On October 27, 2026, a seminar was held titled “The Invisible Environment: What a Gamma Ray & a Pumped Filter Can Tell Us About Tobacco & Air of Duhok.” The seminar was presented by Mr. Samir Hashim Muhyadeen, the Vice Dean of the College. The seminar explored the findings of two published papers, highlighting the critical intersection between environmental monitoring and public health, emphasizing how advanced laboratory testing and physical air sampling reveal hidden pollutants and particulate matter that cannot be seen with the naked eye.

The following 2 seminars were presented:

1. Outdoor Air Contaminants-Heavy Metals and Associated Health Risks in Duhok-Iraq
2. Natural Radionuclide Assessment and Radiological Risk Indices in Retail Tobacco Products from Duhok, Iraq

Key Themes Addressed:

• Radioactive Isotope Analysis in Tobacco: Exploring the detection of Potassium-40 (K-40) in tobacco retail products across regional markets, comparing radioactivity concentrations in Duhok (2,800), Egypt (1,290), and Serbia (1,100) using advanced lab device testing.
• Airborne Metal Contamination and Lead Levels: Analyzing particulate matter collected across 20 locations over two distinct seasonal cycles (dry and wet) using 40 air filters, revealing that measured Lead (Pb) concentrations in Duhok (0.402 - 0.645 mg/m³) significantly exceed World Health Organization (WHO) safety thresholds (0.0005 mg/ m³).
• Pollution Sources and Inhalation Exposure: Identifying primary environmental risk factors—including local vehicle traffic, neighborhood generators, gas power plants, and local geology—while evaluating daily human inhalation doses for children (7.6 m³/day) and adults (20 m³/day) during dry and wet seasonal shifts.

Read the Papers Here:

• https://www.sjuoz.uoz.edu.krd/index.php/sjuoz/article/view/1043
• https://zjse.uod.ac/index.php/zjse/article/view/281