Forecast of radiation doses to workers during the return of land to use

Abstract

A forecasting method has been developed and the doses of external radiation to workers that are expected after the return to agricultural use of lands decommissioned after radioactive fallout have been estimated. The method has been tested for the return of lands that were exposed to radioactive contamination as a result of the Chernobyl accident in 1986. The lands were removed from the category of radiation-hazardous and transferred to the economic use of enterprises of the Gomel region. The radiation doses of workers expected during the organization and conduct of work at these sites will not exceed the statutory intervention level of 1 mSv per year. The sites can be used without restrictions on the radiation factor. The above estimate of the predicted doses for potential workers is conservative and may be overestimated several times. It is recommended to conduct research to determine the current values of dose coefficients for various types of agricultural land (arable land, natural and cultivated pastures) and soil types (peat, sandy loam, loam), as well as depending on the presence of moisture. The research will significantly reduce the uncertainty of estimating the doses of external radiation.