Journal Article

Analysis of Ground Water Availability in Hand-Dug Wells of Minna and Bida Metropolis

Abstract

Twenty (20) residential houses in Lapai town were selected for indoor radon measurements. Rad7 was setup in sniff mode and purged outdoor for about 10 minutes to clear the sample chamber of radon gas and daughters before each measurement. Each location was measured for 3 hours with an hourly result saved. The indoor radon concentration (CRn) ranged between 2.53 ± 0.20 Bq m-3 and 20.4 ± 2.20 Bq m-3 with a mean value of 9.65 ± 1.02 Bq m-3. The corresponding annual effective dose (Daf) varied from 0.06 ± 0.01 mSv y-1 to 0.51 ± 0.06 mSv y-1 with a mean of 0.24 ± 0.03 mSv y-1. All the indoor radon concentrations measured were less than the 100 Bqm−3 action level proposed by World Health Organization (WHO). The mean Daf value was lower than the 1.0 mSv y−1 precautionary limit for the public set by International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP). Though the result shows no immediate health effect, it is important to sensitize the public on the ways to reduce indoor radon to mitigate against long time exposure effect.

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