2018 International Radon Symposium and Trade Show

What We Know About Uranium and Radon Georgia Well Waters
Uttam Saha*1, Leticia Sonon1, Pamela Turner2, Dana Lynch3, and Gabrielle Dean2
1Agricultural and Environmental Services Laboratories, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
2Department of Financial Planning, Housing and Consumer Economics, College of Family and Consumer Sciences, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
3Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, The University of Georgia Cooperative Extension, Monroe County Extension, Athens, GA, USA.
sahau@uga.edu
 
Abstract
Radionuclides from three naturally occurring decay series (headed by 238U, 230Th, and 235U), have long been known to be present in groundwaters in Georgia. In 2010, routine surveillance of drinking-water testing revealed uranium concentrations exceeded the U.S. Maximum Contaminant Level (30 ppb) in private wells in central Georgia. Since they are in the same 238U decay series, high levels of uranium in well water may be associated with elevated levels of dissolved radon gas. Drinking water that contains high levels of these contaminants can have adverse health consequences, though definite relationships of those health issues with uranium and radon in drinking water have not been established. This paper provides an overview of our testing, mapping programs, and public education programs for tracking and mitigating uranium and radon in Georgia well waters. It also sheds some lights on the temporal variation of these two contaminants in well waters and their interrelationships.