Developing international radiological risk assessment tools for Australian arid environments

Recent international and Australian regulatory guidance llCRP 108 and ARRANSA Env. Prot. Guide, 2015) has increased the need for effective tools to assess radiological impacts in the environment. The existing internationally accepted methods and models are generally based on data collected in the northern hemisphere and there is a recognised lack of southern hemisphere data, particularly from Australia. When applying the models and methods in Australia, acknowledgement of this lack of data is required which tends to undermine public and regulatory confidence in the assessment. Development of an Australian-specific data set is essential to a better understanding and more credible environmental impact assessment process. In addition, decision-making by operators and regulatory authorities will be based on more relevant local information This presentation describes a collaborative project between university, government and industry researchers and a national industry funding body, aimed at developing a more complete understanding of radiological uptake of native flora and fauna in arid Australian environments. The presentation will cover the framework and sampling and analysis approaches from arid environments, and how these fit into international practice. lnitial data and concentration ratios from analysis of Dodonaea viscosa and Acacia ligulata, rabbits and feral cats and corresponding soil will be presented. Analytical methods include high-resolution gamma spectroscopy with low limits of detection, alpha spectroscopy, elemental analysis by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy. ant"; 3."; 5 Novel approaches to data collection and analysis protocols are used, which form the basis of the databases use: :. i"e internationally accepted models and comparison to extant studies. The project lays the infrastructure towards an effective Australian intenface with existing tools (e.g. ERICA) and assessment for extended long-term studies for industry and regulators. The results of this project build a foundation for environmental radionuclide assessment for Australia's specific climate and species, and build a framework for a comprehensive Australian context and understanding of radionuciides and their concentration ratios as well as towards screening levels which may vary depending on location and species. This project has an industry-wide impact in the generation of robust data sets towards modelling in arid environments.

Keywords

Australia, Environment, Southern Hemisphere, ARPANSA, Data, Regulatory guides, Gamma spectroscopy, Mass spectroscopy, Simulation

Citation

Popelka-Filcoff, R., Pring, A., Pandelus, S. B., Johns, S. M., Tucker, W., Rossouw, D., Lenehan, C. E., Hondros, J., Hirth, G., Carpenter, J., Johansen, M., Payne, T., Roberts, M., Levingstone, K., Tuft, K., & Duff, T. (2018). Developing international radiological risk assessment tools for Australian arid environments. Paper presented to the SPERA Confernce 2018, 6 - 9 November 2018, Perth, Western Australia, "Bringing environmental radioactivity research to Western Australia, (pp. 40-41).