Modelling of the Radiological Impact of Radioactive Waste Dumping in the Arctic Seas

The Modelling and Dose Assessment Working group was established to develop a predictive model for the dispersal of radioactive contaminants both within and from the Arctic Ocean and to evaluate the contributions of dominating transfer mechanisms to the dispersal and hence the risks to human health and the environment.

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The International Arctic Seas Assessment Project (IASAP) was launched by the IAEA in 1993 in response to widespread concern arising from reports that the former Soviet Union had dumped radioactive waste in the Arctic Seas for more than thirty years. The objectives of IASAP were to assess the risk to human health and to the environment associated with the radioactive waste disposed of in the Kara and Barents Seas and to examine the possible remedial actions related to the dumped waste and to advise on whether they are necessary and justified. Within the framework of IASAP, the Modelling and Dose Assessment Working group was established to develop a predictive model for the dispersal of radioactive contaminants both within and from the Arctic Ocean and to evaluate the contributions of dominating transfer mechanisms to the dispersal and hence the risks to human health and the environment. This publication summarises the work undertaken by the Modelling and Dose Assessment Working Group between 1994 and 1996.