Title: Prospective use of individual emergency monitoring of the public – lessons from Chernobyl

Authors: Mikhail N. Savkin, Sergey M. Shinkarev

Addresses: State Research Center – Institute of Biophysics, Ministry of Health and Social Development of the Russian Federation, Zhivopisnaya 46, Moscow, Russia. ' State Research Center – Institute of Biophysics, Ministry of Health and Social Development of the Russian Federation, Zhivopisnaya 46, Moscow, Russia

Abstract: Experience in individual dosimetric and radiometric surveys of the public during the early phase of the Chernobyl accident has been considered. Delay in implementation of individual measurements was the reason why such results were not used in emergency management. Analysis of the estimates of thyroid doses based on the results of individual monitoring showed that 30–50% of small children residing in areas adjacent to the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (ChNPP) received doses higher than the upper guide value (2.5 Gy), which was for urgent protective actions. General principles of individual monitoring of the public, namely, voluntariness, representativeness and specificity have been considered for screening, complex research and special research in Emergency Monitoring (EM) programmes. In addition, procedures and techniques of rapid monitoring of public under dispersing plutonium due to explosion have been recommended.

Keywords: emergency monitoring; Chernobyl nuclear accident; individual rapid monitoring; thyroid dose; plutonium dispersion; emergency management; dosimetric survey; radiometric survey; nuclear power plants; emergency preparedness; nuclear emergency; radiological emergency; radioactivity.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEM.2007.014294

International Journal of Emergency Management, 2007 Vol.4 No.3, pp.408 - 420

Published online: 30 Jun 2007 *

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