Some radioactive-elements in the coastal sediments of the Mediterranean Sea

Abstract

The radioactivities of (234+235)U, (232)Th, (40)K and (137)Cs were measured in the coastal sediments of the western Mediterranean Sea between Alexandria and Salloum, Egypt. The recorded activities of the natural radionuclides were within the range of those measured worldwide. The highest activities of (234+235)U and (40)K (166.5 ± 7.7; 365.8 ± 2.3 Bq kg(-1) dry weight) were measured at Sidi Krir station while El-Max station recorded the highest (232)Th activity (22.7 ± 0.6 Bq kg(-1) dry weight) indicating that these radionuclides may accumulate in ionic and particulate forms from the drainage systems of the fertiliser, petrochemical and paper industries and from agricultural drains and also as the drifted particulates from longshore currents and accretion processes. The lowest (234+235)U activities were recorded at Salloum and the lowest (232)Th and (40)K activities were recorded at El-Hammam, indicating that the accretion process is more active in the eastern Mediterranean. Salloum recorded the highest activity levels for (137)Cs (7.9 ± 0.4 Bq kg(-1) dry weight) showing significant increases of the artificial (137)Cs westwards that may be indicative of to the anthropogenic sources from the northern Mediterranean.

Human Health Impact of Natural and Artificial Radioactivity Levels in the Sediments and Fish of Bonny Estuary, Niger Delta, Nigeria

“…Although the distributions of natural and artificial radionuclides have been studied widely throughout the world, there are few data sets available for sub-Saharan Africa. African studies are focused on the countries bordering the Mediterranean and Red Seas [8][9][10][11]. In Nigeria, the measurement of radioactivity in the environment is a more recent effort with most studies focusing on the distribution of natural radioactivity in sediments, soils, surface water and foodstuffs around oil and gas producing areas, mining locations and important inland water bodies [12][13][14][15].…”