Abstract
ABSTRACT Radon, a naturally occurring radioactive gas, is produced through the disintegration of radionuclides like uranium, thorium, or radium in the earth's crust. In this study, the radon levels and the annual effective dose from drinking water sources were assessed in Babban Tsauni, Gwagwalada, Nigeria, where artisanal gold mining is taking place. Water samples were collected and analyzed for 222Rn using liquid scintillation counter (Tri-Carb-LSA1000). The highest radon activity concentration was found in Dobi with a value of 3.215 Bq/L, while the lowest was found in Tsauni 7; 0.025 Bq/L. Both values were significantly below the maximum contamination level of 11.1 Bq/L and the world average value of 10 Bq/L, as established by USEPA and WHO respectively. The annual effective dose from ingesting radon was also below the permissible limit of 1 mSv/y for all age groups, the values for adult, children and infant ranged in mSv/y from 5.59E-07 to 2.35E-05, 8.39E-07 to 3.52E-05, 9.79E-07 to 4.11E-05 and 1.79E-07 to 2.55E-06, 2.68E-07 to 3.82E-06, 3.13E-07 to 4.46E-06 for ground and surface water sources respectively. This study concluded that the radon concentrations in the water sources remained within safe limits and that the anthropogenic activities of gold mining had no significant effect on the water sources.
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