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U.S. Department of Energy
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Method for estimating the dose and health effects from geologic waste disposal

Conference ·
OSTI ID:6153872
The development of a methodology for assessing the risk from geologic disposal of radioactive wastes includes a model for estimating the individual dose and the resulting health effects from potential radioactive releases from a depository. Possible pathways to the human include ingestion of contaminated food and drinking water, inhalation of suspended radionuclides and external exposure rates in two zones. The exposure rates for the two zones are subsequently converted to dose and estimates of adverse health effects are made by the Dosimetry and Health Effects Model. Since the releases represent chronic lifetime exposures, 70 year intake/70 year dose commitment factors were developed from the work of J.K. Soldat and are used to convert the becquerel values to a dose commitment for the various body organs. Individual risk estimators based on BEIR II and the NRC recommendations from BEIR III are used to estimate the health effects from these dose levels. The ingestion pathway dominates the risk of fatal cancers in the scenarios analyzed to date. The highest risk estimates in Zone 1 result from the scenarios with well discharge directly from the groundwater aquifer to the biosphere.
Research Organization:
Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (USA)
DOE Contract Number:
AC04-76DP00789
OSTI ID:
6153872
Report Number(s):
SAND-81-0003C; CONF-810372-6; ON: DE81027205
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English