RADIATION PROTECTION OF THE ENVIRONMENT

Radiation Protection of the Environment (Environment Agency Course, July 2015)

Outline

Historical perspective of environmental radiological protection

Why this has changed - prime motivations International initiatives in key international

bodies The UK perspective

Environmental Radiation Protection ‘the history’

1977 International statement

‘Although the principal objective of radiation protection is the achievement and maintenance of appropriately safe conditions for activities involving human exposure, the level of safety required for the protection of all human individuals is thought likely to be adequate to protect other species, although not necessarily individual members of those species. The Commission therefore believes that if man is adequately protected then other living things are also likely to be sufficiently protected.’

1991 Statement

The Commission believes that the standard of environmental control needed to protect man to the degree currently thought desirable will ensure that other species are not put at risk. Occasionally, individual members of non-human species might be harmed, but not to the extent of endangering whole species or creating imbalance between species.

No requirement to access the impact of released radionuclides on the environment….

Sellafield

Marine ‘conservation’ areas

SSSI & LNR

Is that OK?

Is that OK?

c. year 2000 various national ‘regulators’ begin to require environmental radiological assessments:

USA, UK, Sweden, Finland, Canada ............

What is the issue?

Human radiological protection: Focus on worker/most exposed

individual Environment more as a route for

transfer to humans Incomplete ecological information What’s the protection goal? Evidence needed for or against

ICRP statement

Lack of demonstration that the environment is being protected

May not be valid for some environments (e.g. those with no humans)

Incompatible with management of other environmental chemical stressors

Requirement for assessment under some national legislation

Challenges to anthropogenic approach

National (e.g. UK)

EC, 1979. EC Birds Directive 79/409/EEC UK Parliament, 1981. Wildlife and Countryside Act

EC, 1992. EC Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC UK Parliament, 1994. Conservation (Natural Habitats) Regulations

Requires demonstration of protection of designated sites and species from ‘hazardous substances’

Interpreted (in UK) to include ionising radiation

Use Initial Radiological Assessment Tool (IRAT) which is based on R&D128

Internationally, from 2007 ICRP

‘the Commission considers that it is now necessary to provide advice with regard to all exposure situations. It also believes that it is necessary to consider a wider range of environmental situations, irrespective of any human connection with them. ...... The Commission therefore believes that the development of a clearer framework is required in order to assess the relationships between exposure and dose, and between dose and effect, and the consequences of such effects, for non-human species, on a common scientific basis.’

ICRP Publication 108 (2008)

Provides a Concept and Use of Reference Animals and Plants Transfer, Dosimetry, Effects to biota

=> Derived Consideration Reference Levels Ideas for application

Maintain biological diversity Conservation of species

Protect health and status of Natural habitats Communities Ecosystems

Targets are all related to Living organisms Populations or higher organisational levels Not on individuals (except for endangered species)

Demonstration through a set of Reference Animals and Plants (RAPs)

Protection targets

Planned, Existing and Emergency exposure situations

Environmental radionuclide concentrations

Reference Male & Female

Dose limits, Constraints and Reference levels

Reference Animals and Plants

Derived Consideration Reference Levels

Decision-making regarding public health and environmental protection for the same environmental exposure situation using representative individuals and

representative organisms

Human assessment (overview)

RADIONUCLIDE SOURCE

HABITS DATA

REFERENCE PERSON

IMPACT

TOTAL ABSORBED

DOSE

PATHWAY OF EXPOSURE

Application of a weighting factors

for RBE & different tissues

Compare predicted dose to known biological effects & dose limits

Wildlife assessment (overview)

HABITS DATA

REFERENCE ANIMAL OR

PLANT

IMPACT

TOTAL ABSORBED

DOSE

PATHWAY OF EXPOSURE

Application of a weighting factors

for RBE & different tissues

Compare predicted dose to known biological or

ecological effects & guideline values

RADIONUCLIDE SOURCE

ECOLOGICAL PARAMETERS

ICRP 108 - RAPsFor human protection, the reference individuals and Reference Person are

idealised models developed for the specific purposes of relating exposure

to dose, and dose to effect.

They do not represent any specific type of human being (the reference

individuals are phantoms, and the Reference Person is a hermaphrodite),

but nevertheless have to be discretely defined to serve their basic purpose.

To be consistent with the original concept of Reference Man, a Reference

Animal or Plant can be described as follows: “A Reference Animal or Plant is a hypothetical entity, with the assumed

basic biological characteristics of a particular type of animal or plant, as

described to the generality of the taxonomic level of family, with defined

anatomical, physiological, and life-history properties, that can be used for

the purposes of relating exposure to dose, and dose to effects, for that type

of living organism.”

RAPs

•Considers 12 RAPs (adult life stages) and 39 elements•RAPs defined at taxonomic level of Family

Further ICRP published work

ICRP, 2003. A Framework for Assessing the Impact of Ionising Radiation on Non-human Species. ICRP Publication 91. Ann. ICRP 33 (3).

ICRP, 2008. Environmental Protection - the Concept and Use of Reference Animals and

Plants. ICRP Publication 108. Ann. ICRP 38 (4-6). ICRP, 2009. Environmental Protection: Transfer Parameters for

Reference Animals and Plants. ICRP Publication 114. Ann. ICRP 39 (6).

CRP, 2014. Protection of the Environment under Different Exposure Situations. ICRP Publication 124. Ann. ICRP 43(1).

And future…

UNSCEAR

United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation

Established in 1955 UN Scientific Committee reports to General

Assembly Assesses global levels and effects of ionizing

radiation Provides scientific basis for radiation protection Governments and organisations rely on Committee's

estimates as the scientific basis for evaluating radiation risk and establishing protective measures

UNSCEAR 2011 conclusions

As in its 1996 recommendations, UNSCEAR considers that chronic dose rates of

less than 100 μGy h‑1 to the most highly exposed individuals would be unlikely to have significant effects on most terrestrial communities; and

that maximum dose rates of 400 μGy h‑1 to any individual in aquatic populations of organisms would be unlikely to have any detrimental effect at the population level

UNSCEAR 2011 conclusions

Category Dose rate Effects Endpoint

Plant

100 - 1000 μGy h-1 Reduced trunk growth of pine trees Morbidity

400 -700 μGy h-1 Reduced numbers of herbaceous plants Morbidity

Fish

100 -1000 μGy h-1 Reduction in testis mass and sperm production, lower fecundity, delayed spawning

Reproductive

200 – 499 μGy h-1 Reduced spermatogonia and sperm in tissues Reproductive

Mammals< 100 μGy h-1 No detrimental endpoints have been described Morbidity,

Mortality,Reproductive

Generic ecosystems

(terrestrial and aquatic)

About 80 μGy h-1 A new statistical approach (species sensitivity distribution, SSD) was applied to radiation effects data to estimate the hazardous dose rate (HDR5), the dose rate at which 95% of the species in the ecosystem are protected

Morbidity,Mortality,Reproductive

Overall summary of (illustrative) chronic effects data for plants, fish and mammals

Biota Co-ordination Group

Revision of Basic Safety Standards

Approaches Environmental Modelling for Radiation

Safety (EMRAS I & II), MODARIA

Application Technical cooperation on wildlife

regulation RER 7005

Plan of Activities on Protection of the Environment 2005

IAEA Safety Fundamentals (2006)

Safety objective is:

“The fundamental safety objective is to protect

people and the environment from harmful

effects of ionizing radiation”

IAEA Fundamental Safety Principles

Principle 7 Protection of present and future generations People and the environment, present and future,

must be protected against radiation risks

Environment = Ecosystems and populations

Objectives Prevention of radiological effects

on flora and fauna Man is an integral part of the

environment Ensure the sustainable use of

natural resources now and in the future

Agriculture Forestry Fisheries Tourism

Basic Safety Standards

EC

Euratom Basic Safety Standards on 29 September 2011 the European Commission

adopted the Proposal for a Council Directive laying down basic safety standards for protection against the dangers arising from exposure to ionising radiation [COM(2011)593].

Euratom projects FASSET ERICA PROTECT FP7 – STAR Network

European Basic Safety Standards

Last minute removal of most of the protection of the environment text

Aim to protect people and the environment but lacks detail

Available copy of BSS if anyone wants to read it

A Generic Framework for Environmental Radiation Risk Assessment

Stakeholder input

Target of protection = Population

Tiered approach

Environmental and health protection

Conservatism

Resources

TIER 1Risk screening

TIER 2Generic quantitative

TIER 3Detailed Quantitative

Data needs

Environmental and health protection

Conservatism

Resources

TIER 1Risk screening

TIER 2Generic quantitative

TIER 3Detailed Quantitative

Data needs

The level of detail in a ris

k assessment should be proportionate

with the nature and complexity of the ris

k being addressed and

consistent with decision-m

aking needs

Tiered approach

Assessment tools

AECL DosDiMEco EA R&D128 ECOMOD EDEN 2 EPIC DOSES3D ERICA FASSET LIETDOS-BIOTA RESRAD-BIOTA SUJB Bruce

• Australia• Belgium• England and Wales• European Project

Outputs• France• Lithuania• Russia• UK• USA

Environment Agency

Air Sewer Coastal River

Multiple authorisation Radiological assessment Tool (MRT) Developed for SEPA

ERICA Toolhttp://www.erica-tool.eu/