Basic Safety Standards Directive- Preliminary Estimated Impacts of Occupational Exposures

Basic Safety Standards Directive- preliminary estimated impacts of occupational exposures aspects – Radon

Purpose of this document

HSE carried out an analysis of the gaps between the current Ionising Radiations Regulations 1999 (IRR) and the Radiation (Emergency Preparedness and Public Information) Regulations 2001 (REPPIR) and the requirements of the Basic Safety Standards (BSS) Directive. Where gaps were identified, HSE has made proposals of how the new requirements could be met.

This document contains initial, preliminary estimates of the impacts of these proposals for discussion with the Occupational Exposures Stakeholder Working Group (OEWG). These estimates are provided to inform discussion and gather feedback from industry stakeholders on assumptions made. This work will inform the development of a full impact assessment.

As part of HSE’s proposed solutions, this document refers to “new regulations”. This is meant as a guide – it could mean, for example, a slightly redrafted IRR provision, or entirely new regulatory text. No decisions have been taken at this stage on what the regulatory framework will look like after the implementation of the BSS Directive.

1 Contents

2 Radon Radon is a geographical issue rather than an industry/sector issue. HSE requires that under the Health and Safety of Work etc Act 1974 employers must, so far as is reasonably practicable, ensure the health and safety of employees and others who have access to their work environment.

The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require the assessment of health and safety risks and HSE consider that this should include radon in the following circumstances:

 Above ground workplaces Where the building is located in a Radon Affected Area for the vast majority of above ground workplaces the risk assessment should include radon measurements in appropriate ground floor rooms

 Below ground workplaces Throughout the UK for occupied below ground workplaces (for example occupied greater than an average of an hour per week/ 52 hours per year), or those containing an open water source, the risk assessment should include radon measurements. This applies to all below ground workplaces in the UK, irrespective of the Affected Areas status.

IRR applies where radon is present above the defined level of 400 Bq m -3 in a 24 hour period and employers are required to take action to restrict resulting exposures unless the radon daughter concentration averaged over an 8 hour period can be shown to be less than 6.23 x 10-7 Jm-3.

IRR requires that HSE be notified where radon is present above the defined level of 400 Bq m-3 in a 24 hour period. This notification is required “forthwith” so usually takes place before any remediation work is undertaken.

3 RN1. Radon – time integrated exposure value

Current arrangements IRR regulation 3(1) (b) requires that the provisions of IRR will come in to effect when work is carried out in atmosphere where radon 222 at a concentration in air, averaged over any 24 hour period, exceeds 400 Bq m-3, except where the concentration of the short-lived daughters of radon 222 in air averaged over any 8 hour working period does not exceed 6.24 × 10−7J m-3

BSS requirements BSS Article 35.2 allows for the use of a time integrated exposure value (TIREV) rather than an effective dose when considering higher risk radon exposures in the workplace (6mSv and over). The use of either 6mSv or an equivalent TIREV only applies to the workplaces that are not able to mitigate radon levels below an annual average of 300Bq m-3 (Article 54(3)).

Affected groups Employers in radon affected areas and any UK workplace below ground workplaces.

HSE proposal HSE believes that there is merit in including a TIREV in new regulations. A TIREV that equates to an effective dose of 6mSv would make it easier for dutyholders to understand the consequences of the radon measurement that has been performed on their workplace, It should provide a reasonably simple equation to translate the measurement into effective dose, thus making it easier to understand the requirements.

In drafting new Regulations HSE would have to assume an equilibrium factor for the TIREV equation. The equilibrium factor, a measure of the degree of radioactive equilibrium between radon and its short-lived radioactive decay products, is now assumed to be 0.4 for risk assessment by ICRP for its non- coal mining occupational dose coefficient. Whilst most workplaces will have a unique equilibrium factor, HSE proposes to use the 0.4 equilibrium factor used by ICRP, unless the dutyholder can demonstrate that their equilibrium factor is different.

HSE estimated impact It is assumed that the purpose of implementing the TIREV is to help dutyholders understand the dose consequences of their radon measurement, rather to define a level at which Regulations do not apply. If so, this is likely to

4 just incur familiarisation costs, as no substantive changes to current arrangements are being proposed.

5 RN2. Radon – separate dose recording

Current arrangements IRR does not require radon doses to be recorded separately in the individual dose record.

BSS requirements BSS Article 43.4 requires that, in specific instances where doses are incurred, these doses are recorded separately, including occupational radon exposures.

Affected groups All Approved Dosimetry Services who are approved to record radon doses. All radiation employers with employees who have radon doses recorded by an ADS.

HSE proposal

New Regulations to require separate recording.

HSE estimated impact

The cost implications of potentially changing dose record databases to demonstrate compliance with this requirement are yet to be established. HSE will be looking to work with ADSs to develop our understanding of the estimated impact in this particular area.

6 RN3. Radon – annual average

Current arrangements IRR regulation 3(1)(b) sets a radon level of over 400Bq m-3 in a 24 hour period.

BSS requirement BSS Article 54(1) sets a radon level of over 300 Bq m-3 as an annual average, after remediation, as the threshold for whether the BSS requirements apply.

Affected groups Businesses in radon affected areas and any UK workplace below ground.

HSE proposal HSE proposes to simplify the requirements replacing the 24hour measurement in new Regulations with a reference to an annual average.

HSE believes that it would be beneficial to use an annual average in IRR rather than a measurement from a 24 hour period. This would be simple to achieve for the radon measurement industry which currently uses a three month measurement period, with seasonal variation formulas applied to estimate a peak winter value. An annual average is more relevant to a chronic exposure hazard and would make it easier for dutyholders to understand whether IRR applies and if they are in compliance with them.

HSE believes that the current level of 400Bq m-3 in a 24 hour period is the equivalent of an annual average of 272Bqm-3. This is based on calculations made by PHE.

HSE estimated impact Given the close proximity between proposed and existing radon levels, HSE does not believe that this will result in any negative impact on dutyholders. However, it may result in a very small number of dutyholders no longer needing to comply with the new Regulations due to their 24 hour measurements being above the current IRR levels, but their annual average being less than 300Bq m-3.

Radon is a chronic exposure issue and not an acute one. The 24 hr “winter peak” value is not as important as the average concentration and cumulative exposures. HSE is therefore content for the assumed small number of current IRR dutyholders to be outside the new Regulations, if their annual average is lower than 300Bq m-3.

Whilst HSE believes that the requirement to carry out a radon risk assessment and measure radon levels, where appropriate, is implicit in MHSWR, HSE believes that making this requirement to measure, and keep under review, explicit within new Regulations would not result in any changes or additional burdens to dutyholders. It would just be a much clearer statement of the requirement to measure, where appropriate.

7 Initial HSE estimates are that any costs will be limited to familiarisation and consideration of the effects of annual average measurements. This is estimated to take around 30 minutes of an affected workplace’s health and safety manager’s time.

8 RN4. Radon – notification

Current arrangements IRR regulation 6(7) requires notification to HSE if radon levels exceed 400Bq m-3 in a 24hr period before any remediation.

BSS requirements Article 53.3 of the BSS Directive requires workplaces to notify if they cannot reduce radon concentrations below the 300Bq m-3 annual average reference level, after remediation (optimisation) has been performed.

Affected groups Businesses in radon affected areas and any UK workplace below ground workplaces.

HSE proposal HSE proposes to adopt the requirements of BSS in new Regulations. Whilst notification before remediation can enable HSE to facilitate local knowledge sharing aimed at encouraging other dutyholders to measure (due to high levels being notified to HSE), these situations are not particularly common. A move to a notification system based on the BSS Directive (notification after remediation) would result in less intelligence on measured radon levels being received, but it would focus HSE on those workplaces with the greatest risk (those who cannot remediate radon levels below the action level).

There has always been a requirement for dutyholders to measure and remediate as part of their risk assessment process. This will be made explicit in new Regulations. There should be greater clarity as to what dutyholders must do, and this clarity is likely to be of benefit to radon measurement companies that will use HSE regulations in any promotional material.

HSE estimated impact HSE believe that there will be a small reduction in radon notifications to HSE, so costs to dutyholders and HSE (for administering these notifications) will reduce. However, the overall costs and benefits of radon notification and remediation should remain close to existing levels, as the notification level is similar (see section RN3) and remediation has always been required.