Estimation of radon concentration in groundwater in the mining zone of Haryana, India, for lungs and stomach annual effective dose.

Abstract

The groundwater is being used for drinking and irrigation purposes in vast swathes of the Aravalli Mountain range. Since the radioisotope presence in groundwater is affected by the local mining processes, the radiation monitoring in groundwater of mining regions is of paramount importance. In the present work, we have estimated the 222Rn presence in the mining region of Aravalli in the southern part of Haryana. We measured the Radon concentration in 51 water samples from the intended area using the RAD7 alpha detector. The measured radon concentration in some of the water samples collected from the vicinity of the mining zone is higher than that of the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation recommended value. Furthermore, we have estimated the annual effective doses for the lungs and stomach contributed by ingestion and inhalation. Though the calculated dose values in collected samples are not in the critical range, further monitoring of background radiation in the Aravalli region is required.