The Net Effect of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant on the Environment and Population Compared to the Background From Global Radioactive Fallout

An evaluation of the direct nuclear radiation effect which Armenian NPP may have induced on the population living in the NPP location area, as well as on the local environment, compared to the background from global fallout from nuclear weapons test and fallout from the Chernobyl accident is presented. The concentration of ¹³⁷Cs in soils in the territory with a radius of 50 km, including the area near Armenian nuclear power plant, has been investigated. Meteorological and hydrogeological characteristics of this territory are studied in detail. The data describing radiation conditions in the region where the Armenian nuclear power plant is situated, during the investigation period and for the period from 1978 to 2004 are cited. The evaluation is made by two independent methods. On the basis of the analysis of meteorological data and calculations of the distance to which radioactive emissions from the nuclear station have the maximum concentration in air, the monitoring points were chosen. By means of direct measurement of the concentration of cesium in soil at these points and comparative analysis, the direct contribution from the nuclear power plant to radiation conditions in the environment was determined. The obtained data, describing the net effect of the nuclear power plant on the population and environment, are well coordinated with data of the United Nations Scientific Committee of Radiation Action.