1. RADIATION PROTECTION OF THE ENVIRONMENT Radiation Protection of the Environment (Environment Agency Course, July 2015)

2.  Historical perspective of environmental radiological protection  Why this has changed - prime motivations  International initiatives in key international bodies  The UK perspective

4. ‘ 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. ’

5. 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.

6. Sellafield Marine ‘conservation’ areas SSSI & LNR

8. c. year 2000 various national ‘regulators’ begin to require environmental radiological assessments: USA, UK, Sweden, Finland, Canada............

9.  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

10.  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

11.  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

12. ‘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.’

14. 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

15. 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

16. 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

17. For 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.”

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

19.  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…

20. 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

21.  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

22. CategoryDose rateEffectsEndpoint Plant 100 - 1000 μGy h -1 Reduced trunk growth of pine treesMorbidity 400 -700 μGy h -1 Reduced numbers of herbaceous plantsMorbidity 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 tissuesReproductive Mammals < 100 μGy h -1 No detrimental endpoints have been describedMorbidity, 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 (HDR 5 ), 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

23.  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)

24.  Safety objective is: “The fundamental safety objective is to protect people and the environment from harmful effects of ionizing radiation”

25.  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

26.  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

27.  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

28.  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

30. Stakeholder input

33. Environmental and health protection Conservatism Resources TIER 1 Risk screening TIER 2 Generic quantitative TIER 3 Detailed Quantitative Data needs

34. Environmental and health protection Conservatism Resources TIER 1 Risk screening TIER 2 Generic quantitative TIER 3 Detailed Quantitative Data needs The level of detail in a risk assessment should be proportionate with the nature and complexity of the risk being addressed and consistent with decision-making needs

35.  AECL  DosDiMEco  EA R&D128  ECOMOD  EDEN 2  EPIC DOSES3D  ERICA  FASSET  LIETDOS-BIOTA  RESRAD-BIOTA  SÚJB  Bruce Australia Belgium England and Wales European Project Outputs France Lithuania Russia UK USA

36.  Air  Sewer  Coastal  River  Multiple authorisation Radiological assessment Tool (MRT)  Developed for SEPA

37. http://www.erica-tool.eu/