The Analysis of 222Rn and 220Rn Natural Radioactivity for Local Hazard Estimation: The Case Study of Cerveteri (Central Italy)

Abstract

Radon (222Rn) is the second most common cause of lung cancer after smoking. As radon poses a significant risk to human health, radon-affected areas should be identified to ensure people’s awareness of risk and remediation. The primary goal of this research was to investigate the local natural radioactivity (in soils, groundwater, and indoors) because of the presence of tuff outcrops (from middle–lower Pleistocene volcanic activity) that naturally produce radioactive gas radon at Cerveteri (Rome, Central Italy). The results of the radon survey highlighted moderate (>16,000 Bq/m3) but localized anomalies in soils in correspondence with a funerary site pertaining to the Etruscan Necropolis of Cerveteri, which extends over a volcanic rock plateau. Indoor radon measurements were performed at several tuff-made dwellings, and the results showed medium-low (<200 Bq/m3) values of indoor radon except for some cases exceeding the reference level (>300 Bq/m3) recommended by the 2013/59 Euratom Directive. Although no clinical data exist regarding the health effects of thoron (220Rn) on humans, the study of 220Rn average activity concentration in the soil gas survey reveals new insights for the interpretation of radon sources that can affect dwellings, even taking into account the considerable difference in the half-lives of 222Rn and 220Rn.