Background Ionizing Radiation and Health Risk Assessment of Selected Dumpsites in Owerri West Local Government Area, Imo State, Nigeria
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63561/jber.v3i1.1191Keywords:
Dumpsite, Background Radiation, Organ, ELCR, HealthAbstract
Evaluation of background ionizing radiation and health risk of selected dumpsite in Owerri West Local Government Area, Imo State, Nigeria, has been carried out using a well calibrated radiation meter and global positioning system(GPS). The aim of the study was to evaluate the background ionizing radiation of the selected dumpsites. Three dumpsites were selected and ten (10) strategic sections of the dumpsites was considered for the measurement. The obtained result of background ionizing radiation varies from 0.013 to 0.020 mR/h, 0.010 to 0.017 mR/h and 0.014 to 0.017 mR/h with mean of 0.015 mR/h, 0.012 mR/h and 0.015 mR/h for Nokia house Dumpsite, Nokia house mechanic and Alaba Dumpsite respectively. The obtained mean of BIR are all higher than the recommended safe limit of 0.013 mR/h as stipulated by UNSCEAR (2002) except that of Nokia house mechanic which is within the tolerable limit. The absorbed dose varies 87.0 to 174 nGy/h,78.0 to121.8 nGy/h and 87 to147.7 nGy/h with mean of 136.59 nGy/h,102.66 nGy/h and 127.0 nGy/h they obtained reading are all higher than the stipulated safe limit of 84.0 nGy/h while the results of excess life cancer risk varies from 0.523 to 0.89,0.336 to 0.81.0 and 0.523 to 0.77 with mean 0.67,0.517 and 0.63 for Nokia house Dumpsite, Nokia house mechanic and Alaba Dumpsite respectively. The obtained result of the ELCR all exceeded the UNSCEAR (2000) recommended safe limit of 0.29 × 10⁻³, indicating a potential long term radiological health risk. The result of radiation exposure to the different human body organs show that higher radiation was received by the human testes and lower radiation was obtained in the human liver and this higher radiation in the testes may be due to it sensitivity to radiation while that of the liver may be due to its protection with different body tissue. Though, there is no immediate health effects due to the exposure to background ionizing within the study area but there will be a long term health effects due to over exposure.
References
Agbalagba O.E (2017). Assessment of excess lifetime cancer risk from gamma radiation levels in Effurun and Warri city of Delta state, Nigeria. Journal of Taibah University for Science 11(3):367-380.
Benson I. D.1 & Ugbede F. O. (2018). Measurement of Background Ionizing Radiation and Evaluation of Lifetime Cancer Risk in Highly Populated Motor Parks InEnugu City, Nigeria.
Darwish DAE, Abul-Nasr KTM, El-Khayatt A.M (2015). DinhChau, N., Dulinski, M., Jotilowski, P., Nowak, J., Rozanski, K., Sleziak, M. & Wachniew, P. 2011 Natural radioactivity in ground water- A review. Sot. Environ. Health Study.47(4): 415-437.
ICRP (International Commission on Radiological Protection (2007) Recommendation prof the ICRP publication 103 Annals ICRP 37:2-4.
Jambeck, J. R., Geyer, R., Wilcox, C., Siegler, T. R., Perryman, M., Andrady, A., Narayan, R., & Law, K. L. (2015). Plastic waste inputs from land into the ocean. Science, 347(6223), 768–771. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1260352
Nwii, A.A., Gbarato O., & Biibaloo, L. L. (2025). Assessment of Background Ionizing Radiation Levels at Selected Dumpsites in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Rivers State, Nigeria. Faculty of Natural and Applied Sciences, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education Port Harcourt, Nigeria.
Okevwemeke, M. O., Egbejule, K. A., & Agbalagba, E. O. (2023). Assessment on Radiation Hazard Indices from Selected Dumpsites in Amassoma Bayelsa State, Nigeria. FUPRE Journal of Scientific and Industrial Research ISSN: 2579-1184(Print) ISSN: 2578-1129 (Online) http://fupre.edu.ng/journal.
United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation. (2019). Sources, effects and risks of ionizing radiation (UNSCEAR 2019 Report). United Nations. https://www.unscear.org
United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR). (2000). Report on the sources and effects of ionizing radiation: Report to the General Assembly with scientific annexes. United Nations.
United States Environmental Protection Agency. (2021). Radiation protection and waste management. https://www.epa.gov.
UNSCEAR, United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation Sources and Effects of Ionizing Radiation UNSCEAR Report (2008).
