National Radon Action Plans in Europe and Need of Effectiveness Indicators: An Overview of HERCA Activities.

Protection of the population and of workers from exposure to radon is a unique challenge in radiation protection. Many coordinated actions and a variety of expertise are needed. Initially, a National Radon Action Plan (NRAP) has been developed and implemented by some countries, while it is currently recommended by international organizations (e.

Lung cancer mortality attributable to residential radon exposure in Spain and its regions.

Lung cancer has the highest cancer mortality rate in developed countries. The principal risk factor for lung cancer is tobacco use, with residential radon being the leading risk factor among never smokers and the second among ever smokers. We sought to estimate mortality attributable to residential radon exposure in Spain and its Autonomous Regions, with correction for dwelling height and differentiation by tobacco use.

Geolocation of premises subject to radon risk: Methodological proposal and case study in Madrid.

Useful information on the potential radon risk in existing buildings can be obtained by combining data from sources such as potential risk maps, the 'Sistema de Información sobre Ocupación del Suelo de España' (SIOSE) [information system on land occupancy in Spain], cadastral data on built property and population surveys. The present study proposes a method for identifying urban land, premises and individuals potentially subject to radon risk. The procedure draws from geographic information systems (GIS) pooled at the municipal scale and data on buildings possibly affected.

210Po and major ions in drainage water from soil treated with various types of fertilizers.

The levels of (210)Po, nutrients (NH(4)(+), NO(3)(-), PO(4)(3 -)) and major ions (Na(+), K(+), Mg(2 +), Ca(2 +), F(-), NO(2 -), Br(-), Cl(-), SO(4)(2 -)) were determined, by means of lysimeter experiences, in drainage waters for agricultural soils untreated and treated with different types of fertilizers (animal manure, sewage sludge and NPK synthetic fertilizer) applied at several rates. Analytical determinations were performed by using alpha -spectrometry in the case of (210)Po, or Ion Exchange liquid chromatography for the other ionic species. Statistical uni and multivariate analysis of the results shown significant differences among lixiviates according to the different fertilizer treatments.

Regional calibration of erosion radiotracers (210Pb and 137Cs): atmospheric fluxes to soils (northern Spain).

Inventories of radionuclides commonly used to study environmental processes, especially in erosion research, were determined in soil cores from two distant river basins in northern Spain. Results showed that 210Pb atmospheric fluxes correlate very well with mean annual rainfall across the region, and this is also the case for 137Cs inventories but only on the basin scale. Therefore we suggest that 210Pb is a better candidate as a radiotracer for soil erosion studies.