Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Calculating the radiological parameters used in non-human biota dose assessment tools using ERICA Tool and site-specific data

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Radiation and Environmental Biophysics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The substantial complexity in ecosystem–radionuclide interactions is difficult to be represented in terms of radiological doses. Thus, radiological dose assessment tools use typical exposure situations for generalized organisms and ecosystems. In the present study, site-specific data and radioactivity measurements of terrestrial organisms (grass and herbivore mammals) and abiotic components (soil) are provided. The retrieved data are used in combination with the ERICA Assessment Tool for calculation of radiological parameters. The process of radionuclide transfer within ecosystem components is represented using concentration ratios (CRs), while for the calculation of dose rates the dose conversion coefficient (DCC) methodology is applied. Comparative assessments are performed between the generic and assessment-specific radiological parameters and between the resulting dose rates. Significant differences were observed between CRs calculated in this study and those reported in the literature for cesium and thorium, which can easily be explained. On the other hand, CRs calculated for radium are in very good agreement with those reported in the literature. The DCCs exhibited some small differences between the reference and the assessment-specific organism due to mass differences. The differences were observed for internal and external dose rates, but they were less pronounced for total dose rates which are typically used in the assessment of radiological impact. The results of the current work can serve as a basis for further studies of the radiological parameters in environments that have not been studied yet.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Aliyu AS, Ramli AT, Garba NN, Saleh MA, Gabdo HT, Liman MS (2015) Fukushima nuclear accident: preliminary assessment of the risks to non-human biota. Radiat Prot Dosim 163(2):238–250

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Amiro BD (1997) Radiological dose conversion factors for generic non-human biota used for screening potential ecological impacts. J Environ Radioact 35:37–51

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beresford NA, Barnett CL, Howard BJ, Scott WA, Brown JE, Copplestone D (2008) Derivation of transfer parameters for use within the ERICA Tool and the default concentration ratios for terrestrial biota. J Environ Radioact 99:1393–1407

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Biermans G, Horemans N, Vanhoudt N, Vandenhove H, Saenen E, Hees MV, Wannijn J, Vives i Batlle J, Cuypers A (2014) An organ-based approach to dose calculation in the assessment of dose-dependent biological effects of ionising radiation in Arabidopsis thaliana. J Environ Radioact 133:24–30

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown JE, Alfonso B, Avila R, Beresford NA, Copplestone D, Hosseini A (2016) A new version of the ERICA Tool to facilitate impact assessments of radioactivity on wild plants and animals. J Environ Radioact 153:141–148

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Copplestone D, Beresford NA, Brown JE, Yankovich T (2013) An international database of radionuclide concentration ratios for wildlife: development and uses. J Environ Radioact 126:288–298

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ERICA (2016) The ERICA Assessment Tool: environmental risk from ionizing contaminants: assessment and management (version 1.2.1, February 2016). Help Function Document. http://www.erica-tool.eu. Accessed 15 Oct 2016

  • Giourga H, Margaris NS, Vokou D (1998) Effects of grazing pressure on succession process and productivity of old fields on Mediterranean islands. Environ Manag 22(4):589–596

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gomez-Ros JM, Pröhl G, Ulanovsky A, Lis M (2008) Uncertainties of internal dose assessment for animals and plants due to non-homogeneously distributed radionuclides. J Environ Radioact 99:1449–1455

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Howard BJ, Beresford NA, Copplestone D, Telleria D, Pröhl G, Fesenko S, Jeffree RA, Yankovich TL, Brown JE, Higley K, Johansen MP, Mulye H, Vandenhove H, Gashchak S, Wood MD, Takata H, Andersson P, Dale P, Ryan J, Bollhöfer A, Doering C, Barnett CL, Wells C (2013) The IAEA handbook of radionuclide transfer to wildlife. J Environ Radioact 121:55–74

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • IAEA (1989) Measurements of radionuclides in food and the environment: a guidebook. Technical report series no. 295. International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna

  • IAEA (2010) Handbook of parameter values for the prediction of radionuclide transfer in terrestrial and freshwater environments. Technical report series no. 472. International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna

  • IAEA (2014) Handbook of parameter values for the prediction of radionuclide transfer to wildlife. Technical report series no. 479. International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna

  • ICRP (2008) Environmental protection: the concept and use of reference animals and plants. ICRP Publication 108. Ann ICRP 38(4–6):1–237

  • ICRP (2009) Environmental protection: transfer parameters for reference animals and plants. ICRP Publication 114. Ann ICRP 39(6):1–113

  • Johansen MP, Twining JR (2010) Radionuclide concentration ratios in Australian terrestrial wildlife and livestock: data compilation and analysis. Radiat Environ Biophys 49:603–611

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Joint Research Center (JRC) (2001) European Soil Database. TEXT-SRF-DOM: dominant surface textural class of the STU. Soil Geographical Database of Eurasia. http://eusoils.jrc.ec.europa.eu/. Accessed 09 June 2015

  • Klement AW (1982) Handbook of environmental radiation. CRC series in radiation measurement and protection. CRC Press Inc., Boca Raton

    Google Scholar 

  • Kritidis P, Florou H, Eleftheriadis K, Evangeliou N, Gini M, Sotiropoulou M, Diapouli E, Vratolis S (2012) Radioactive pollution in Athens, Greece due to the Fukushima nuclear accident. J Environ Radioact 114:100–104

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Linsalata P, Morse R, Ford H, Eisenbud M (1989) Transport pathways of Th, U, Ra and La form soil to cattle tissues. J Environ Radioact 10:115–140

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Linsalata P, Morse R, Ford H, Eisenbud M (1991) Th, U, Ra and rare earth element distributions in farm animal tissues from an elevated natural radiation background environment. J Environ Radioact 14:233–257

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marshall K, Watson S, McDonald P, Copplestone D, Watts SJ (2010) Exposure of birds to radionuclides and other contaminants in special protection areas (SPAs) in North-West England. Sci Total Environ 408:2567–2575

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  • Mazeika J, Marciulioniene D, Nedveckaite T, Jefanova O (2016) The assessment of ionising radiation impact on the cooling pond freshwater ecosystem non-human biota from the Ingalina NPP operation beginning to shut down and initial decommissioning. J Environ Radioact 151:28–37

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pentreath RJ (1999) A system for radiological protection of the environment: some initial thoughts and ideas. J Radiol Prot 19(2):117–128

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pentreath RJ (2009) Radioecology, radiobiology and radiological protection: frameworks and fractures. J Environ Radioact 100:1019–1026

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pentreath RJ, Woodhead DD (2001) A system for protecting the environment from ionising radiation: selecting reference fauna and flora, and the possible dose models and environmental geometries that could be applied to them. Sci Total Environ 277:33–43

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  • Pröhl G, Brown J, Gomez-Ros JM, Jones S, Taranenko V, Thørring H, Vives i Batlle J, Woodhead D (2003) Dosimetric models and data for assessing radiation exposure to biota. Deliverable 3 to the Project “FASSET—Framework for Assessment of Environmental Impact” (Contract No. FIGE-CT-2000-00102)

  • Reinardy HC, Teyssie J-L, Jeffree RA, Copplestone D, Henry TB, Jha AN (2011) Uptake, depuration and radiation dose estimation in zebrafish exposed to radionuclides via aqueous or dietary routes. Sci Total Environ 409:3771–3779

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  • Sotiropoulou M, Florou H, Manolopoulou M (2016) Radioactivity measurements and dose rates calculations using ERICA Tool in the terrestrial environment of Greece. Environ Sci Pollut Res 23(11):10872–10882

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taranenko V, Pröhl G, Gómez-Ros JM (2004) Absorbed dose rate conversion coefficients for reference terrestrial biota for external photon and internal exposures. J Environ Radioact 24:35–62

    Google Scholar 

  • Ulanovsky A, Pröhl G, Gómez-Ros JM (2008) Methods for calculating dose conversion coefficients for terrestrial and aquatic biota. J Environ Radioact 99:1440–1448

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • US-DOE (1997) Environmental measurements laboratory, procedures manual, HASL-EML-300, 28th edn. U.S. Department of Energy, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • US-DOE (2002) A graded approach for evaluating radiation doses to aquatic and terrestrial biota. U.S. Department of Energy, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • US-NRC (2003) Literature review and assessment of plant and animal transfer factors used in performance assessment modeling. U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Vetikko V, Kostiainen E (2013) Assessment of doses to game animals in Finland. J Environ Radioact 125:69–73

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vetikko V, Saxén R (2010) Application of the ERICA Assessment Tool to freshwater biota in Finland. J Environ Radioact 101:82–87

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wood MD, Marshall WA, Beresford NA, Jones SR, Howard BJ, Copplestone D, Leah SR (2008) Application of the ERICA Integrated Approach to the Drigg coastal sand dunes. J Environ Radioact 99:1484–1495

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yankovich T, Beresford N, Wood M, Aono T, Andersson P, Barnett C, Bennett P, Brown J, Fesenko S, Fesenko J, Hosseini A, Howard BJ, Johansen MP, Phaneuf M, Tagami K, Takata H, Twining JR, Uchida S (2010) Whole-body to tissue concentration ratios for use in biota dose assessments for animals. Radiat Environ Biophys 49:549–565

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yu C, Cheng J-J, Kamboj S (2013) Effects of the new wildlife transfer factors on RESRAD-BIOTA’s screening biota concentration guides and previous model comparison studies. J Environ Radioact 126:338–351

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the reviewers for their valuable contribution to the improvement of this paper.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Radioactivity Laboratory, INRASTES, NCSR “Demokritos”, Agia Paraskevi, 15310, Athens, Greece

    Maria Sotiropoulou & Heleny Florou

  2. Atomic and Nuclear Physics Laboratory, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124, Thessaloniki, Greece

    Maria Sotiropoulou & Georgios Kitis

Authors
  1. Maria Sotiropoulou
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Heleny Florou
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Georgios Kitis
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Maria Sotiropoulou.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Sotiropoulou, M., Florou, H. & Kitis, G. Calculating the radiological parameters used in non-human biota dose assessment tools using ERICA Tool and site-specific data. Radiat Environ Biophys 56, 443–451 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00411-017-0703-8

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00411-017-0703-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation