Emissions
of radioactive material
TX-6
Dispersion
of Toxic Substances
Pressure
1 Indicator
definition and unit of measurement
Activity
of emitted radioactive material on a yearly basis (unit: Bq/year).
2 Placement
in the framework
5EAP:
Chapter
4: Selected target sectors, section 4.2: The energy sector, table 2: Energy,
table 6 : Programme framework for selected target sectors.
Chapter
6: Management of risks and accidents, section 6.2: Nuclear safety and radiation
protection and section 6.3: Civil protection and environmental emergencies,
table 16: Nuclear safety.
Agenda
21:
Chapter
22: Safe and environmentally-sound management of radioactive wastes.
International
conventions and agreements:
Proposal
for a Council Regulation (EEC) on shipments of radioactive substances within
the European Community (92/C 347/10, COM(92) 520 final of 7.12.92), including
shipments of radioactive waste as defined in Council Directive 92/3 Euratom of
3.2.92. Council Resolution of 19.12.94 on radioactive waste management (94/C
379/01).
Convention
on the High Seas (United Nations, 1958); OSPARCOM (Oslo, 1972 and Paris, 1974).
Ranking:
Core
ranking:
6
(26%)
Policy
Relevance:
5
(3.1)
Analytical
Soundness:
2
(3.2)
Responsiveness:
6
(2.8)
Most
appropriate related state indicator:
Radioactivity
per weight or volume of matrices; soil, biological material, volume of air etc.
3 Significance
Purpose:
The
main purpose of this indicator is to represent the total load of radiation from
emitted radioactive material derived from deliberate or accidental use such as
energy production, radioactive waste treatment, radio-therapy, research,
military testing, different types of accidents etc., on a yearly basis.
Relevance:
Several
activities in society uses and generates radioactive material, and deliberate
and accidental emissions take place. For certain long-lived nuclides the
radioactive decay continues for a very long time and some types of emitted
radioactive material can be active for several 100.000 years. Increasing
emissions, emissions kept on the level of today or even the risk for future
accidents during use or as waste is clearly not sustainable.
Linkages
to other pressure indicators:
None.
Targets:
Reductions
of emissions to waters are agreed upon in OSPARCOM.
4 Methodological
description and underlying definitions
Underlying
definitions and concepts:
Ionising
radiation from decaying radioactive material effects living organisms by
interacting with chemical bonds within the living cells and may cause adverse
biological effects. Type and magnitude of radiation differ between different
types of radioactive materials. Some radioactive nuclides decay rapidly to
stable and non-radioactive nuclides, while others are radioactive for very long
time periods (> 100 000 yr) or produce other radioactive nuclides when
decaying. Also the type of radiation differs between nuclides in their ability
of penetrating living tissue and in the way negative effects occur. By using
the radioactivity of the material as the unit of measurement this indicator
aims at representing emissions of all types of radioactive material regardless
of decay mode or decay rate.
Measurement
methods:
Information
will be generated by emission inventories from the processes mentioned above.
Limitations
of the indicator:
The
use and precision of the indicator is limited due to the use of different
radioactive substances with varying decay modes and half-lives.
Alternative
definitions:
Emissions
of each of the used radioactive substances are singled out and measured
separately, e.g. emissions of
137Cs,
emissions of
239Pu,
etc per year.
Alternatively,
emissions of used substances by type of decay, e.g. emissions of
α-,
β-
and
γ-decaying
substances per year.
