Radiation Dose from Cassava Samples from a Coal Mining Area of Enugu, Enugu State, Nigeria

Abstract Cassava is one of the most staple food for the Nigerian population and is consumed in large quantity daily. Food intake is one of the routes of radiological contamination to man. Cassava samples from an old coal mining area of Enugu, Enugu State, Nigeria were analyzed using gamma ray spectroscopic method. The mean activity concentrations for the radionuclides 40K, 226Ra and 232Th respectively ranged from 193.68-300.92 Bq/kg, 23.03-37.24 Bq/kg and 135.33-158.43 for camp 1, camp 2 and Pottery areas respectively. The total mean annual effective dose due to the three observed radionuclides was 2.03 mSv/yr, which was higher than the recommended value of 1 mSv/yr. The cassava samples from the area under study showed high radiotoxicity levels.