Serdar Dizman

Radioactivity and heavy metal concentrations of some commercial fish species consumed in the Black Sea Region of Turkey

Marine fish is an important daily diet item for the people of Turkey. The Black Sea Region of Turkey was contaminated by the Chernobyl accident in 1986, a comprehensive study was planned and carried out to determine the radioactivity levels ((226)Ra, (232)Th, (40)K and (137)Cs) and heavy metal concentrations (As, Mn, Fe, Cr, Ni, Zn, Cu and Pb) in four of the most common fish species: Engraulis encrasicholus (anchovy), Oncorhynchus mykiss (trout), Trachurus mediterranus (bluefin) and Merlangius merlangus (whiting) samples collected from eight stations in the Black Sea Region of Turkey during 2010. The dose due to consumption of fish by the public was estimated and it was shown that this dose imposes no threat to human healthy. The concentrations of heavy metal are below the daily intake recommended by the international organizations.

Radioactivity and heavy metal concentrations in food samples from Rize, Turkey

BACKGROUND Rize in Turkey was contaminated by the Chernobyl accident in 1986. A comprehensive study was planned and carried out to determine the radioactivity levels and heavy metal concentrations in four food categories collected in Rize in 2008, 2009 and 2010. RESULTS Tomato showed the highest concentration of (238) U, at 9.43 ± 0.128 Bq kg(-1) , whereas the lowest concentration of 0.20 ± 0.02 Bq kg(-1) was measured in aubergine samples. The highest concentration of (232) Th was measured at 3.22 ± 0.29 Bq kg(-1) in grape samples. (40) K was found to contribute the highest activity in all the food samples. The highest activity concentration of (137) Cs was 10.20 ± 4.19 Bq kg(-1) , for parsley. The average contribution range of each of the heavy metals to the dietary intake was 0.13-9.14, 0.27-34.63, 0.05-3.62, 0.11-14.97, 0.78-8.51 and 0.01-1.57 mg, respectively, for Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, Ni and As. CONCLUSION The range of radioactivity levels in food samples of the present study is of no risk to public health. Heavy metal concentrations of Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, Ni and As obtained were far below the established values by FAO/WHO limits.

Assessment of human health risk from heavy metals levels in water and tissues of two trout species (Oncorhynchus mykiss and Salmo coruhensis) from the Fırtına and Güneysu Rivers in Turkey

Abstract Human health risks were evaluated from consumption of heavy metal contaminated fish from the Fırtına and Güneysu Rivers in Rize. The study was aimed to assess heavy metal load in water and two fish species. The potential human health risk due to consumption of Oncorhynchus mykiss and Salmo coruhensis was assessed by estimating average daily intake (EDI), target hazard quotient (THQ) and hazard index (HI) of metals. Our results showed that the levels of heavy metals in both water and two fish species are lower than the acceptable limit recommended by Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and World Health Organization (WHO).

Determination of tritium concentrations in humans before the development of a nuclear power plant in Turkey.

The most widely used method to determine the level of tritium in humans is testing urine. Tritium concentrations in urine samples of 100 persons aged 18–66 years selected randomly from a pilot region in Turkey were analysed. The average activity concentration of urine samples was 4.66 ± 1.94 Bq L−1 and the maximum activity concentration was 27.91 Bq L−1. The minimum detectable activity was 2.38 Bq L−1. The annual effective dose from tritium was also evaluated on the basis of the measurement results and reference values recommended by the International Commission on Radiological Protection. The effective doses for males and females were 4.56 and 3.54 nSv, respectively. These results were lower than the permissible annual effective dose for members of the public.