Termination of a

Nuclear or Radiological Emergency

and subsequent transition to a long-term recovery

Presentation for the Technical Meeting on

Remediation Techniques and Strategies in Post-Accident Situations
by the Incident and Emergency Centre
Vienna, July 2016

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International Atomic Energy Agency
Introduction

• Requirement 18 of GSR Part 7:

• The government shall ensure that
arrangements are in place and are
implemented for the termination of a
nuclear or radiological emergency,
with account taken of the need for
the resumption of social and
economic activity.

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Introduction (cont.)

• Requirement 46 of GSR Part 3

The government shall ensure that

arrangements are in place and are
implemented as appropriate for the
transition from an emergency
exposure situation to an existing
exposure situation.

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Objective

• To raise awareness on:

Need to resume as normal as possible social
and economic activity following the emergency
Arrangements needed to terminate the
emergency and to allow for subsequent
transition to:
A planned exposure situation
An existing exposure situation
Preconditions to be fulfilled for the emergency to
be terminated
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Content

• Main goal
• Transition to different exposure situations
• International requirements
• Criteria for terminating an emergency
• Arrangements at the preparedness stage
• Timeframes for terminating an emergency

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Goal of emergency response

• Para. 3.2 of GSR Part 7

“To prepare, to the extent
practicable, for the
resumption of normal social
and economic activity.”

• Req. 18 of GSR Part 7

addresses this goal
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Safety Requirements

• Preparations for this need to be part of overall

emergency preparedness at all levels
• Take account of the fact that termination and
the subsequent transitioning can happen at
different times at different geographical areas
• Termination of an emergency and the
subsequent transitioning need to be planned in
the preparedness phase and made formally in
an emergency
• Declaration of termination is end of transitioning and
beginning of new (planned or existing) exposure
situation
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Transition to an existing exposure
situation
• Emergencies involving significant releases of
radioactive material into the environment:
• Result in an emergency exposure situation;
• Long-term exposures of the public due to residual
radioactive material are eventually to be managed as an
existing exposure situation;
• Termination of the emergency will delineate entering into
the existing exposure situation for the public while the
facility, the activity or the source will be subject to clean-
up, decommissioning or ending the operational life of the
source.
“Transition to an existing exposure situation.”
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Transition to a planned exposure situation

• Emergencies that do not involve significant releases

of radioactive material into the environment:
• May, but not necessarily, result in emergency exposure
situation;
• In terms of public exposures, such emergencies will not
introduce a new exposure situation in comparison to the
one before the emergency;
• Termination of the emergency will delineate beginning of a
planned exposure situation associated with normal
operation, clean-up, decommissioning or ending the
operational life of the source.
“Transition to a planned exposure situation.”
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Safety Requirements

• Decision for terminating the emergency shall include

prior consultations with all interested parties
• Both radiological and non-radiological consequences
need to be taken into account
• Arrangements shall be made for communicating with
the public on the basis for adjusting or lifting
protective and other actions and on terminating the
emergency
• Any information provided to the public shall put
health hazards in perspective

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Further guidance to support Req. 18 of
GSR Part 7 and Req. 46 of GSR Part 3

• In preparation:
• Safety Guide on Arrangements for the
Termination of a Nuclear or Radiological
Emergency (DS474)

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General considerations

 Declaration of an emergency is a straight forward process mainly based

on specific criteria, if properly defined and implemented
 Termination of an emergency usually not well defined
 Termination may be a complex process, depending on the actual
emergency situation

Two major questions:

• What do we want to achieve?  Primary Objective
• What is necessary for terminating an emergency?  Prerequisites

General Guidance on a broad spectrum of aspects notwithstanding the

need be adjusted using a graded approach and considering national,
local und site-specific circumstances

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Primary objective

Primary objective of the termination of the

emergency is to facilitate the timely
resumption of social and economic
activities.

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GENERAL PREREQUISITES for Termination

  
Urgent and early protective actions implemented

 Source of exposure under control

 No further significant release expected

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GENERAL PREREQUISITES (cont.)

Characterization of
 Radiological situation
 Exposure pathways
 Doses to affected people

considering impact of lifting

or adapting earlier
implemented protective
actions and possible future
land use options

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GENERAL PREREQUISITES (cont.)
Assessment of radiological
situation
• Reference levels
• Generic criteria
• Operational criteria
meets the relevant
prerequisites for transition?
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Identification and
consideration of non-
radiological and other
factors
• Technology
• Land use options
• Availability of resources
• Community resilience
GENERAL PREREQUISITES (cont.)

 Confirmation that requirements for occupational

exposure as for planned exposure situation can
be applied for all workers to be engaged in
recovery activities.

 Establishment of a registry for those identified

requiring further medical follow up

 Strategy for waste management arising from the

emergency developed

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GENERAL PREREQUISITES (cont.)

Emergency Plans elaborated Conduct hazard assessment:

during preparedness • Consequences, estimated time for
termination of emergency, resources and
Emergency infrastructure available.
• Type of exposure situation will likely
transition to
Emergency will/may change
hazard situation

Thorough hazard
Implementation of
assessment of current Revision of Emergency
revised Emergency
situation and future Arrangements
Arrangements
development

Coordinated among Maybe interim

relevant response response capability
organizations until formal
establishment
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Protection of Public: Reference Levels

• Tool for optimization of the protection strategy

 Priority to exposures above reference levels
• During response, benchmark for assessment of
effectiveness of protection strategy
• Choice of numerical value, situation-dependant
• May vary from location to location
• Approaching lower end of band for emergency
exposure situation (20 mSv/y) should be
acceptable for termination

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Protection of Public: Operational Criteria

• GC for enabling the transition to an existing

exposure situation given in GSR Part 7
• OILs based on this generic criteria to be used to
support:
• Decision-making on adapting/lifting protective actions
• Implementation of activities to enable termination of
emergency exposure situation
• Generic Criteria and OILs for use during the
transition phase given in Draft Safety Guide (DS474)

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Protection of Public: Adapting and lifting
protective actions
• Change in approach during transition phase
• From ‘driven by urgency’ to ‘driven by more
comprehensive assessments during transition phase’
• Need to adjust protective strategy
• Adapting/lifting protective actions
• Justified and optimized
• Assess impact on the residual doses
• Use pre-established OILs to support decisions
• May vary from location to location
• Inform interested parties what, where, when and why

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Radioactive waste management

• Radiation emergency may generate waste (radioactive and

conventional)
• National framework for radioactive waste management may
not necessarily recognize this waste stream
• Authorities may be under pressure (public/political) to treat all
waste as radioactive waste thus producing large volumes
• Protection strategy should not be compromised
• Generation of radioactive waste one of many factors to be
considered in justification/optimization
• As response progresses radioactive waste management
activities will become important and integral part of the overall
response

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Consultation with interested parties

• Increase public trust, credibility and the societal acceptance;

Enhance the community resilience to nuclear and radiological
emergencies
• Starts as early as possible during the preparedness stage and
continues, as appropriate, during the transition phase
• May also continue in long term after the termination of the
emergency

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Other aspects

Compensation Logistical
Plans &
of Victims of support &
Procedures
Damage Facilities

Quality
Training Exercises
Management

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Timeframes

The strategy for the transition to the new exposure situation

should aim to avoid both premature termination and late
termination of the emergency.

Examples:
 premature termination  inadequate protection of the public,
workers including emergency workers, helpers and patients;
 unnecessarily late termination  evacuated or relocated
populations may have settled down in the new environment and they
may find it disruptive to move back to the affected areas.
Discuss and agree, in broad terms, timeframes anticipated to
terminate the emergency for range of postulated nuclear or
radiological emergencies in preparedness stage.

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Thank you for your attention…

Ms Svetlana NESTOROSKA MADJUNAROVA

Mr Phillip VILAR WELTER
P.Vilar-Welter@iaea.org

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