He Ministry of Health of the Government of Spain has published in the National Information System for Drinking Water (Sinac) two reports in which public supply water from a reservoir in the northern municipality of San Juan de la Rambla due to an excess of radioactivity. Based on these analyses, the samples are twice the maximum value allowed by Royal Decree 3/2023 which establishes the technical-sanitary criteria for the quality of drinking water, its control and supply in Spain. The last two analyzes of radioactivity are dated February 27 and April 17 of this year and refer to the Aquilino-Las Rosas II depositwhich supplies part of San José, Las Rosas, La Vera, Lomo Guanche, Los Quevedos or El Rosario (La Rambla).
According to information from Sinac, the sampling point for this radioactivity control is located in Lomo La Palma street and the study of the samples was carried out in the Agener Canary Islands Laboratory. In both cases, the excessive parametric value of radioactivity was that of the total alpha activitywhich was set on both dates in 0.2 becquerel (Bq) per liter, when the maximum allowed by current legislation is 0.1 Bq/l. A becquerel is a unit of the international system that measures the amount of radioactivity and bears the name of henri becquerelthe French physicist who discovered radioactivity in 1896.
The Councilor for Water from the Ramblero Town Hall, Juan Ramos (AIS-CC)calls for calm and asks that «social alarm is not generated because radioactivity is a scary word, but we are facing a natural phenomenon which is due to the origin of our waters and which also occurs in other places». As it is a headwater tank, the water comes from various galleries, normally four, and is distributed throughout the town, “that is why it is very difficult to calculate the number of residents who receive this water which, due to the mixtures it undergoes in his journey, he also sees that parameter modified, ”he says.
“We ask that social alarm not be generated because radioactivity is a scary word, but we are facing a natural phenomenon that is due to the origin of our waters and that also occurs in other places»
The mayor of Aguas and the ramblero mayor, Ezequiel Dominguez (PSOE), assure that samples have been taken in the galleries that supply the Aquilino deposit to try to determine the exact origin of this excess of radioactivity. A study that will take weeks “because you have to send the samples to the peninsula and wait for the results.” This deposit was already subject to restrictions on consumption due to excess fluoride, although according to information published by Public health, only in the case of children under 8 years of age. At the moment, no new restrictions have been issued “waiting for those studies that are underway”says Ramos.
He Ministry of Health of the Government of Spain published in 2019 his Analysis of the risks derived from the exposure of the population to radioactive substances in water for human consumption, where it is stated that “the declaration of unsuitability of the water will entail the restriction of its use for drinking and food preparation, being able to use it for any other use”. For the moment, nor the General Directorate of Public Health of the Government of the Canary Islands nor the Ramblero Town Hall have issued notices or restrictions regarding this excess of radioactivity.
Although exposure to radioactivity is associated with an increased incidence of cancer In the long term, the aforementioned analysis published by Health recalls that “according to the World Health Organization (WHO)establishing a limit parameter does not mean that lower levels are exempt from potential health effects, since there is no threshold below which there is no risk, but that it has been set at that value the reference level of risk to assume».
However, in the Guide for the Quality of Water for Human Consumption Published precisely by the WHO in 2018, this institution points out that “water for human consumption may contain radioactive substances that could present a risk to human health. These risks are usually small compared to risks from microorganisms and chemicals that may be present in water. Except in extreme circumstances, the radiation dose resulting from the ingestion of radionuclides in drinking-water is much lower than that from other sources of radiation.”
He Nuclear Physics Group of the Department of Atomic, Molecular and Nuclear Physics of the Faculty of Physical Sciences of the Complutense University of Madrid points out in its informative material on radioactivity that «contrary to popular belief, radiation is not only produced in nuclear power plants or atomic bombs. 87% of the radiation dose we receive comes from natural sources. Radioactivity is everywhere: in the houses, in the air we breathe, in the food we eat; even our own body is radioactive. Earth is radioactive by nature and exposes the inhabitants to radiation from the surface rocks and the ground.”
What the Spanish legislation says
Royal Decree 3/2023, of January 10, which establishes the technical-sanitary criteria for the quality of drinking water, its control and supply in Spain, has been in force since January 12 of this year. This legal text indicates that once an incident is confirmed due to exceeding the parametric values of radioactive substances, which are set in that decree at a maximum of 0.1 becquerel per liter in the case of total alpha activity, “the authority sanitary, at the operator’s proposal and after a risk assessment, will order the adoption of the most appropriate measures that may consist of restricting the use of water, prohibiting its supply or applying appropriate treatment techniques to modify the properties of the water before it is supplied. in order to reduce or eliminate the risk of non-compliance”.
