Effective dose estimation and lifetime cancer mortality risk assessment from exposure to Chernobyl ¹³⁷Cs on the territory of Belgrade City and the region of Vojvodina, Serbia

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to determine the activity concentrations of radionuclide ¹³⁷Cs in soil samples on the territory of Belgrade and the province of Vojvodina. Also, the lifetime cancer mortality risk from external exposure during 1 year is assessed, and the effective dose is estimated. Methods Eighty eight soil samples were collected from 30 uncultivated locations in Belgrade, and 30 soil samples were collected from 10 locations in the province of Vojvodina. Activity concentrations were measured using an HPGe detector. Using dose conversion factors taken from “EPA Federal Guidance Report 12,” annual effective doses from external sources were estimated. The lifetime cancer mortality risk was assessed using cancer risk coefficients taken from “EPA Federal Guidance Report 13.” Results Activity concentrations of ¹³⁷Cs for the territory of Belgrade are in the range of 2.07-89.1 Bq/kg with a mean value of 23.77 Bq/kg; the estimated annual effective doses are in the range of 0.41-17.5 nSv with a mean value of 4.67 nSv, and assessed lifetime cancer mortality risks, normalized on 100,000 inhabitants, are in the range 0.2-9.5 × 10⁻⁵ with a mean value 2.5 × 10⁻⁵. Activity concentrations of ¹³⁷Cs for the province of Vojvodina are in the range of 2.73-18.9 Bq/kg with a mean value of 8.57 Bq/kg; estimated annual effective doses are in the range of 0.54-3.71 nSv with a mean value of 1.68 nSv, and assessed lifetime cancer mortality risks, normalized on 100,000 inhabitants, are in the range of 0.3-2.0 × 10⁻⁵ with a mean value 0.9 × 10⁻⁵. Conclusion Receiving doses are low from ¹³⁷Cs radionuclides occurring in soil, according to the linear no-threshold approach; the risk for cancer development exists but is very small.