Outcomes of the IAEA programme on the radiological protection of the environment

Since the late 1990's the work of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), relating to the effects of radiation on species other than man, has been focused on defining and clarifying issues related to the development of an international framework to address the protection of the environment, or living elements within it, from the effects of ionising radiation. In 1999, IAEA-TECDOC-1091, entitled Protection of the Environment from the Effects of Ionising Radiation: A Report for Discussion, was published. This report explored the various issues and approaches that would need to be resolved in order to establish an environmental protection framework and associated criteria. Relevant principles, policies and regulatory approaches were reviewed and the factors that may affect future developments of a protection system were identified. The report concluded that, although improved information was required in several areas, there was sufficient knowledge of the effects of ionising radiation on organisms to move forward. Following publication of this report, IAEA activities have continued on: a) the elaboration of the ethics and principles underlying environmental protection, paying particular attention to their implications for the development of an approach for radiological protection of the environment; and, h) fostering information exchange by holding a series of Specialists Meetings on environmental radiation protection, the most recent of which took place in November 2001. The long-term aim of this work is to establish consensual IAEA Safety Standards on environmental radiation protection, in collaboration with other relevant international organisations. This paper will provide a summary of IAEA work to date on the development of a framework for protection of the environment from ionising radiation, paying particular attention to the recently published IAEA-TECDOC-1270 on Ethical Considerations in protecting the Environment front the Effects of Ionising Radiation. This report explores the implication of ethical diversity on the development of internationally relevant protection principles, and identifies a number of principles implicit in international legal instruments. Categories of biological effects that may be used to assess 'impact' or 'harm' on living elements of the environment are discussed, together with proposals for future work needed to develop a practical environmental protection framework, including the detailed definition of targets, endpoints and appropriate criteria. This paper will also provide an overview of the conclusions of the IAEA Specialists Meetings on this subject. (author)