ENVtRONMENTAL SURVEiLLANCE AROUND NUCLEAR )NS1ALLAT)0NS ENVIRONM ENTAL SURVEILLANCE AROUND NUCLEAR INSTALLATIONS VOL. I The following States are Members of the International Atomic Energy Agency: AFGHANISTAN HAITI PAKISTAN ALBANIA HOLY SEE PANAMA ALGERIA HUNGARY PARAGUAY ARGENTINA ICELAND PERU AUSTRALIA INDIA PHILIPPINES AUSTRIA INDONESIA POLAND BANGLADESH IRAN PORTUGAL BELGIUM IRAQ ROMANIA BOLIVIA IRELAND SAUDI ARABIA BRAZIL ISRAEL SENEGAL BULGARIA ITALY SIERRA LEONE BURMA IVORY COAST SINGAPORE BYELORUSSIAN SOVIET JAMAICA SOUTH AFRICA SOCIALIST REPUBLIC JAPAN SPAIN CAMEROON JORDAN SRI LANKA CANADA KENYA SUDAN CHILE KHMER REPUBLIC SWEDEN COLOMBIA KOREA, REPUBLIC OF SWITZERLAND COSTA RICA KUWAIT SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC CUBA LEBANON THAILAND CYPRUS LIBERIA TUNISIA CZECHOSLOVAK SOCIALIST LIBYAN ARAB REPUBLIC TURKEY REPUBLIC LIECHTENSTEIN UGANDA DENMARK LUXEMBOURG UKRAINIAN SOVIET SOCIALIST DOMINICAN REPUBLIC MADAGASCAR REPUBLIC ECUADOR MALAYSIA UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST EGYPT, ARAB REPUBLIC OF MALI REPUBLICS EL SALVADOR MEXICO UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT ETHIOPIA MONACO BRITAIN AND NORTHERN FINLAND MONGOLIA IRELAND FRANCE MOROCCO UNITED STATES OF AMERICA GABON NETHERLANDS URUGUAY GERMAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC NEW ZEALAND VENEZUELA GERMANY, FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGER VIET-NAM GHANA NIGERIA YUGOSLAVIA GREECE NORWAY ZAIRE, REPUBLIC OF GUATEMALA ZAMBIA The Agency's Statute was approved on 23 October 1956 by the Conference on the Statute of the IAEA held at United Nations Headquarters, New York; it entered into force on 29 July 1957. The Headquarters of the Agency are situated in Vienna. Its principal objective is "to accelerate and enlarge the contribution of atomic energy to peace, health and prosperity throughout the world". Printed by the IAEA in Austria August 1974 PROCEEDINGS SERIES ENVIRONM ENTAL SURVEILLANCE AROUND NUCLEAR INSTALLATIONS PROCEEDINGS OF A SYMPOSIUM HELD BY THE INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY IN WARSAW, 5 - 9 NOVEMBER 1973 /и fwo vo/Mfwes V O L I INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY VIENNA, 1974 ENVIRONMENTAL SURVEILLANCE AROUND NUCLEAR INSTALLATIONS IAEA, VIENNA, 1974 STI/PUB/353 FOREWORD Adequate environmental surveillance is an essential part of the m easures taken by the operators of nuclear installations and by the national competent authorities to ensure that such installations do not produce any pollution of the environment through the release of radioactive contaminants under normal operating conditions, and to provide information on which protective action can be taken in the event of an accidental release. There has been argument and uncertainty about the nature and extent of the environmental surveillance programmes required for different types of nuclear installations; much of this is attributable to a lack of clear definition of the aims of such surveillance. As part of its programme to assist Member States in controlling and minimizing the environmental effects of nuclear programmes, the Inter­ national Atomic Energy Agency, in co-operation with the Government of Poland, convened a Symposium on Environmental Surveillance Around Nuclear Installations in Warsaw on 5-9 November 1973. It was attended by 200 participants from 2 6 Member States and by representatives of 8 international organizations. Sixty-one papers were presented in eight sessions covering the objectives of environmental surveillance, pre- operational investigations, environmental monitoring procedures innormal and emergency situations, the interpretation of results, research and supportive studies, and examples of the environmental surveillance programmes conducted at specific installations. A small number of the papers dealt with non-radioactive contaminants. In the final session three short papers by invited speakers reviewed the problems arising in the establishment of standards and derived working limits and the operation of adequate environmental surveillance systems for both radioactive and non-radioactive contaminants thatmightbe released to the environment in the nuclear industry. A panel of selected participants then discussed these topics and replied to questions submitted in written form and orally by the other participants. It was emphasized that clear objectives should be set for any environ­ mental surveillance programme in order to avoid wastage of resources in manpower and equipment. It is obviously more efficient in some cases to rely on the monitoring of gaseous and liquid effluents in order to check the compliance with the authorized lim its on releases to the environment. How­ ever, as was pointed out by many speakers, it is not sufficient, especially in populated areas, to rely entirely oneffluentmonitoring. Properlydesigned environmental monitoring programmes are also needed to confirm that there are no unsuspected releases, or unsuspected pathways of exposure, and to reassure the public that adequate care is takenfor their protection. Environ­ mental measurements can also contribute to increased scientific knowledge of the behaviour of radionuclides in the environment. The present book contains all the papers and discussions of the Symposium. The Agency gratefully acknowledges the assistance and co­ operation of the Polish authorities, which helped greatly towards the success of the meeting. Æ DJTORML NOTÆ The papers and discussions incorporated in the proceeding's published by the Jniemaiionai atom ic .Energy Agency are edited by tbe Agency's edi- toriai staff io tbe extent considered necessary for the reader's assistance. Tbe views expressed and tbe générai styie adopted remain, however, tbe responsibility of tbe named authors or participants. For tbe saife of speed of pubiication tbe present Proceedings bave been printed by composition typing and photo-offset iithography. Within tbeiimi- tations imposed by this method, every effort bas been made to maintain a bigb editoriai standard; in particuiar. tbe units and symbois empioyed are to tbe fuiiest practicable extent tbose standardized or recommended by tbe competent international scientific bodies. Tbe affiliations of authors are tbose given at tbe time of nomination. Tbe use in tbese Proceedings of particuiar designations of countries or territories does not impiy any judgement by tbe Agency as to the iegai status of sucb countries or territories, of tbeir authorities and institutions or of tbe deiimitation of their boundaries. The mention of specific companies or of their products or brand-names does not impiy any endorsement or recommendation on the part of tbe international atom ic Ænergy Agency. CONTENTS INTRODUCTORY PAPER Surveillance de l'environnement des installations nucléaires: L 'h eu re du ré a lism e (IA E A -S M -1 8 0 /7 6 ).......................................................... 3 P. Pellerin D isc u ssio n .......................................................................................................................... 14 OBJECTIVES OF ENVIRONMENTAL SURVEILLANCE (Sessions I and II) The objectives and requirements for environmental surveillance at USAEC facilities (IAEA-SM-180/33)........................................................... 19 M .B . Biles, M.W. Tiernan, A. Schoen, C .G . Welty D isc u ssio n .......................................................................................................................... 32 Analyse des principes directeurs des programmes de surveillance de l'environnem ent (IA E A -S M -1 8 0 /4 6 )........................................................... 35 G. Bresson, R. Coulon Principles and practice of environmental monitoring in the United Kingdom (IA E A -S M -1 8 0 /8 )...................................................................... 47 N .T . Mitchell, H .J. Dunster, A .W . Kenny, E . A. B. Bir se Objectifs de la surveillance d'une installation nucléaire (IA EA -SM -180/5) ......................................................................................................... 61 E . Nagel D iscu ssio n ........................................................................................................................ 64 The necessity for environmental surveillance in the evaluation of nuclear power plant site s (IA E A -SM -1 8 0 /2 9 ) .................................................. 65 P . Handge, F .O . Hoffman D iscu ssio n ........................................................................................................................ 85 PRE-OPERATIONAL INVESTIGATIONS (Session II cont. ) Environmental gamma radiation measurements in nuclear power station siting stu d ies in Poland (IA EA -SM -180/22) ................................... 89 B. Gwiazdowski, J. Pensko, J. Jagielak, M. Biernacka, K. Mamont-Ciesla D iscu ssio n ..................................................................................................................... 105 Study of the background radiation around the construction site of a nuclear power station in Bulgaria with a view to controlling the radiological health of the population in the future (IA E A -SM -180/27)....................................................................................................... 107 G. Vasilev, M. Yotov, D. Keslev D iscu ssio n ..................................................................................................................... 110 Movement of radionuclides in the ground in relation to environmental safety of nuclear power plants (IAEA-SM-180/74).. Ill Z. Dlouhÿ, O. Safâr D iscu ssio n ....................................................................................................................