Assessment of different hazard indices around coal-fired power plants in Turkey

A review on radionuclide pollution in global soils with environmental and health hazards evaluation

Human populations are being exposed to a wide spectrum of radiation from soils as a result of the availability of radiation sources. Assessing the ecological and health effects of radionuclides in soils is crucial to support the optimal soil management practices but large-scale studies are limited. This study compiled data on radionuclides (226Ra, 232Th, 40K, 238U, and 137Cs) in soils located across the world (44 countries and 159 places) between 2008 and 2022 and applied radiological hazards indices and several multivariate statistical approaches. The average activity concentration (Bq/kg) of 226Ra, 232Th, 40K, 238U, and 137Cs were 408.56, 144.80, 508.78, 532.78, and 83.12, respectively, whereas 226Ra, 232Th, 40K, and 238U exceeded the standard limits. The principal component analysis explained more than 91% of variation in soils. Based on the geoaccumulation index, 40K posed moderately to heavy contamination whereas 238U and 226Ra posed moderate contamination in soils. Moreover, the mean values of radiological hazards evaluation such as radium equivalent activity (487.17 Bq/kg), external radiation hazard indices (1.32), internal hazard indices (2.15), absorbed dose rate (247.86 nGyh-1), annual effective dose rate (1.82 mSvy-1), activity utilization index (4.54) and excess lifetime cancer risk (63.84 × 10-4) were higher than recommended limit suggesting significant radiological risks in study region soils. The findings indicated that the study area soils were contaminated by radionuclides and unsafe for hazards in terms of the health risks linked with studied radioactive contents. The study is valuable for mapping radioactivity across the globe to determine the level of radioactivity hazards.

Impacts of coal-fired power plants for energy generation on environment and future implications of energy policy for Turkey

Turkish government aimed to increase the installed capacities of coal-fired power plants (CFPPs) according to several policies and strategic plans published in recent years. Energy production from CFPPs and subsidizing the coal sector were selected for reducing the import dependency as a cheaper option. CFPPs with gaseous emissions as well as fly ash and fine dust, along with ash storage, coal storage, and coal mining operations and water use for cooling of the plants, affect the environmental quality. Hence, the health of inhabitants of the environment is affected. CFPPs to be built, according to strategic plans, will emit a significant amount of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and would severely undermine the targets for a 1.5 ℃ or 2 ℃ warmer world. Subsidies to the coal sector, along with exemptions from environmental regulations, combined with slower growth of energy production from renewable energy sources (RES), may lead to a path dependence on coal, while the rest of the world increases their energy production from RES. This study demonstrates the concrete examples of pollution caused by CFPPs in Turkey, along with health effects with the addition of policy context toward utilization of CFPPs, to point out the risks these plants constitute both for the environment and economy. Increasing the share of RES in the energy mixture is particularly important for Turkey due to being in a geographical region that is highly vulnerable to climate change effects. This study also briefly discusses how the increase of RES and de-carbonization in Turkey could be conducted in the short- and long-term, upon the literature provided.