Natural radioactivity and radiation hazards assessment of soil samples from the area of Tuzla and Lukavac, Bosnia and Herzegovina

The results of activity concentration measurements of natural occurring radioactive nuclides U-238, U-235, Th-232, Ra-226, and K-40 in surface soil samples collected in the area of cities Tuzla and Lukavac, northeast region of Bosnia and Herzegovina were presented. Soil sampling was conducted at the localities that are situated in the vicinity of industrial zones of these cities. The measured activity was in the range from (8 +/- 4) to (95 +/- 28) Bq kg(-1) for U-238, from (0.41 +/- 0.06) to (4.6 +/- 0.7) Bq kg(-1) for U-235, from (7 +/- 1) to (66 +/- 7) Bq kg(-1) for Th-232, from (6 +/- 1) to (55 +/- 6) Bq kg(-1) for Ra-226, and from (83 +/- 12) to (546 +/- 55) Bq kg(-1) for K-40. In order to evaluate the radiological hazard of the natural radioactivity for people living near industrial zones, the absorbed dose rate, the annual effective dose and the radium equivalent activity have been calculated and compared with the internationally approved values.