Variation of soil radon concentrations in southern Ontario

Chen, J.; Ly, Jim; Bergman, Lauren; Wierdsma, Jessica; Klassen, R. A.

doi:10.1093/rpd/ncn192

Cited by 10 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…As a contribution to the NRP the first in-situ survey of terrestrial radionuclides in soil was conducted in the summer of 2007 at 32 sites spaced at mean intervals of 40 km along a transect spanning southern Ontario between Ottawa and Sarnia [8]. Survey sites were located either along the outer margins of road allowances, >10 m from roads, or in farmer's fields and wooded areas where permitted by property owners.…”

Section: Measurement Activities Of Terrestrial Gamma Raysmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Estimation of population exposure to terrestrial gamma rays in Canada

Chen

Ford

2022

J. Radiol. Prot.

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Based on ground gamma ray spectrometry surveys conducted from 2007 to 2010 in populated areas across Canada (i.e. in southern Canada, excluding the northern territories), and with considerations of the exposure outdoors and indoors in various types of buildings as well as exposure to radionuclides in building materials (assuming most building materials are of local origin), the population-weighted annual effective dose from exposure to terrestrial gamma rays was estimated to be 167 ± 43 μSv. Under Canadian-specific average occupancy times, indoor exposures at home contribute 69% of the total annual effective dose, followed by 19% from indoor exposures other than at home, 6.2% from outdoor exposures and 5.8% from exposures inside vehicles. This assessment with measurements in a total of 1057 sites in populated areas across Canada is in general agreement with earlier assessments based on airborne gamma surveys mostly over unpopulated areas of Canada and truck-borne radiometric surveys along paved urban roads in four cities.

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Section: Measurement Activities Of Terrestrial Gamma Raysmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The ground surveys were carried out over 4 years from 2007 to 2010. Survey results of GGRS, SGR, and soil permeability were reported in previous publications [8][9][10][11][12][13][14]. Results of in-situ measurements of natural radioactivity in soil using GGRS are summarised here.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Estimation of population exposure to terrestrial gamma rays in Canada

Chen

Ford

2022

J. Radiol. Prot.

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“…This multi-step approach could potentially optimize the use of resources and is already implemented in the recent activities. A preliminary study of natural background variation in soil radon levels (Chen et al 2008d) was carried out in summer 2007 at mean intervals of 40 km along a transect spanning southern Ontario between Ottawa and Sarnia where virtually no data are available to characterize variations in indoor radon concentrations except the city of Toronto. The results indicated that radon risk could be high in some areas of southern Ontario, and helped prioritizing the airborne gamma survey in the following year in the heavily populated southern Ontario.…”

Section: A Multi-tier Approachmentioning

confidence: 99%

A preliminary design of a radon potential map for Canada: a multi-tier approach

Chen

2009

Environ Earth Sci

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Canada is a vast country with most of the population living on a small portion of the land. However, for a national radon potential map, it is mandatory to cover the entire country including sparsely populated areas. Because of these characteristics, the radon map development for Canada is challenging. After briefly reviewing of radon map development in the world, this study considers a multi-tier approach to best use available however limited resources and to generate a national radon map in a timely fashion. In summary, radon potential maps for highly populated areas should be determined by direct indoor radon measurements where enough indoor radon data are available. In areas where indoor radon measurements are limited or not yet available, the radon potential maps could be developed from various data sources with a multi-factor scoring system including geological information on soil permeability, soil gas radon concentration and ground uranium concentration. In sparsely populated areas, radon potential maps can only be generated with geological predictive tools, especially in those areas where no houses have yet been built. Because indoor radon measurement data and geological information relevant to radon are very limited in Canada, a multi-step strategy is also worth considering in addition to the multi-tier approach.

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“…Previous SRP work has been completed for parts of southern Ontario (Chen et al 2008) when the Ottawa-Sarnia transect was analyzed for the radon potential. Natural soil gas radon variability and background concentrations were determined at 32 sites between Ottawa and Sarnia.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Radon soil gas in the Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia, Canada

OʼBrien

Goodwin

Risk

2011

atgeol

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Naturally occurring radon222 is found in measurable quantities in soil gas across Nova Scotia. Next to smoking, exposure to radon is the leading cause of lung cancer. This study identifies relationships between the permeability and composition of the soil, and the geology of the respective bedrock types within Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM). Over 280 radon soil gas samples from 60 sites were collected and analyzed using protocols developed for the North American Soil Geochemical Landscapes Project. This study focused on soil developed on glacial till over three major bedrock types: the Cambrian-Ordovician Goldenville and Halifax groups, and Devonian granite of South Mountain Batholith. All samples contained radon soil gas. Fine-grained leucomonzogranite samples returned the highest mean radon concentration of 51.0 kBq m − 3, followed by coarse-grained leucomonzogranite (50.2 kBq m − 3), monzogranite (44.3 kBq m − 3), slate (36.1 kBq m − 3), and metasandstone and Lawrencetown till, respectively 22.5 kBq m − 3 and 19.4 kBq m − 3. Analysis of the permeability readings was done in four major till types in HRM: granite (3.27 × 10 − 12 m2), metasandstone (5.84 × 10 − 12 m2), and slate facies (5.20 × 10 − 12 m2) of the Beaver River Till (BRT), and Lawrencetown Till (1.18 × 10 − 12 m2). The soil radon potential index (SRP), which is used to correlate soil gas and permeability readings with indoor radon potential, was applied to data collected for the HRM study area, where over 40% of Nova Scotia's population resides. The SRP index results show the granite facies of BRT returning the highest mean value of 34.5, followed by the slate facies (27.2) and metasandstone facies (15.1) of the BRT, and Lawrencetown Till (9.1). 1D soil-gas modeling demonstrated that it is unlikely that bedrock radon transport from depth alone can contribute to the concentrations measured at 60 cm; the overlying tills must also be producing radon. RÉSUMÉDu radon (Rn 222) à l'état naturel et en quantités mesurables est observé dans les gaz souterrains partout en Nouvelle-Écosse. Après le tabac, l'exposition au radon est la deuxième cause de cancer du poumon. Cette étude examine les liens entre la perméabilité et la composition du sol, ainsi que la géologie des divers types de substratum rocheux présents dans la Municipalité régionale d'Halifax (MRH). Plus de 280 échantillons de gaz souterrain de radon provenant de 60 endroits ont été recueillis et analysés selon des protocoles élaborés dans le cadre du projet des paysages géochimiques des sols d'Amérique du Nord. Cette étude a surtout porté sur le sol formé dans le till glaciaire de trois principaux genres de substratum rocheux: les groupes de Goldenville et d'Halifax du Cambrien-Ordovicien, et le granite du batholithe South Mountain, du Dévonien. Tous les échantillons contenaient du gaz de radon souterrain. Les échantillons de leucomonzogranite à grains fins ont produit la plus haute teneur moyenne de radon, soit 51,0 kBq m − 3, suivis en cela par les échantillons à grains grossiers de...

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Variation of soil radon concentrations in southern Ontario

Cited by 10 publications

References 5 publications

Estimation of population exposure to terrestrial gamma rays in Canada

Estimation of population exposure to terrestrial gamma rays in Canada

A preliminary design of a radon potential map for Canada: a multi-tier approach

Radon soil gas in the Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia, Canada

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