By coal mining and exploatation, radioactive radon gas, which is captured in natural geological structures, is reallocated from the deep coal layers. Hence it is concentrated in the depots and coal seams of the mines or being transported to the surface of the earth where it can significantly change the levels of radioactivity in the working premises and residences. This paper presents the results of a three-year research of radon activity concentration in the air in hole and surface coal mines of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Detected concentrations of radon in the coal gaseous structure, atmosphere and other ambient media are in correlation with the properties of geological structures, technology for obtaining coal and meteo-climatic changes. They were measured with Alpha GUARD PQ 2000 radon portable measuring system (instruments Genitron-Frankfurt) and RadoMeter 2000 (Radosys LTD. Budapest), using the SS-NTD method.

Radon is a unique natural element because it is an inert gas and at the same time radioactive in all of its isotopes. It is known fact that exposure of the population to high concentrations of radon gas leads to irradiation of primarily respiratory organs which can cause lung cancer. Radon is a subject of intense research around the world in order to, among other reasons, assess the risk of exposure and develop appropriate standards of protection and its control. By coal mining and exploitation, radioactive radon gas, which is captured in natural geological structures, is relocated from the deep coal layers. Hence, it is concentrated in the depots and coal seams of the mines or being transported to the surface of the earth where it can significantly change the levels of radioactivity in the working premises and residences. This chapter presents the results of a 3-year research of radon activity concentration and gamma dose rate in the air in underground and surface coal mines of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Radon is a unique natural element because it is an inert gas and at the same time radioactive in all of its isotopes. It is known fact that exposure of the population to high concentrations of radon gas, leads to irradiation of primarily respiratory organs, which can cause lung cancer. For reliable prospecting of radon activity concentration in the living environment, the first input parameter is the concentration of outdoor radon in the air. This paper presents the results of a three-year research of radon activity concentration in the air of Bosnia and Herzegovina. At the measurement locations were registered daily and seasonal variations of the outdoor radon concentrations, whose average values were in the range of 15-38 Bq/m 3 . They were measured with Alpha GUARD PQ 2000 radon portable measuring system (Genitron Instruments -Frankfurt).