Radon (222Rn) and Radium (226Ra) activity and dose assessment in spring waters of Kosovo

Radon (²²²Rn) and radium (²²⁶Ra) are naturally occurring radionuclides of the ²³⁸U decay series that may contribute to public exposure through drinking water and indoor air due to radon degassing during household water use. Six springs were sampled and analyzed using the pulse-counting ionization chamber (alpha spectroscopy) method with an AlphaGUARD DF2000 monitor coupled to an AquaKIT system. Radon activity concentrations ranged from 0.06 to 10.88 Bq L⁻¹, while ²²⁶Ra, indirectly determined after a 30-day decay period of radon, ranged from 0.12 to 0.32 Bq L⁻¹. The total committed effective dose for adult consumers (inhalation and ingestion; 222Rn+226Ra) ranged from 14.35 to 59.72 µSv y⁻¹, remaining well below the WHO reference level of 100 µSv y⁻¹. The results indicate no significant radiological risk and contribute to the existing baseline data on radon and radium in spring waters of Kosovo