Radiological emergency management

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The radiological emergency management in Germany refers to unplanned events that exposures to ionizing radiation to result in, which can have a negative impact on people, the environment or property. Such events are radiological emergencies within the meaning of Section 5, Paragraph 26 of the Radiation Protection Act (StrlSchG). The resulting situations are emergency exposure situations within the meaning of Section 2, Paragraph 3 of the StrlSchG.

Illustration of the radiological emergency management according to part 3 of the Radiation Protection Act (StrlSchG)

The radiation protection in emergency exposure situations or the radiological emergency management takes place according to the special standards of Part 3 of the StrlSchG "Radiation protection in emergency exposure situations".

Case distinctions

A distinction must be made between “planned” and “existing” exposure situations.

An emergency exposure situation ends when the situation has stabilized. It changes into an existing exposure situation. According to the StrlSchG definition, this must already exist when a decision has to be made about its control. An example would be the decision to return to a previously evacuated area after a certain waiting period. Radiation protection in an existing exposure situation is carried out according to the special standards of Part 4 of the StrlSchG "Radiation protection in existing exposure situations".

In the case of radiological emergencies, according to Section 5 (26) StrlSchG differentiates between:

  • Supraregional emergency: An emergency in the federal territory, the adverse effects of which are unlikely to be limited to a federal state in which it occurred, or an emergency outside of the federal territory which is likely to have more than just local adverse effects within the scope of the StrlSchG.
  • Regional emergency: An emergency in the federal territory, the adverse effects of which are likely to be essentially limited to the federal state in which it occurred.
  • Local emergency: An emergency that is likely to have only local adverse effects within the scope of the StrlSchG.

Categories of radiation protection in all exposure situations are the

  • Exposure of the population,
  • occupational exposure,
  • medical exposure.

Of these, the exposure of the population and of the emergency services with their special form of occupational activity under radiation exposure are of importance for radiological emergency management.

Radiological emergency protection principles

In general, the radiation protection principle applies that the exposure of the population and the emergency services as well as the contamination of the environment in the event of a radiological emergency, taking into account the state of the art and taking into account all circumstances of the emergency, are to be kept as low as possible by taking appropriate measures below the reference values Section 92 (3) StrlSchG).

To protect the population, a reference value for the effective dose of 100 mSv applies to the exposure of individuals in the first year after the occurrence of the emergency ( Section 93 (1) StrlSchG).

In analogy to “occupationally exposed persons”, emergency services should not receive an effective dose of more than 20 mSv through their deployment ( Section 114 (1) in conjunction with Section 78 (1) StrlSchG). If it is necessary to protect life or health, a higher reference value (100 mSv) can be applied in conjunction with strict requirements ( Section 114 (2) StrlSchG).

Integrated crisis management in Germany

In Germany, the structure and process organization of crisis management in emergencies is diverse. It's not in one hand. Nevertheless, the cooperation between the

  • federal authorities responsible for crisis management,
  • disaster control authorities of the federal states responsible for the implementation of protective measures and
  • the supporting forces in the form of the Technical Relief Organization (THW) , the police, the fire brigade, other aid organizations and specialist agencies

has reached a high level and is continuously improved. This also applies to the technical requirements available in each case. The underlying risk management is also integrated accordingly. The main instrument of this cooperation is the joint reporting and situation center ( GMLZ ) of the Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Aid (BBK). This situation center is always on standby. Legal bases are u. a. the Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance Act (ZSKG) at the federal level and the disaster control laws in conjunction with the laws on public safety and order as well as the police and regulatory law at the state level.

Radiological emergency preparedness

The radiological emergency management according to the StrlSchG is based on this well-coordinated, integrated system of crisis and risk management. It also complements this by a further radiological component, including the precautionary radiation protection, which according to the now lapsed since Chernobyl Radiation Protection Act was established.

The essential elements of radiological emergency preparedness are the emergency plans to be drawn up in accordance with the StrlSchG. They consider defined reference scenarios and include

  • a general emergency plan of the federal government ( § 98 StrlSchG),
  • special emergency plans of certain federal authorities ( § 99 StrlSchG) and
  • general and special emergency plans of the federal states ( § 100 StrlSchG).

The StrlSchG specifies the content of this. Until the emergency plans are issued, existing relevant documents are deemed to be provisional emergency plans (see Section 97, Paragraph 5, Annex 4 and Annex 5 StrlSchG).

The StrlSchG also provides general criteria for the following emergency response reactions:

  • Request to stay in buildings.
  • Distribution of iodine tablets or request to take iodine tablets.
  • Evacuation.

These criteria consist of emergency dose values, which are specifically specified in the Emergency Dose Values ​​Ordinance ( NDWV ) on the basis of Section 94 (1) StrlSchG . They quantify the appropriateness of the aforementioned emergency response, which would have to be decided in an early phase after the occurrence of a radiological emergency.

The emergency dose values ​​do not have the character of limit or reference values. They relate to the dose that a fictitious caregiver would theoretically receive within seven days of an uninterrupted stay outdoors after the occurrence of the emergency without protective measures.

The StrlSchG also contains the authorization to issue ordinances on contamination values ​​(in particular of food and feed), which can be issued depending on the situation if necessary ( Section 94 (2)). European legal acts have priority here, and such regulations, which can be put into force immediately in an emergency, have been in place for a long time.

If the situation so requires, temporary emergency ordinances can also be issued by certain federal ministries on the basis of the StrlSchG.

Radiological emergency preparedness also includes the population

  • the contingency plans,
  • there considered emergencies or reference scenarios and their consequences for the population and the environment as well
  • Basic concepts of radioactivity and its effects on humans and the environment actively and systematically

to inform ( § 105 StrlSchG).

Emergency response

The first reaction after the occurrence of a radiological emergency is a professional assessment of the situation.

For this purpose, the Federal Environment Ministry (BMU), together with various federal authorities, forms the Federal Radiological Situation Center ( Section 106 StrlSchG) when the emergency occurs. It could only be dispensed with in the event of a local emergency and possibly a regional emergency. The prerequisite would be that an assessment by the affected federal state in conjunction with the operator of the possibly affected nuclear facility adequately guarantees the protection of the population.

Members of the Federal Radiological Situation Center are in addition to the BMU

As part of the radiological situation center, the BfS creates a radiological picture of the situation ( Section 108 StrlSchG). This summarizes all the important information on the accident occurrence, available measurement results from environmental monitoring (in particular through the integrated measurement and information system for monitoring radioactivity IMIS ), dose estimates ( § 111 StrlSchG) and forecasts.

On the basis of this situation report, the radiological situation center estimates the effects on the affected population and the environment and recommends all necessary emergency protection measures. It also evaluates the situation

  • in the implementation of the precautionary, scenario-specific emergency plans
  • using the criteria defined with the radiological emergency preparedness and
  • taking into account the radiological emergency protection principles.

The recommendations of the radiological situation center are incorporated into the integrated crisis management (see above section "Integrated crisis management in Germany") for further decisions about which measures are to be taken (cf. § 109 StrlSchG).

The decisions made also take into account the broader framework beyond the radiological aspects. This includes in particular the legal provisions applicable to the measures, including European legal acts, security of supply for the population, public security, socio-political, health-political and economic aspects and other practical constraints.

execution

The information of the affected population in the event of a radiological emergency and the implementation of the action decisions taken are carried out in coordination, if necessary with the support of the federal government at the state level. This is done by the competent authorities - depending on the nature of the emergency (local, regional or supra-regional). First and foremost, these are the disaster control authorities of the federal states. Secondly, in regional or supra-regional emergencies, the BMU provides information and recommendations on behavior ( Section 112 (3) StrlSchG).

The StrlSchG specifies content requirements for informing the population.

Measurement and information systems

The IMIS is the most important source for the measurement data required in the radiological situation report. It provides permanent and comprehensive measurement results in the form of the local gamma dose rate . The spread of radioactive substances through air and water as well as the contamination of the soil and of food and feed are also measured and monitored.

Contributing to the IMIS measuring networks:

  • Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS) with around 1,800 measuring points for monitoring the local gamma dose rate close to the ground.
  • German Weather Service (DWD) with 48 measuring points for monitoring the environmental radioactivity of air and precipitation.
  • Federal Institute for Hydrology (BfG) with 40 measuring points for monitoring federal waterways (rivers and canals).
  • Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) with 12 measuring points for monitoring coastal waters.
  • About 40 specialized laboratories in the federal states for measuring the radioactivity concentration of various environmental media, for example drinking water or food and feed.

In addition, the IMIS has mobile measuring points from the BfS and the federal states.

In the event of a radiological emergency, the Federal Police provide the BfS with a helicopter to measure the radioactivity deposited on the ground. They are equipped with measuring devices from the BfS.

For estimations and prognoses, the IMIS has the digital specialist information system and decision support model RODOS ("Realtime Online Decision Support System"). In the event of a radiological emergency, it calculates the future environmental contamination and the radiation doses to be expected for the affected population. These prognoses form an important basis for the radiological picture of the situation and the subsequent decisions to be made about emergency protection measures.

See also

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ cf. Section 5 (7) sentence 3 StrlSchG
  2. ↑ Regulation (EURATOM) No. 2016/52 of the Council of January 15, 2016 establishing maximum levels of radioactivity in food and feed in the event of a nuclear accident or other radiological emergency and repealing Regulation (EURATOM) No. 3954 / 87 of the Council and Regulations (EURATOM) No. 944/89 and (EURATOM) No. 770/90 of the Commission, Official Journal No. L 13 of 20 January 2016 p. 2
  3. ↑ cf. see also the "Ingestion" section in the Radiological Emergency article
  4. ↑ Appendix 7 - Radiation Protection Act (StrlSchG) on buzer.de
  5. ↑ cf. also the article equivalent dose