Survey of natural and anthropogenic radioactivity in environmental samples from Yugoslavia

Abstract

The radioactivity of U-238, Ra-226, Th-232, K-40 and Cs-137 in sediments, soil, turf and honey from Serbia and Kosovo (Yugoslavia) was measured using gamma and alpha spectrometry in order to estimate the radiation hazard from natural and man-made sources, as well as to compile a database for radioactivity levels in those regions. One sample, collected in the vicinity of a depleted uranium (DU) shell of the recent Balkan war, revealed a high U-238 activity and a non-natural U-235/U-238 activity ratio, confirming therefore its anthropogenic origin. However, some other soil samples coming from characteristic DU craters did not show any characteristic level of radioactivity. The other sediment and turf samples taken all around the country show low radioactivity levels for all the isotopes here considered. With the aim of obtaining some indication about radioactivity migration in the food chain, several honey samples have been examined too. All samples show very low radioactivity content, often indistinguishable from natural background. (C) 2002 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.