Abstract
Large volumes of uraniferous gold tailings deposited over more than a century in densely populated metropolitan areas of South Africa (SA) pose potential health hazards to millions of residents of nearby settlements, including many vulnerable, impoverished populations. In order to inform the selection of suitable sampling populations for epidemiological studies a mapping methodology based on a Virtual Geographic Environment (VGE) combined with a Geographical Information System (GIS) was developed. The structure, architecture and database of the system are presented.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Dorling D (1988): Uranium and Radium 226 concentration in the upper Wonderfontein-spruit. Monitoring results, unpublished
Fesenko S, Monken-Fernandez H (2013): Environmental remediation: from Arlington to Astana. Editorial, J Environm Radioactivity 119, 1-4.
Schonfeldt SJ, Winde F, Albrecht C, Kielkowski D, Liefferink M, Patel M, Stoch L, Whitaker C, Schüz J (2014 accepted): Health effects in populations living around the uraniferous gold mine tailings in South Africa: gaps and opportunities for research (workshop report). Cancer Epidemiology, pp. 10
Waggit P (1994): A review of worldwide practices for disposal of uranium mill tailings. Supervising Scientist for the Alligator Rivers Region. Technical Memorandum 48. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra 1994, 52Â pp.
William WA, Lane RG, Legator MS, Whorton EB, Wilkinson GS, Gabehart GJ (1995): Biomarker Monitoring of a Population Residing near Uranium Mining Activities. Environmental Health Perspectives, 103, 5, 466-470
Winde F (2010) Uranium pollution of the Wonderfonteinspruit, 1997-2008 Part 2: Uranium in water - concentrations, loads and associated risks. Water SA 36(3): 257-278
Wismut-GmbH (1996): Ergebnisse der Umweltüberwachung und Sanierungstätigkeit 1995. Sanierungsbetrieb Seelingstädt, Betriebsteil Seelingstädt. Chemnitz
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2015 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this paper
Cite this paper
Winde, F., Hoffmann, E. (2015). Virtual Geographical Environments as a tool to map human exposure to mining-related radionuclides. In: Merkel, B., Arab, A. (eds) Uranium - Past and Future Challenges. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-11059-2_23
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-11059-2_23
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-11058-5
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-11059-2
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)