Determination of 40K, 238U and 232Th Activity Levels in Fishes from River Kubanni in Nigeria

Abstract

Radionuclides exist naturally in the water, soil and air and human activities can increase the concentration of background radiation and redistribution of radioactive isotopes in the environment. In this study, the radioactivity concentration of three radionuclides (40K, 232Th and 238U) was measured in three fish species, Oreochromis niloticus (Tilapia), Brycinus leuciscus (Kawara), Brienomyrus longianails and Clarias anguilaris (catfish) in river Zaria (Kubanni). The results showed that 40K and 232Th concentrations were high in Brienomyrus longianails with mean activities of 357.26 and 92.282 Bq/Kg, respectively. While the concentration of 226Ra was found high in Clarias anguilaris (56.129 Bq/Kg). The mean committed dose for both adults and children were 0.00214 and 0.00342 µSv/Yr, respectively. The values of three radionuclides obtained in this study are lower than the maximum permissible level of 1.0 mSv/yr recommended by the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) as the total annual effective dose for the public. The obtained results show that the radiation dose acquired from the consumption of fresh fish from the river Kubanni will have no significant health effect on the populace.