pennsylvania’s environmental monitoring program around nuclear facilities tonda lewis

PENNSYLVANIA’S ENVIRONMENTAL

MONITORING PROGRAM AROUND NUCLEAR

FACILITIES

Tonda Lewis

Radiation Protection Act (1984-147)

• Maintain comprehensive environmental radiation monitoring program around nuclear power plants and other locations throughout the Commonwealth

• Accomplish efficiently and effectively

DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL

PROTECTIONBUREAU OF RADIATION

PROTECTION

Environmental Surveillance Section

Environmental Monitoring Program Includes

• Split and independent sampling around PA’s five nuclear power plants

• Sampling at decommissioning sites

• Background Sampling – non-source oriented

PA’s Nuclear Power Plants• Beaver Valley Power

Station• Limerick Generating

Station• Peach Bottom Atomic

Power Station• Susquehanna Steam

Electric Station• Three Mile Island

Nuclear Station

Within 15 mile radius of each facility

• 30 – 36 environmental dosimeters

• Majority within 5 miles• Changed quarterly• Many collocated with the

facilities’• Currently still operate our

own system but doing comparison study with a service

Within 5 miles of each facility• 4 air sampler units –

several collocated with each utility’s

• Continuously collecting air particulates and radioiodines

• Filters are analyzed weekly for gross activity and composited quarterly for gamma spec analysis

• Charcoal canisters are analyzed weekly by gamma spec for I-131

Water Sampling Upstream & Downstream of Discharge

• 2 – 3 Water samples • One is upstream

control• Monthly composites

collected by utility’s contractor and split with state

• Gross beta, H-3, gamma

Holtwood Dam – Peach Bottom sample source

Milk Collected At Area Farms • 2 Farms sampled monthly• One farm is chosen for

nearest proximity in most prevalent wind direction

• One farm chosen for least prevalent wind direction

• Samples are all collocated with utility’s collections

• Contractor splits with Peach Bottom, Susquehanna and Limerick

Flora, Fauna and Sediment

• Vegetation annually Leafy - for deposition Root crop - irrigation

• Fish - annual or biannual contractor split collections

• Sediment below discharge annually or biannual contractor split collections

TLDs

Sediment Vegetation

Milk Air

Fish

Beaver Valley Monitoring Sites

Sample Analysis - State’s Radiation Measurements Laboratory

Analytical Equipment• Alpha Beta Proportional

Counters (3 Autoquads 1 Single)

• 2 Liquid Scintillation Counters

• 8 Ludlum Scaler Alpha detectors

• 2 Quad Alpha Beta Proportional Counters

• 1 Uranium Analyzer U-A3

• 12 Alpha Spec detectors

• 10 Intrinsic Germanium detectors

• 1 XRF Spectrace 5000 for metal analysis

What Do We Do With Results

• Results are reviewed upon receipt• When anomalies are detected, utilities are

contacted• At the end of the year (sometimes quarterly)

data is exchanged with utility• Bureau publishes our own data in annual

report• Our data must be available to the public

Average Gross Beta on Air Particulate Filters

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.

x0.0

1pC

i/m3 State

Utility

Average gross beta on air particulate filters

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.

x0.0

1pC

i/m3 State

Utility

Environmental Tlds

4th quarter tld comparison

0.0

5.0

10.0

1 4 7

10

13

16

19

22

25

28

mR

/st.

mo

.

State

Utility

Exchange of Utility and State Water Analysis Results Uti

Reporting Period:3rd Quarter, 2001

Distance Licenseeand Collection Results Collection Results

Direction Date pCi/L Date pCi/L Agr8.7 miles NW 6/27/01 Gross Beta: 2 +/- 1 6/27/01 Gross Beta: 1.9 +/- 1.1 YAzimuth 308 to Tritium: < 190 to Tritium: < 143 Y

7/25/01 Mn-54: < 1 7/25/01 Mn-54: < 2.7 YFe-59: < 3 Fe-59: < 4.0 Y

Utility Location #Q9-1F Co-58: < 2 Co-58: < 2.7 YBRP Loc. # 15J1-01 Co-60: < 2 Co-60: < 1.0 Y

Zn-65: < 3 Zn-65: < 4.4 YZr-Nb-95: < 3/< 2 Zr-Nb-95: < 7.2/< 4.4 Y

I-131: < 3 I-131: < 0.3(1) YCs-134: < 1 Cs-134: < 2.0 YCs-137: < 2 Cs-137: < 2.4 Y

Ba-La-140: < 6/< 45 Ba-La-140: < 41.1/< 9.0 Y

Routine sampling around remediation sites

• Molycorp ( produced ferro-columbian alloy concentrating thorium): air sampler and tlds

• Quehanna (home to variety of research & manufacturing-reactor, SNAP generators using sr-90, currently co-60 irradiation of wood products): 5 air samplers and tlds

• Waltz Mills (Westinghouse site, home of failed 1960 test reactor): 2 air samplers

Assist with Non- routine sampling at other projects

• Safety Light in Bloomsburg PA

• Babcock & Wilcox in Parks Township PA

• Molycorp in York PA

Background Monitoring

• PMN: PA Milk Network

Processed milk - 4 cities

• Water Quality Network

Surface water from 11 sites

• Philadelphia Drinking

Water – 3 treatment plants

• Harrisburg Precipitation • Rooftop Air monitor

Environmental Monitoring Sites Around PA Nuclear Facilities

Department of Environmental Protection

• Bureau of Radiation Protection

• Environmental Surveillance Section