Radiation dose-dependent risk on individuals due to ingestion of uranium and radon concentration in drinking water samples of four districts of Haryana, India

Abstract

ABSTRACTUranium gets into drinking water when the minerals containing uranium are dissolved in groundwater. Uranium and radon concentrations have been measured in drinking water samples from different water sources such as hand pumps, tube wells and bore wells at different depths from various locations of four districts (Jind, Rohtak, Panipat and Sonipat) of Haryana, India, using the LED flourimetry technique and RAD7, electronic silicon solid state detector. The uranium (238U) and radon (222Rn) concentrations in water samples have been found to vary from 1.07 to 40.25 µg L−1 with an average of 17.91 µg L−1 and 16.06 ± 0.97 to 57.35 ± 1.28 Bq L−1 with an average of 32.98 ± 2.45 Bq L−1, respectively. The observed value of radon concentration in 43 samples exceeded the recommended limits of 11 Bq L−1 (USEPA) and all the values are within the European Commission recommended limit of 100 Bq L−1. The average value of uranium concentration is observed to be within the safe limit recommended by World Health Organization (WHO) and Atomic Energy Regulatory Board. The annual effective dose has also been measured in all the water samples and is found to be below the prescribed dose limit of 100 µSv y−1 recommended by WHO. Risk assessment of uranium in water is also calculated using life time cancer risk, life time average daily dose and hazard quotient. The high uranium concentration observed in certain areas is due to interaction of ground water with the soil formation of this region and the local subsurface geology of the region.