Human exposure to uranium in groundwater

Estimating perchlorate exposure from food and tap water based on US biomonitoring and occurrence data

“…Older studies have demonstrated urinary uranium concentrations that are consistent with levels in the U.S. population, in that the levels were below their respective detection limits (Byrne et al, 1991;Hamilton et al, 1994;Komaromy-Hiller et al, 2000). In a study of 105 persons exposed to natural uranium in well water, urinary levels of uranium were as high as 9.55 μg/L (median 0.162 μg/L) (Orloff et al, 2004). Eighty-five percent of those levels were above the 95th percentile of the NHANES 1999-2000 population.…”

Potential Health Risks from Uranium in Home Well Water: An Investigation by the Apsaalooke (Crow) Tribal Research Group

“…Nationally, radon is also a relatively common well water contaminant: the USGS found 4.4% of home wells tested in 48 states exceeded the EPA's proposed MCL of 4,000 pCi/L for radon, and 65% exceeded the alternate proposed MCL of 300 pCi/L [9]. Bighorn County is classified as "Zone 1" for the highest risk of radon in homes [77].…”

“…However, most of the key studies of health effects from drinking uranium contaminated water have been conducted in other countries [4,[6][7][8]. In the United States, naturally occurring elevated uranium in groundwater has been identified as a widespread issue in Western states, as well as in scattered locations in Eastern states [2,9]. Native Americans in the Colorado Plateau area have been particularly impacted [10].…”

Removal of Uranium from Contaminated Water by Clay Ceramics in Flow-Through Columns

“…In the United States, naturally occurring elevated uranium in groundwater is widespread in the west and is scattered in Eastern states [2,5]. Also significant problems stemming from the legacy of uranium development still exist today in the Colorado Plateau area [6].…”