Radon Flux Measurement System.

Disposal of naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM) and technologically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive material (TENORM) waste in the State of Oregon is prohibited unless it can be demonstrated that the material is nonradioactive as defined by its radionuclide content and potential for emission into the environment. It was determined that a radon flux on the surface of the waste no greater than 0.37 Bq m -2 s -1 would meet this requirement.

Comparison of Doses from Disposals of Technologically Enhanced Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials in Kentucky and Oregon.

Oil and natural gas fracking waste contains technologically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive material (TENORM) and has increasingly been disposed of in unpermitted landfills, causing concern among regulators and the public about potential exposures. There are numerous issues with TENORM waste, including the lack of Federal regulations on its disposal and the lack of permitted landfills capable of accepting these waste streams. This paper examines two situations in which TENORM was placed in unpermitted landfills, one in Kentucky and one in Oregon.

Dose Assessment for Technologically Enhanced Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials Disposal in Landfills.

Technologically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive material (TENORM) is gaining notoriety in the public sector, as the oil and gas industry looks for disposal locations for its slightly radioactive waste streams. Due in part to both the lack of federal regulations on the disposal of TENORM and the lack of permitted landfills that are designated for TENORM waste, occasionally it ends up being unknowingly placed in municipal landfills. It was alleged that a municipal landfill in Kentucky accepted 1.

Analysis of Environmental Data to Support Quantification of Historical Releases from a Former Uranium Processing Facility in Apollo, Pennsylvania.

This paper describes how environmental measurement data were used to help quantify the spatial impact and behavior of uranium released to the environment from a uranium manufacturing facility in Apollo, PA. The Apollo facility released enriched uranium to the environment while it operated between 1957 and 1983. Historical monitoring data generated by the site, along with other independent data sources, provided a long-term record documenting the presence and behavior of uranium in the local environment.

Use of Routine Environmental Monitoring Data to Establish a Dose-based Compliance System for a Low-level Radioactive Waste Disposal Site.

A dose-based compliance methodology was developed for Waste Control Specialists, LLC, low-level radioactive waste facility in Andrews, Texas, that allows routine environmental measurement data to be evaluated not only at the end of a year to determine regulatory compliance, but also throughout the year as new data become available, providing a continuous assessment of the facility. The first step in the methodology is a screening step to determine the potential presence of site emissions in the environment, and screening levels are established for each environmental media sampled. The screening accounts for spatial variations observed in background for soil and temporal fluctuations observed in background for air.

Recent Epidemiologic Studies and the Linear No-Threshold Model For Radiation Protection-Considerations Regarding NCRP Commentary 27.

National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements Commentary 27 examines recent epidemiologic data primarily from low-dose or low dose-rate studies of low linear-energy-transfer radiation and cancer to assess whether they support the linear no-threshold model as used in radiation protection. The commentary provides a critical review of low-dose or low dose-rate studies, most published within the last 10 y, that are applicable to current occupational, environmental, and medical radiation exposures. The strengths and weaknesses of the epidemiologic methods, dosimetry assessments, and statistical modeling of 29 epidemiologic studies of total solid cancer, leukemia, breast cancer, and thyroid cancer, as well as heritable effects and a few nonmalignant conditions, were evaluated.

A review of dosimetry used in epidemiological studies considered to evaluate the linear no-threshold (LNT) dose-response model for radiation protection.

Background: Accurate dosimetry is key to deriving the dose response from radiation exposure in an epidemiological study. It becomes increasingly important to estimate dose as accurately as possible when evaluating low dose and low dose rate as the calculation of excess relative risk per Gray (ERR/Gy) is very sensitive to the number of excess cancers observed, and this can lead to significant errors if the dosimetry is of poor quality. By including an analysis of the dosimetry, we gain a far better appreciation of the robustness of the work from the standpoint of its value in supporting the shape of the dose response curve at low doses and low dose rates.

Organ Dose-Rate Calculations for Small Mammals at Maralinga, the Nevada Test Site, Hanford and Fukushima: A Comparison of Ellipsoidal and Voxelized Dosimetric Methodologies.

Radiological dosimetry for nonhuman biota typically relies on calculations that utilize the Monte Carlo simulations of simple, ellipsoidal geometries with internal radioactivity distributed homogeneously throughout. In this manner it is quick and easy to estimate whole-body dose rates to biota. Voxel models are detailed anatomical phantoms that were first used for calculating radiation dose to humans, which are now being extended to nonhuman biota dose calculations.