predominantly below minimum detectable activities in grass and cow milk, but not in mosses. Although (137)Cs is present in the soil, grass, mosses and herbal plants, its specific activity in cow milk is below minimum detectable activity. Amongst the investigated herbal plants, Vaccinium myrtillus L. shows accumulating properties, as a high content of (137)Cs is detected therein. Therefore, moderation is advised in consuming Vaccinium myrtillus L. tea.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bulevar Oslobođenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia. Electronic address: slavatab@vet.bg.ac.rs.
authors.forename: Branislava
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Mitrović
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bulevar Oslobođenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Jelena
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ajtić
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bulevar Oslobođenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Marko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lazić
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bulevar Oslobođenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Velibor
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Andrić
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bulevar Oslobođenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Nikola
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Krstić
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bulevar Oslobođenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Borjana
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Vranješ
authors.affiliation: Science Institute of Veterinary Medicine of Serbia, Vojvode Toze 14, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Mihajlo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vićentijević
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes / Q000032:analysis*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005260:Female; D008892:Milk / Q000737:chemistry*; D010944:Plants / Q000737:chemistry*; D055771:Serbia; D012990:Soil Pollutants, Radioactive / Q000032:analysis*; D013051:Spectrometry, Gamma; D013662:Tea / Q000737:chemistry*; D029800:Vaccinium myrtillus / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes; D012990:Soil Pollutants, Radioactive; D013662:Tea
keywords: (137)Cs; Gamma ray spectrometry; Moss; Natural radionuclides; Radiological hazard; Soil