Relative biological effectiveness of radioactive and chemical harmful substances

Under present circumstances, when there is almost equal possibility from economic point of view to produce energy by utilization of chemical or nuclear fuel, the problem of relative danger of chemical and radioactive wastes has a key significance. Review of separate published data and conclusions made by Jammet, Beninson and others let suppose, that relation of acute lethal intake to daily intake on limited level for population as a rule 100-10000 times less for chemical than for radioactive substances. That general estimation has been strongly supported by us on the base of chronic experiments on mice and rats with 9 important radionuclides and 11 chemical substances using many tests such as lifetime, resistance, function of nervous system, reproduction, immunity, blood-test etc. It has been particularly clearly shown, that danger from radionuclides to water beings up to 1.000.000 times less than from chemicals. The main conclusion is progress of nuclear energetics leading to decreasing of chemical contamination of environment is the best progressive measure from the hygienic point of view