Radiological health risk assessment of NORMs, 7Be and 137Cs in dust storm fallout from Kirkuk, Northern Iraq

Dust storms are recurrent environmental phenomena in Iraq, which constantly impact air quality and public health. In this study, the activity concentrations and potential radiological health hazards associated with naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORMs), atmospheric radionuclides (7Be) and 137Cs in dust storm fallout from Kirkuk, northern Iraq were assessed. Samples were collected following the major dust events in May and June 2022. Dust samples were collected from multiple locations across the study area and analyzed for the activity concentrations of the selected radionuclides using a well shielded NaI(Tl) gamma spectrometer. The results show that the activity concentrations of 238U, 232Th, 40K, Be-7 and 137Cs ranged from 10.5 +/- 3.38 to 45.3 +/- 4.72, 0.67 +/- 1.31 to 19.8 +/- 3.30, 10.0 +/- 9.62 to 121.8 +/- 13.63, 46.6 +/- 7.93 to 106.8 +/- 8.39, and 0.36 +/- 0.38 to 5.18 +/- 0.57 Bq/kg, respectively. The measured activity concentrations of all radionuclides were below their corresponding global average values reported by the United Nation Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR). Radiological hazard indices such as radium equivalent activity, absorbed dose rate, annual effective dose and excess lifetime cancer risk were calculated to evaluate the potential exposure risks to the local population. The results show that all the values were within the permissible range, which indicate that the immediate radiological risk to the population is low. However, prolonged exposure from recurrent dust storms may pose long-term health concerns. The study suggests the need for systematic monitoring of NORMs and fallout radionuclides in atmospheric environment of Iraq and other arid and semi-arid regions of the Arabian Pennisula.

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