Measurement of environmental -ray dose rate around the Nuclear Fuel Cycle Engineering Laboratories, JAEA

Mizutani, Tomoko ; Onuma, Toshimitsu; Sugai, Masamitsu*; Watanabe, Hajime*; Morisawa, Masato; Takeyasu, Masanori ; Sumiya, Shuichi 

The Nuclear Fuel Cycle Engineering Laboratories (NCL), JAEA operates the Tokai Reprocessing Plant (TRP), plutonium fuel fabrication facilities and the supplemental facilities. In the terrestrial environment, environmental -ray dose rate was measured continuously using an energy-thermo-compensation-type NaI(Tl) scintillation counter. The data of environmental dose rate measured in 5 monitoring stations and 8 monitoring posts were collected and analyzed to monitor on real-time. This paper summarizes the monitoring data of environmental dose rate around the NCL during the past 10 year (fiscal 1998-2007). The monthly average of the environmental dose rate for all monitoring stations and posts were in the range of 31-48 nGy h, except the value influenced by the criticality accident at the JCO in 1999. The long-term variation in the environmental dose rate was not found. The cases of the short-term increases occurred by the operations of the facilities in the NCL were concluded by the discharges of Kr from the TRP, transportation of MOX fuels or radioactive solid wastes, X-ray generator to calibrate the radiation monitoring instruments. The other cases to affect the change of the environmental dose rate were the scavenging of the airborne natural radionuclides, a patient cured by the radiation therapy and the shield effect by cars.