Uranium Concentrations and Some Physicochemical Parameters of Water Samples at Marshes (Ahwar) in Dhi-Qar Governorate

The solid-state nuclear track detector techniques were used in this study to measure the level of uranium isotopes (²³⁸U, ²³⁵U, and ²³⁴U) that were found in water samples collected from marshes (Ahwar) at Dhi-Qar governorate, southern Iraq. The apparatus used for this study purposes was TASTRAK CR-39 plastic. In this study, we measured the following risk factors: the radiological risk, annual effective dose (ET) of uranium isotopes, the excess cancer risks, the chemical toxicity risk, lifetime average daily dose (LADD), and hazard quotient (HQ). Using different techniques, the water samples were analyzed for other physicochemical properties such as hydrogen ion concentration (PH), electrical conductivity (EC), and total dissolved solids (TDS). This study has proved that uranium isotopes were found in different concentrations in all water samples that were taken from different places of marshes. The concentrations of uranium isotopes in the collected samples were ranging from 0.87±0.072 to 1.89±0.093 μg/L, with an average value of 1.23±0.05 μg/L. The average values (with SE in Bq/L units) for ²³⁸U, ²³⁵U, and ²³⁴U were 1.51±0.06, 0.07±0.002, and 1.53±0.06, respectively, while the average values of ET, LADD, and HQ were 0.107±0.004 mSv/year, (0.326±0.013) × 10⁻³, 0.040±0.001 μg/kg.day, and 0.066±0.002, respectively. In addition to the previous results, the study has showed that the average value of PH, EC, and TDS with the SE were 7.84±0.22, 3999.95±294.45 μS/cm, and 2601.35±197.77 mg/L, respectively. The results revealed that the concentrations of uranium isotopes in the studied samples were below the instrumental detection limit (1.9 μg/L). Comparing the results of radiological risk and chemical toxicity risk of this study with those published by global organization and universal researches, it was found that these concentrations were within the allowed limits permissible to human consumption and domestic use. Besides these results, the values of EC and TDS were higher than the permissible limits of Iraqi and international standards for irrigation purposes. For all the aforementioned, it might be concluded that there are no health risks to humans by drinking the water of the marshes of Dhi-Qar Governorate according to uranium levels, but cannot be assumed to be of good quality.