Hazardous profile of uranium and its retention due to prolonged ingestion of groundwater in the geologically heterogeneous trans-Himalayan region of Leh-Ladakh
摘要
The young mountain range, the Himalayas, houses various minerals due to diverse geological and geographical conditions that provide suitable conditions for uranium existence. In the present study, the uranium concentration in drinking groundwater samples ranges between 0.25 µg L−1 to 95.56 µg L−1, exceeding the limits prescribed by international agencies. High uranium concentration has been estimated in the area due to mineral-bearing metamorphic, igneous, and sedimentary rocks. The annual ingestion dose for various age groups reveals the vulnerability of infants aged 0–12 months to uranium exposure. Bones receive the highest dose due to uranium exposure via ingestion, followed by kidneys and the lower large intestine. Biokinetic studies indicate that the bone surface is the most stable repository of uranium due to the highest amount of retention of uranium as compared to all other compartments. The comparison of ICRP’s systematic biokinetic model of uranium and the Hair Compartment Model (HCM) identifies the overburden of uranium load in the human body due to the non-inclusion of hair as a mode of excretion in ICRP’s biokinetic model.