Dose assessment of 137Cs in agricultural surface soil in Selangor, Malaysia

Background: The activity concentration (AC) of cesium-137 (Cs-137) in the agricultural soil was measured in this study to set reference data and an indicator of the radionuclide fallout especially in Malaysia. Materials and Method: Using the High Purity Germanium (HPGe) gamma-ray spectrometer, the AC of (137) Cs was employed to determine the radiological hazards to the public. Results: Results revealed that the AC of Cs-137 in the soil samples ranged between 0.34 +/- 0.09 to 3.21 +/- 0.17 Bqkg(-1). Dose rate computed from the corresponding value of AC ranged from 0.01 to 0.10 nGyh(-1). The annual effective dose rate ranged between 1.25 to 11.8 mu Sv y(-1). The values of Excessive lifetime cancer risk, ELCR ranged between 0.47 x 10(-5) to 4.45 x 10(-5) is lesser than the safety threshold of 0. 29 x 10(-3). The analysis of variance of this parameter is found to be at p<0.05 which is statistically significant in this study. Conclusion: The outcomes from this study show that the analysed values are below than the recommended values by the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNCSEAR) and The International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) and do not cause any radiological hazards to the general population.

Automated summary

This study aimed to provide reference data and indicators of radionuclide fallout in Malaysia by measuring the activity concentration of cesium-137 in agricultural soil. Using a High Purity Germanium gamma-ray spectrometer, the AC of Cs-137 was determined to assess the radiological hazards to the public. The results showed that the analyzed values were below the recommended thresholds by international committees and did not pose any radiological hazards to the general population.