Centre for Ecology & Hydrology - Lancaster October 2011

Radiation protection of the environment - International context

Centre for Ecology & Hydrology - Lancaster October 2011

www.ceh.ac.uk/PROTECT

Outline

Historical perspective of environmental radiological protection

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

bodies The UK perspective Comparison with chemicals

‘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.’

ICRP, 1977

The ICRP statements

The ICRP statements

“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.

ICRP, 1991


Whats 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


Interaction between key international bodies

IAEA

ICRPUNSCEAR

Member States

EU

recommendationsevidence provision

establishing standards


Chronology

ICRP 1977 – statement appears ICRP 1991 – recognise individuals may be impacted ICRP 2007 – Recommendations include need to consider

environment and introduce ‘RAP Framework’

UNSCEAR (1996, 2011) Reports on Effects of Ionizing Radiation to Biota

USA, Canadian, EU-Projects (2000-2009) Scientific base Development of frameworks

IAEA (2005) Plan of Activities on Protection of the Environment

IAEA Safety Fundamentals (2006) Principle 7:Protection of “People and the environment, present

and in the future, must be protected against radiation risks”


ICRP 2007 (Publication 103) Recommendations - the Environment

Recommends the explicit consideration of

Radiological Protection of the Environment

ICRP recognised Need for advice and guidance Lack of consistency at an international level More proactive approach needed Complex nature of environmental protection Need to develop a clearer framework – C5

Assess exposure – dose – effect relationships Pragmatic approach No “dose limits”


ICRP Exposure Situations

Planned - current activities, new nuclear sites and U mines etc Not historic (yrs of discharge)

Mostly for planned NPP and waste repositories (current or prospective discharges)

Existing – exposure to natural radiation sources and contamination of areas by residual radioactive material

Past activities that were never subject to regulatory control or were not

regulated according to present requirements; An emergency, after the emergency exposure situation has been

declared ended Residues from past activities for which there is no longer legally

accountability Used in USA for previously contaminated sites

Emergency – eg accidents, malevolent acts Low priority in acute phase


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


RAPs


RAP definitionFor 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.”


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

Application Technical cooperation on wildlife

regulation RER 7005

Plan of Activities on Protection of the Environment 2005

IAEA Safety Fundamentals (2006)

Revision of the International Basic Safety Standards (BSS), Draft 5.0, May

2011 Protection of the environment (extracts)

Protection of people and the environment against radiation risks associated with the operation of facilities and the conduct of activities - and in particular, protection against such risks that may transcend national borders and may persist for long periods of time – is important to achieving equitable and sustainable development

----Trends also indicate the need to be able to demonstrate (rather than to assume) that the environment is protected against effects of industrial pollutants, including radionuclides, in a wider range of environmental situations, irrespective of any human connection.----

Adopt an integrated perspective to ensure the sustainable use of natural resources for agriculture, forestry, fisheries and tourism - now and in the future.

BSS designed to identify the protection of the environment as an issue necessitating assessment, while allowing for flexibility in incorporating decision making processes the results of environmental assessments that are commensurate with the radiation risks.


IAEA BSS

Requirements Consider Protection of the Environment

Registration and licensing Setting discharge limits Monitoring Remediation

Protection of the environment is one factor during optimization in existing and emergency exposure situations

=> Associated Safety Guides and Safety Report under development

Radiation Protection of the Public and the Environment (New Safety Guide)

Guidance for the implementation of radiation protection as recommended in the new BSS Exposures to public Exposures to environment

How to apply radiation protection principles to exposures of the environment Justification, Limitation, Optimization

Exposure situations Planned, existing, emergency

Discuss the application of Derived Consideration Reference Levels

=> Input from ICRP Task Group

Radiological Environmental Impact Analysis for Facilities and Activities

(REIA) (New Safety Guide) How to perform a Radiological Environmental Impact Assessment

(REIA) Endpoints Models and methods

Graded approach for the REIA Which efforts are needed for

Small users Hospitals Nuclear installations

How to use already existing data for REIA Data used for assessment of exposures to the public Results from environmental and source monitoring

=> Minimize efforts needed for assessing impacts to biota

Regulatory Control of the Releases of Radioactive Material

(Update of a Safety Guide) Guidance to derive limits for radionuclide discharges to the

environment Public exposure Environmental exposure

Facilities and activities Nuclear installations Laboratories and hospitals Small users NORM

=>Radiological impact to biota will be an integral part of the licensing process


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]. Chapter IX: Protection of the Environment

Euratom projects FASSET ERICA PROTECT FP7 – STAR Network


EC BSSChapter IX: Protection of the environment

This chapter, in line with the broader scope of the Directive as in the International Basic Safety Standards, aims to provide a means to demonstrate compliance with environmental criteria. While the ICRP has published a methodology for dose assessment for biota, a publication on the application of criteria is still awaited. Pending such further guidance, it is up to national authorities to assess the doses to representative animals and plants in terms of protection of the ecosystem.

Appropriate technical measures also need to be taken to avoid the environmental consequences of an accidental release and to monitor existing levels of radioactivity in the environment, from the perspectives of both environmental protection and human health.

Title IX: Protection of the Environment

Article 76 Environmental Criteria

Member States shall include, in their legal framework for radiation protection and in particular within the overall system of human health protection, provision for the radiation protection of non-human species in the environment. This legal framework shall introduce environmental criteria aiming to protect populations of vulnerable or representative non-human species in the light of their significance as part of the ecosystem. Where appropriate, types of practices shall be identified for which regulatory control is warranted in order to implement the requirements of this legal Framework.

Title IX: Protection of the Environment

Article 77- Authorised limits on dischargesMember States’ competent authorities, when establishing authorised limits ondischarges of radioactive effluents, in accordance with Article 65(2), shall alsoensure adequate protection of non-human species. For this purpose, a genericscreening assessment may be conducted to provide assurance that the environmental criteria are met.

Article 78 - Accidental releasesMember States shall require undertakings to take appropriate technical measures to avoid significant environmental damage in the event of an accidental release or to mitigate the extent of such damage.

Article 79 – Environmental monitoringWhen establishing environmental monitoring programmes, or requiring such programmes to be carried out, Member States’ competent authorities shall include representative non-human species, if necessary, and also environmental media which constitute a pathway of exposure for members of the public.


Other EC Drivers in the UK

Europe: Habitats and Birds Directives On the conservation of natural

habitats and of wild flora and fauna

UK: Conservation (Natural Habitats) regulations 1994 Implements the Directive in the

UK.

The UK has interpreted the EC Birds & Habitats Directives as requiring assessments to determine that no authorised discharges of radioactivity will impact upon protected (Natura 2000) sites.


Differences between chemical and radiological risk assessments

Exposure Assessment

Chemical approaches often consider factors that affect bioavailability

Dosimetry Needed for radionuclide but not chemical risk assessments.

Possible internal and external exposure from radionuclides but only internal relevant for chemicals

Effects Assessment

Assessment of chemicals is based on empirical ecotoxicological data relating concentrations or daily intakes to effects

Assessment of radionuclides uses data that relate effects to dose.

Separate assessments are needed for each chemical

Radionuclide assessments need only consider a limited range of radiation types and qualities

Soil solids Soil water

M-DOM

M-X

M-soil

M output = [M]aq x runoff

M inputg ha-1 a-1

H+

Mz+

Maq

Soil bioavailability

Direct toxicity in soil and water: the assessment of toxicity thresholds for plants, invertebrates and microbial processes

Higher organism health: comparison with•Concentration in food eaten •Ingested amount per unit liveweight of receptor species•Concentration in organs of species compared to a risk quotient

Human health: quantifying exposure to contaminants and assessing acceptable intake values

Approaches for chemicals in the environment

US DOE facilities are required to demonstrate annually that routine radioactive release from their sites are protective of non-human receptors

DOE Order 5400.5: In addition to providing protection to members of the public, it is DOE’s objective to protect the environment from radioactive contamination to the extent practical.

Assessed against dose rate limits for different organism groups established to avoid measurable impairment of reproductive capacityObjective: to protect the terrestrial and aquatic environment, including populations of animals and plants within and beyond the boundaries of DOE sites ……

USDOE

Some examples of assessments being conducted

Sweden, UK, Canada & Finland – waste repositories

England & Wales >700 authorisations impacting on (protected) Natura 2000 sites

USDOE sites – assessment is an annual requirement

U industry – (e.g. Canada, Australia) New build power plants (e.g. UK) Decommissioning (e.g. Lithuania)

Documents

Centre for Ecology & Hydrology - Lancaster October 2011