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Radionuclide Concentration of Soil and Sediment in Gold-Mining Locations of Atakumosa-West Local Government, South-West Nigeria

Received: 5 October 2022    Accepted: 31 October 2022    Published: 29 May 2023
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Abstract

This study determined the activity concentrations of 40K, 232Th and 238U in the soil, and sedimentusing gamma spectroscopy. This is with a view to determining the impacts of the mining operations on concentration of radioactive elements in the environment. Soil and Sediment were collected from three gold mining locations of Atakumosa-west Local Government area of Osun State for a period of 12 months. The control site selected for the study is Tonkere village, about 13Km from the study site, in Ife North-Central Local Government area of the State. Collected samples were analysed using gamma spectrometer. The NaI detector used was properly calibrated using absolute gamma ray energy for easy identification of peaks in the gamma spectrum. Results obtained from Gamma spectroscopic analysis revealed higher concentration of the three primordial radionuclidewith 40K having a generally high value in the locations 1 and 2 and increasing through the wet season while having lower values in the dry season. A similar trend was observed for 232Th and 238U whose recorded values were also higher in the wet season than in the dry season. Values recorded in all the samples were higher than world safe limits. Notably, similar results obtained for samples from control site were lower.

Published in International Journal of Environmental Monitoring and Analysis (Volume 11, Issue 3)
DOI 10.11648/j.ijema.20231103.11
Page(s) 57-62
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Activity, Concentration, Gold-Mining, Environment, Impact

References
[1] Beck, H. L., Lowder, W. M., Bennet, B. G. and Condon, W. J. (1966): Further Studies of External Environmental Radiation, Report HASL-170’. U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, New York.
[2] Cothern, C. R., Lappenbush W. L. and Jacqueline M. (1986): Drinking Water Contribution to Natural Background Radiation. Health Physics, 50, pp 33-47.
[3] Gbadebo, A. M. and A. J. Amos. (2010). "Assessment of Radionuclide Pollutants in Bedrocks and Soils from Ewekoro Cement Factory, Southwest Nigeria."Asian Journal of Applied Sciences 3, 2.
[4] Tchokossa, P., Olomo, J. B. and Osibote O. A. (1999). Radioactivity in the Community Water Supplies of Ife-Central and Ife-East Local Government Areas of Osun State, Nigeria. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research A 422, pp 784-789.
[5] Olomo, J. B., Akinloye, M. K., Balogun, F. A. (1994). Distribution of Gamma-emitting Natural Radionuclides in Soils and Water around Nuclear Research Establishments, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics research A. 353, pp 353—557.
[6] Paridaens, J and Vanmarche, H. (2001): Radium Contamination of the Banks of the River Laak as a Consequence of the Phosphate Industry in Belgium. Journal of Environmental Radioactivity 54, pp 53-60.
[7] National Population Commission (NPC) (2006). Report of Nigeria's National Population Commission on the 2006 Census. Population and Development Review. 33, No. 1 (Mar., 2007), pp 206-210.
[8] Tubosun, I. A., Tchokossa P., Okunlola, G. A., Balogun, F. A., Fasasi, M. K. and Ekhaeyemhe, S. (2013). Natural Radioactivity Associated with Mining of Rare Metal Pegmatite of Oke-Ogun Field, Sepeteri, Southwestern, Nigeria. International Journal of Science and Technology, 3 (10) 350 -356.
[9] Yeager, C. M., Kornosky, J. L., Housman, D. C., Grote, E. E., Belnap, J. and Kuske, C. R. (2004). Diazotrophic Community Structure and Function in two Successional Stages of Biological Soil Crusts from the Colorado Plateau and Chihuahuan Desert. Applied Environmental Microbiology 70, pp 973–983.
[10] United Nation Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) (2000). Sources and Effects of Ionising Radiation, United Nations. Reportto General Assembly with Scientific Annexes. United Nations, New York.
Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Oladotun Wasiu Makinde, Katherine Temitope Ogundele, Isaac Ayodele Tubosun. (2023). Radionuclide Concentration of Soil and Sediment in Gold-Mining Locations of Atakumosa-West Local Government, South-West Nigeria. International Journal of Environmental Monitoring and Analysis, 11(3), 57-62. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijema.20231103.11

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    ACS Style

    Oladotun Wasiu Makinde; Katherine Temitope Ogundele; Isaac Ayodele Tubosun. Radionuclide Concentration of Soil and Sediment in Gold-Mining Locations of Atakumosa-West Local Government, South-West Nigeria. Int. J. Environ. Monit. Anal. 2023, 11(3), 57-62. doi: 10.11648/j.ijema.20231103.11

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    AMA Style

    Oladotun Wasiu Makinde, Katherine Temitope Ogundele, Isaac Ayodele Tubosun. Radionuclide Concentration of Soil and Sediment in Gold-Mining Locations of Atakumosa-West Local Government, South-West Nigeria. Int J Environ Monit Anal. 2023;11(3):57-62. doi: 10.11648/j.ijema.20231103.11

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijema.20231103.11,
      author = {Oladotun Wasiu Makinde and Katherine Temitope Ogundele and Isaac Ayodele Tubosun},
      title = {Radionuclide Concentration of Soil and Sediment in Gold-Mining Locations of Atakumosa-West Local Government, South-West Nigeria},
      journal = {International Journal of Environmental Monitoring and Analysis},
      volume = {11},
      number = {3},
      pages = {57-62},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijema.20231103.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijema.20231103.11},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijema.20231103.11},
      abstract = {This study determined the activity concentrations of 40K, 232Th and 238U in the soil, and sedimentusing gamma spectroscopy. This is with a view to determining the impacts of the mining operations on concentration of radioactive elements in the environment. Soil and Sediment were collected from three gold mining locations of Atakumosa-west Local Government area of Osun State for a period of 12 months. The control site selected for the study is Tonkere village, about 13Km from the study site, in Ife North-Central Local Government area of the State. Collected samples were analysed using gamma spectrometer. The NaI detector used was properly calibrated using absolute gamma ray energy for easy identification of peaks in the gamma spectrum. Results obtained from Gamma spectroscopic analysis revealed higher concentration of the three primordial radionuclidewith 40K having a generally high value in the locations 1 and 2 and increasing through the wet season while having lower values in the dry season. A similar trend was observed for 232Th and 238U whose recorded values were also higher in the wet season than in the dry season. Values recorded in all the samples were higher than world safe limits. Notably, similar results obtained for samples from control site were lower.},
     year = {2023}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Radionuclide Concentration of Soil and Sediment in Gold-Mining Locations of Atakumosa-West Local Government, South-West Nigeria
    AU  - Oladotun Wasiu Makinde
    AU  - Katherine Temitope Ogundele
    AU  - Isaac Ayodele Tubosun
    Y1  - 2023/05/29
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    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijema.20231103.11
    DO  - 10.11648/j.ijema.20231103.11
    T2  - International Journal of Environmental Monitoring and Analysis
    JF  - International Journal of Environmental Monitoring and Analysis
    JO  - International Journal of Environmental Monitoring and Analysis
    SP  - 57
    EP  - 62
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2328-7667
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijema.20231103.11
    AB  - This study determined the activity concentrations of 40K, 232Th and 238U in the soil, and sedimentusing gamma spectroscopy. This is with a view to determining the impacts of the mining operations on concentration of radioactive elements in the environment. Soil and Sediment were collected from three gold mining locations of Atakumosa-west Local Government area of Osun State for a period of 12 months. The control site selected for the study is Tonkere village, about 13Km from the study site, in Ife North-Central Local Government area of the State. Collected samples were analysed using gamma spectrometer. The NaI detector used was properly calibrated using absolute gamma ray energy for easy identification of peaks in the gamma spectrum. Results obtained from Gamma spectroscopic analysis revealed higher concentration of the three primordial radionuclidewith 40K having a generally high value in the locations 1 and 2 and increasing through the wet season while having lower values in the dry season. A similar trend was observed for 232Th and 238U whose recorded values were also higher in the wet season than in the dry season. Values recorded in all the samples were higher than world safe limits. Notably, similar results obtained for samples from control site were lower.
    VL  - 11
    IS  - 3
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Environmental and Earth Sciences, Centre for Energy Research and Development, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria

  • Environmental and Earth Sciences, Centre for Energy Research and Development, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria

  • Environmental and Earth Sciences, Centre for Energy Research and Development, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria

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