Filip Jędrzejek

This study evaluated the activity concentrations of radionuclides in honey, bee pollen, bee bread, and propolis from multiple regions in Poland (Europe) to assess the levels of radiological contamination and their implications for public health. Furthermore, the work considers the use of bee products as bioindicators of the state of environmental contamination with radionuclides. The apiaries from which the samples were collected were selected in eight provinces in Poland, and are also complemented by reference data from soil contamination monitoring. Radionuclide measurements included both natural (e.g., ⁴⁰K, ²²⁶Ra) and anthropogenic isotopes (e.g., ¹³⁷Cs). The results show that although the overall activity concentrations were generally low, certain locations exhibited elevated levels of ¹³⁷Cs in bee products, likely reflecting historical deposition in soils. Propolis was best correlated with ¹³⁷Cs deposited in soil compared to the other products studied. The patterns observed substantiate the hypothesis that bee products, predominantly propolis, accurately reflect local radiological conditions, thereby providing a practical and non-intrusive approach to monitoring radionuclide contamination and informing risk management strategies. An assessment of potential health risks indicates that the effective dose is safe and ranges from 0.02 to 10.3 µSv per year, depending on the type of product and consumption.

Paleoenvironmental reconstruction was conducted on a short sediment core from a subalpine lake (Low Tatra Mountains, Slovakia) spanning the past ~ 300 years, and aimed to assess the impact of climatic oscillations and the well-documented human activities in the catchment. An analysis of subfossil chironomid remains was applied, supported by a land cover reconstruction using historical maps and orthoimagery. Two main phases of lake development were identified: the first, preceding major anthropogenic pressure and the second, which followed the opening of the first hotel in the lake vicinity in 1950, characterised by massive infrastructure and tourism expansion. The oldest assemblages date to the coldest period of the Little Ice Age (LIA) and were dominated by Derotanypus and Paratanytarsus austriacus-type, indicating very cold and oligotrophic conditions. Warming following the end of LIA caused a gradual shift in the taxonomic composition, with previously dominant taxa disappearing or decreasing in abundance. Dominance of Tanytarsus lugens-type, Zavrelimyia and Heterotrissocladius marcidus-type still reflects relatively cold temperatures and low productivity. Taxonomic composition remained mostly stable until the middle of the twentieth century, when construction work in the catchment caused deforestation, the number of year-round tourists increased, and the lake was dammed to improve conditions for boating and angling. The resulting increased nutrient loading, oxygen depletion and macrophyte development are evident from the rising abundances of taxa tolerant of high trophy. The increase of thermally plastic taxa in the twenty-first century reveals recent climate warming, which will likely only exacerbate the already considerable negative human influence, making lake recovery improbable.

Radiological assessment of the environment in expansive territories poses significant challenges due to the complexity of spatial and environmental variables. The aim of this study was to use and present the advantages of a physico-geographical regionalisation methodology to improve the precision and effectiveness of radiological assessments in large areas. The study area was a region of the Polish Carpathian mountains with a territory of 19,600 km². By integrating geographic information systems (GIS) and radiological data, this research analysed a similarity of environmental attributes (soil type, lithology, mineralogy) and absorbed dose rate (ADR) level from the terrestrial origin for populations. Consistency in terms of the nature and origin of the relief and lithological diversity was a key aspect that distinguished the radiological characteristics. Therefore, consistency was observed at the macroregional level according to physiographic mapping. The study demonstrates the utility of macroregionalisation in capturing spatial ADR heterogeneity and provides a new strategy in radiological monitoring. Graphical Abstract

Soil radioactivity is a poorly recognized form of land degradation; however, there are regions all around the world where it can be dangerous to the environment and human health. The aim of the study was to analyze the radioactivity of Technosols developed on thermal power station (TPS) ash disposal sites. Total concentration of uranium (U), thorium (Th), and cesium (Cs), as well as the radioactivity of select radionuclides in Technosols were determined to recognize the level of radioactivity and to assess the potential radiological health risk. Total U, Th and Cs concentrations in Technosols were in ranges 1.5 to 11.3, 4 to 22.9, and 0.2 to 21.3 mg·kg⁻¹, respectively. The radioisotope activities in Technosols (in Bq·kg⁻¹) were in the 1.6–25.5 (¹³⁷Cs); 29.2–1265 (⁴⁰K); 26.2–99.9 (²²⁸Th); 27.9–100 (²²⁸Ra); 20.5–134. (²²⁶Ra); 32.8–177 (²¹⁰Pb); 23.9–144 (²³⁸U); 1.2–7.0 (²³⁵U) ranges. The activity concentrations were slightly higher than the activities of non‐contaminated soils. Technosols developed from bituminous coal ash had higher ⁴⁰K, ²²⁸Th, and ²²⁸Ra activity concentrations than soils developed from lignite ash. Artificial ¹³⁷Cs occurred in surface horizons of Technosols due to fall of atmospheric dust enriched in ¹³⁷Cs. Annual effective dose (AED) in Technosols amounted 0.07–0.16 mSv·a⁻¹ and was somewhat higher than the global and Polish average (0.06 and 0.07 mSv·a⁻¹, respectively) for outdoor external terrestrial radiation. The radioactivity of the investigated Technosols is slightly above the average radioactivity of native soils. The radiological human‐health risk related to the analyzed soils is low.

The work aimed to show the applicability of geological studies to the investigation of radiation risk assessment due to the presence of naturally occurring radionuclides of terrestrial origin in the soil. Soil samples were taken from a Tatra Mountains area for which geological maps were available. The concentration of selected radionuclides incl. ⁴⁰K, ²³⁸U and ²³²Th was determined by gamma-ray spectrometry with a HPGe-detector. Radioactivities and calculated absorbed dose rates were co-related to complex bedrock matrices based on an original methodology. The correlations were proved by performing a Principal Component Analysis (PCA). The rocks that had a significant impact on the rate of absorbed dose from the soil were strongly related to the radioactivity of the uranium series. The share of the following fractions was the most significant: granite with pegmatite, gneiss, granitoid and gneiss, coquina, marl and glauconite, hard limestone, dolomite and limestone. The rock types additionally showed good correlation with radioisotopes from the thorium series. Granitoids with potassium feldspar, on the other hand, contributed the largest share of ⁴⁰K radioisotope content.

Formation of the inversion layer causes a lack of vertical movement of the atmosphere and the occurrence of long-lasting high concentrations of pollution. The new invention makes use of shock waves, created by explosions of a mixture of flammable gases and air. These shock waves destroy the structure of the temperature inversion layer in the atmosphere and restore natural convection. Restoring vertical movements within the atmosphere causes a reduction in air pollution at the ground level. The system was tested at full technical scale in the environment. Preliminary effects indicate an average 24% reduction in PM10 concentration in the smog layer at ground level up to 20 m, with the device operating in 11-min series consisting of 66 explosions. It was also shown that the device is able to affect a larger area, at least 4 km².