''Realistic'' determination of radiation exposure in surveillance procedures

On account of various requirements laid down in the operating licence, surveillance procedures for nuclear installations must include a determination, based on as realistic assumptions as possible, of the ''true'' radiation exposure of the local population resulting from the discharge of radioactive substances during normal operation. To date there are no regulations or other rules in Germany as to how the radiation exposure of the population through yearly or quarterly discharges should be determined or how this should be assumed to correlate with dispersion conditions, whose determination is required for surveillance procedures or for the assessment of short-term discharges. At present the models and parameters of the General Administrative Regulation are used as a basis to ensure comparability of the data obtained for this purpose. However, according to the Regulation's designated purpose, defined in its foreword, this falls outside their intended application range