Territorial characterisation considering geo morphological properties of subsoil as well as climatic and meteorological conditions for the evaluation of the effects of radiological nature on the environment

The composition and origin of the rocky substratum, the permeability of the ground, its degree of humidity and the particle size are the main factors that influence radon concentration in the subsoil and in the water stratums as well as its upward migration. The climatic and meteorological conditions, particularly the moisture, the barometric pressure and the temperature, can influence more or less directly the underground emanation and diffusion properties of radon and thoron giving rise to short-term modifications of radiological nature in the subsoil, closely related to the presence of these elements. The great concentration of some radioisotopes, in some particular areas, can also induce high dose rates caused by the radiation coming from emergent rocks, due for instance to activities related to building works, with consequent possible exposure of the personnel involved in underground excavations. In such situations it is possible to carry out systematical radiometric measurements, which provide instantaneous and time integrated data, using fixed or movable instrumentation. The stratigraphical structure of the subsoil and the related variations of lithological nature as well as the lack of homogeneity in the land, due also to the unevenness of the ground outline and to the presence of fault planes, increase considerably the complexity of analytical evaluations based upon the chemical and physical characteristics of the subsoil and upon the meteorological and climatic properties