Environmental evaluation of radioactivity levels and associated radiation hazards in groundwater around the WIPP site

• Published in: Ecotoxicology and environmental safety Vol. 242; p. 113849
• Main Authors: He, Rong, Liaw, Steven, Zhou, Meng, Zhou, Xiao-Dong, Luo, Hongmei
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.09.2022; Elsevier
• Subjects: Groundwater; Natural radionuclides; Radiation hazards; RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT; Radioactivity levels; WIPP site; Radioactivity levels; WIPP site; Groundwater; Natural radionuclides; Radiation hazards
• ISSN: 0147-6513; 1090-2414; 1090-2414
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2022.113849

Groundwater may contain radioactive substances which can be dangerous to human health. Concentrations of natural radionuclides polonium (Po), thorium (Th), uranium (U), and radium (Ra) isotopes were measured in groundwater samples collected from different locations in the vicinity of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) site in Carlsbad, New Mexico. The average values of gross activity concentrations of 210Po, 228Th, 238U, 234U, 226Ra and 228 Ra isotopes were determined to be 1.62 Bq L-1 in shallow groundwater and 5.88 Bq L-1 in deep groundwater, respectively. The total radioactivity in deep groundwater was higher than that in shallow groundwater, and most of the radioactivity in the water is from 226Ra. Furthermore, the effective doses for ingestion of natural radionuclides were about 0.333 mSv y−1 for shallow groundwater and about 1.338 mSv y−1 for deep groundwater samples, which are higher than the World Health Organization (WHO, 2017) guideline level (0.1 mSv y−1) for drinking water. Ra dominated the total ingestion dose, contributing 93.06 % and 75.40 % of the total effective doses to the deep and shallow groundwater, respectively. The ingrowth and decay of natural radionuclides suggested that 228Ra/226Ra ratio can be a useful indicator of the source of radioactive contamination. The radioactivity data obtained from the investigated groundwater samples can be used to establish a baseline for radioactivity levels in groundwater around the WIPP site. •Deep groundwater has higher radium radioactivity and salinity than shallow groundwater.•The radioactivity in groundwater is most likely from natural resources.•Monitoring of trends of groundwater radioactivity levels at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant is needed.•Radium is the major contributor to the total effective doses for groundwater.•Total effective doses for groundwater exceed the WHO limit level for drinking water.