Abubakar Saidu Bako
Department of Physics, Nasarawa State University, PMB 1022 Keffi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria
Usman Rilwan
Department of Physics, Nigerian Army University, PMB 1500 Biu, Borno State, Nigeria
Ibrahim Umar
Department of Physics, Nasarawa State University, PMB 1022 Keffi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria
Samson Dauda Yusuf
Department of Physics, Nasarawa State University, PMB 1022 Keffi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria
Idris Muhammad Mustapha
Department of Physics, Nasarawa State University, PMB 1022 Keffi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria
Abdullahi Abubakar Mundi
Department of Physics, Nasarawa State University, PMB 1022 Keffi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria
Ibrahim Maina
Department of Physics, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, PMB 0248 Bauchi, Bauchi State, Nigeria
The most common supply of freshwater for drinking, irrigation, and other domestic uses is groundwater; however, because of increased radon concentrations brought on by mining activities, its quality is still a severe concern. Using a liquid scintillation detector, this study investigated the radon content, its related toxicity, and its risk to human health in the groundwater of the Keana in Nasarawa, Nigeria. Ten (10) borehole samples and five (5) well samples totaling fifteen (15) groundwater samples were taken. The results showed that the average radon concentration in water samples from Keana was 2.25 Bq/L. The mean annual effective dosage (ingestion) for adults and children in Keana was 0.016 mSv/y and 0.027 mSv/y, respectively. In Keana, the additional lifetime cancer risk per adult was 5.65 × 10–5, and per child, it was 8.79 × 10–5. The study’s radon concentration was lower than the benchmark of 11.1 Bq/L established in 1991 by the Nigerian Standard Organization and the US Environmental Protection Agency. The results of this study indicate that the level of radon is safe; as a result, people can continue farming and other activities. To reduce the risk of cancer, however, more research could be done in the area. Further research should be done by looking at additional sources in the study area in order to cover the entire zone. Further investigation should be carried out both during the dry and wet seasons because radon concentrations in groundwater alter over time due to dilution by recharge from rainfall.
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Copyright © 2023 Abubakar Saidu Bako, Usman Rilwan, Ibrahim Umar, Samson Dauda Yusuf, Idris Muhammad Mustapha, Abdullahi Abubakar Mundi , Ibrahim Maina
This is an open access article under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) License.
