Multi-technique radiometric assessment of a desert-marine ecosystem facilitating radiological-environmental safety in hyper-arid regions

Abstract

International audienceThis paper presents a rigorous, multi-technique assessment of radiometric and physiochemical characteristics of a desert-marine ecosystem in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Current models and empirical data on the release, dispersion, retention and migration of radionuclides in hyper-arid regions are inadequate. This is a critical gap in the radiological-environmental assessments in the Arabian Peninsula, where industries producing radioactivity, such as oil and gas, mining, and both thermal and nuclear power generations, are expanding rapidly. This study offers the most diverse baseline data to date, laying the groundwork for an evidence-based radionuclide transport modeling in hyper-arid environments. It identifies the key isotopes to track and carefully selects a representative region for a comprehensive sampling. The Al Dhafra region of Abu Dhabi was chosen due to its importance in hosting oil, gas, and nuclear industries, and because it covers 71 % of the total area of the emirate. Around 30 different samples were collected, including rock, sand, groundwater, seawater, plants, and farm products. A tailored combination of advanced radiometric methods with XRD, ICP-MS, IC, and gamma spectrometry was developed for this complex and rare sample set. Majority of the instrumentation for this project were hosted in the Subatech Laboratories (France). The study yielded radioactivity compositions in the main arid environmental matrices, consistent with the previous research, and introduced novel findings on the probable host rocks to study for nuclear waste storage, desert shrubs as bioindicators, and camel milk as a medium for transfers to humans. •Diverse and multi-method radiometric characterization of an expansive hyper-arid desert region.•Baseline radionuclide concentrations measured for rocks, sand, waters, plants, and farm produces.•Identified primary rock types, groundwater chemistry and salinity, and plants for transport mechanisms.•Vital empirical data for nuclear and radioactivity-producing industries in hyper-arid ecosystems