Determination of radiocesium levels in forest soils of Edremit

In this study, it is aimed to establish the Cs-137 activity levels in forest soils of Kaz dağları-Edremit restricted area. In this aspect, soils were sampled from 41 area and Cs-137 activity levels in samples were determined by using HPGe Gamma Spectrometer System. The mean activity concentration and range of the Cs-137 radionuclide in soil samples were 177 (31-458) Bq/kg, while the mean activity deposition and range were found as 15 (2-39) kBq/square meter. It is observed that terrestrial gamma dose rate from Cs-137 radionuclide in Kazdağları-Edremit forest sites were varied between 0,92 nGy/h to 8,46 nGy/h with an average value of 3.98 nGy/h. The mean value and range of annual effective dose equivalent for Cs-137 were estimated as 4.87 (1,13-10,38) micro Sv/y. These findings showed that the activity levels of Cs-137 in the forest soils were still high in contrast to agricultural soils after 25 years from the Chernobyl accident.