Review of radon research in Tanzania

Abstract

In this paper, nine researched studies of radon concentrations in Tanzania were reviewed by searching specified databases from various search engines, such as Web of Science, Scopus, Google Scholar, Science Direct and PubMed for the studies published between the years 2010 and mid-April 2024 in English language to establish baseline data for the current research, which focused on Tanzania’s national radon survey and radon mapping strategy. The radon prediction map was created using well-known GIS software, ArcGIS 10.3. The results show that studies were conducted in central Tanzania close to Bahi and Manyoni uranium deposits, the Northern part of Tanzania at the Buhemba Gold mine and Tanzanite mines, and southern highlands at the Mkuju uranium project and Kiwira Coal mine. From the results of this review, the highest level of indoor radon concentration of 619 ± 59 Bq/m3 was recorded in Bahi Makulu, whilst the lowest average level of 19 ± 3 Bq/m3 was observed in Manyoni town. Radon in soil was conducted in Dodoma city only, and the mean was 59.8 kBq/m3. The average mean of radon in building materials is 74.6 Bq/m3, whilst no study has been found in the literature for radon in water. The lowest and highest radon concentration levels found in mining pits are 36 ± 5 and 4171.6 Bq/m3 reported from the Kiwira coal mine and Tanzanite Merelani mine, respectively. The results of this study emphasise the need for additional research on radon across the nation and raise awareness of the dangers and causes of radon exposure. Furthermore, this paper’s results will help develop the national indoor radon database and establish a regulatory framework for radon in buildings, soil, underground mines, building materials and water.