ICRP: no clear reaction

The International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) have issued new recommendations outlining dose limits for radiation workers and the public. The ICRP now accept, in terms of fatal cancer risks (of individuals as opposed to their children), that radiation is four to five times more dangerous than previously thought. The US National Academy of Sciences has recently suggested that the risks are actually 6-8 times higher than the ICRP's 1977 estimate. However, the Commission have failed to recommend a meaningful reduction in the dose limits. Three years ago the NRPB recommended that workers should not receive more than 15mSv per year. The ICRP now considers an annual limit too inflexible and argue that limits should be spread over a five year period. The current limit is 50mSv per year. The ICRP are now saying that in any year workers can still receive this dose (even though the risk associated with such a dose is four times higher than previously considered to be acceptable), but in a period of five years they propose a limit of 100mSv, or an average of 20mSv in a year. For members of the public they suggest that over a five year period an average of lmSv should apply. However, in view of the NRPB and US National Academy of Science suggestions an immediate reduction in the dose limits for workers to 10mSv per year with a further reduction to 5mSv per year within five years is called for. (author)