Off-Site Consequences of Radiological Accidents: Methods, Costs and Schedules for ...

380 Pages·2003·17.73 MB·English

NUREG/CR-3413
PNL-4790
Off-Site Consequences of
Radiological Accidents:
Methods, Costs and Schedules
for Decontamination
Prepared by J. J. Tawil, F. C. Bold, B. J. Harrer, J. W, Currie
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Pacific Northwest Laboratory I
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NOTICE
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NUREG/CR-3413
PNL4790
RE
Off-Site Consequences of
Radiological Accidents:
Methods, Costs and Schedules
for Decontamination
Manuscript Completed: November 1984
Date Published: August 1985
Prepared by
J. J. Tawil, F. C. Bold, B. J. Harrer, J. W. Currie
Pacific Northwest Laboratory
Richland, WA 99352
Prepared for
Division of Radiation Programs and Earth Sciences
Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Washington, D.C. 20555
NRC FIN B2418
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The accident at Three-Mile Island resulted in increased attention by the
public and by regulators to the off-site consequences of severe radiological
accidents. The current study was commissioned by the Environmental Effects
Branch of the Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research (NRR). It is a direct
outgrowth of research conducted for NRR by the Pacific Northwest Laboratory
(PNL) on the socio-economic impacts of serious reactor accidents.
One of the major findings of PNL's research on accident consequences is
that decontamination costs and property losses resulting from a severe radio-
logical accident could easily run into the billions of dollars, accounting for
the majority of the off-site accident costs. At the time of these findings,
however, only very limited means were available for assessing these costs.
Also, it also seemed likely that the decontamination costs and property losses
would be sensitive to site-specific factors, such as the land use of the
affected property and its value. A final concern was that the evaluation of
the decontamination costs was based on very rough estimates of the cost to
decontaminate a few types of property with the same degree of contamination.
In view of the shortcomings of these evaluation techniques and the major
contribution of decontamination costs and property'losses to accident risk, the
current research effort was undertaken. At the beginning of this effort, a
search was conducted to determine the type of information that was available on
decontamination procedures. It quickly became clear that information on well-
documented procedures for decontaminating various materials was very limited.
Some tests had been done with respect to nuclear weapons, but these results
were not completely applicable, due to substantial differences in the nature of
the contaminants. There were also documented procedures for using very power-
ful, but also very costly, techniques to decontaminate laboratory facilities
and other small areas. However, because of the costs'of these'procedures and
the specialized equipment used, they would be totally inappropriate'for restor-
ing an area of several hundred or several thousand square miles.
From these findings, a set of objectives was formulated to guide the
present study. These were:
* to build upon the methods currently used by the NRC to estimate the
decontamination and interdiction costs of a severe radiological
accident. The method most commonly employed by the NRC staff and its
contractors is the use of the CRAC2 computer model, which is based on
the Reactor Safety Study (USNRC 1975).
* to collect'information from both published and unpublished sources
relating to decontamination procedures and to identify the
circumstances favorable to the application of each.
* to develop sufficient information to describe the relationship between
the physical inputs and the output of a production technique. This'
would enable us to identify the types of manpower and equipment
required to carry out the decontamination efforts. Additionally,
v
acquiring the costs of these inputs would enable us to specify the
costs of applying these procedures.
* to develop a methodology that would enable data commonly available by
political subdivision to be imputed to the elements of a radial grid.
CRAC2 utilizes a radial grid to characterize the accident site, and an
analysis based on site-specific information requires the analyst to
adapt population and property information to the radial grid. The
difficulty of doing this can often become a major disincentive for
conducting an analysis using site-specific information.
e to develop a computer program that is compatible with CRAC2 and that
combines certain inputs from CRAC2 with other data to produce suffi-
cient information to evaluate decontamination and interdiction costs.
The program should also have the capability to assist in developing
decontamination strategies.
In working toward these objectives, three major resources were developed
at PNL for use in evaluating off-site accident consequences and in conducting
site-restoration analyses. These are: 1) a reference data base; 2) a set of
procedures and analytical tools for preparing a site database; and 3) a compu-
ter program, called DECON, to utilize the information in the two databases to
produce analyses relating to the decontamination and interdiction of property.
The reference database contains information relating to the application of
decontamination methods to surfaces. Currently, 347 methods have been defined
for use on 22 different surfaces. For each method, the reference database
includes the following information:
* the costs of applying the methods
e the efficiencies with which contaminants are removed
* the rate at which the methods are applied
* the quantity and type of labor required
* the quantity and type of equipment required
* the quantity and type of major materials required
* the costs for labor, equipment, fuel and materials
* the quantity of contaminated material requiring disposal
* the source(s) of the information
Except for the last item, the above data have been recorded in machine-readable
format. The sources of the information have been provided to facilitate the
updating of this database.
The second resource consists of procedures and analytical tools for pre-
paring a site database. A major improvement of the current resources, as
compared with CRAC2, is the ability to bring site-specific information into the
analysis. Site-specific information is not often used with CRAC2 because it is
not convenient to develop a site-specific database that can be used with it.
The main reason for this is that a reactor accident under CRAC2 is located on a
radial grid, and information must be supplied for each element of this grid.
Unfortunately, site-specific information is commonly available by political
subdivisions, but not by the elements of the grid.
vi
The procedures developed for this second resource include methodologies
and computer software to take demographic information available by political
subdivision and use this to impute values to the elements of the radial grid.
In addition, facilities have been developed for using, besides a radial grid, a
rectangular grid and an irregular grid. The irregular grid is one in which
each grid element has the same geographic boundary as a township or county.
Thus, it makes direct use of the availability of information at the political
subdivision level.
The third resource is a computer program for actually performing the
decontamination analysis. The computer program, called DECON, has been
designed to facilitate the planning of decontamination activities as well as to
provide estimates of decontamination costs and property losses. The structure
and features of DECON are described in this report. In addition, DECON's
capabilities are demonstrated by applying it to a serious radiological accident
at a hypothetical reactor site.
Among the information included in DECON is the following:
* the decontamination method used on each surface
* the rate at which the decontamination method is applied
* the type of labor used in the method
* the type of equipment used in the method
e the major materials required
* the efficiency of the method in reducing inhalation and
external dose
* dose to radiation workers
* dose commitment from surface exposure
* year to decontaminate grid element to minimize property losses.
The capabilities of DECON include evaluating strategies to 1) vacuum
exterior surfaces before they become rained on, 2) protect surfaces against
precipitation, 3) prohibit specific operations on selected surfaces, 4) require
pre-specified methods to be used on selected surfaces, 5) evaluate the tradeoff
between cleanup standards and decontamination costs and property values, 6) af-
fect decontamination costs by imposing different cleanup standards on different
surfaces according to expected human exposure to the surface.
vii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Many individuals kindly volunteered their time and expertise in providing
information and consultation concerning decontamination operations. Besides
providing cost and productivity data, several people took the time to explain
particular technologies and make constructive suggestions regarding how to
accomplish a particular decontamination operation. Particular appreciation is
extended to Bill Harding of the City of Los Angeles Department of Public Works;
Jim Ajax and Jim Edwards of the City of Pasco, Washington, Department of Public
Works; Don Steiner of Turco Products; Bob Weber of the U.S. Bureau of Land
Management Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho; Dick Pierce of the U.S.
Forest Service in Portland, Oregon; and Dennis Jackson of the State of
Washington Department of Transportation.
A number of people within Pacific Northwest Laboratory provided invaluable
guidance in our assessment of the efficiencies of certain decontamination
methods and fixative applications, and the appropriateness of using these under
varying conditions. These people include Richard Allen, Don Archibald, Glen
Hoenus, Mike McCoy, Linda Munson, Smith Murphy, Craig Timmerman and Ned
Wogman. We would also like to thank Dennis Strenge and Becky Peloquin for
their major assistance in running CRAC2 and preparing programs to process CRAC2
outputs for use in DECON.
Our appreciation is also extended to Layton O'Neill of the U.S. Department
of Energy, Las Vegas, Nevada, for providing us with published and unpublished
information on decontamination methods. Mr. O'Neill also put us in contact
with a number of individuals who proved helpful in this project.
Finally, we wish to thank Debra Young, Beverly Johnson and Dorothy
Matthews for their tireless efforts in typing this report and its earlier
drafts. To all of the many other individuals who assisted in the various
aspects of producing this report, we extend our sincere thanks. And we, the
authors, are alone responsible for any errors contained in this work.
ix
TABLE OF CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY . . . . . . . . . . v
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . ix
1.0 INTRODUCTION . . . . . 1.1
1.1 ORGANIZATION . . . . . . . . . . 1.1
1.2 BACKGROUND . . . . . . . . 1.2
1.3 OBJECTIVES . . . . . . . . . . 1.3
1.4 METHODOLOGY AND OVERVIEW . . . . . . . . 1.3
1.4.1 The Reference Database . . . . . . . 1.4
1.4.2 The Site Database . . . . . . . . 1.6
1.4.3 DECON . . . . . . . . . . 1.8
2.0 THE REFERENCE DATA BASE . . . . . . . . , 2.1
2.1 CONTENTS OF THE REFERENCE DATABASE . . . . . . 2.1
2.2 DECONTAMINATION OPERATIONS, COSTS, AND EFFICIENCIES . . 2.2
2.2.1 Decontamination Costs . . . . . . 2.2
2.3 PROCEDURES FOR INTERDICTED AREAS . . . . . . 2.4
2.4 DECONTAMINATION COSTS FOR VARIOUS SURFACES . . . . 2.5
2.4.1 Paved Surfaces . . . . . . . . 2.5
2.4.2 Roofs . . . . . . . . . . 2.10
2.4.3 Lawns . . . . . . . . . . 2.16
2.4.4 Agricultural Fields . . . . . . . 2.17
2.4.5 Orchards . . . . . . . . . 2.19
2.4.6 Vacant Land . . . . . . . . 2.20
2.4.7 Wooded Land . . . . . . . . . 2.21
2.4.8 Exterior Walls . . . . . . . 2.22
2.4.9 Interior Floor and Walls . . . . . . 2.24
2.4.10 Automobiles . . . . . . . . . 2.26
2.4.11 Hauling . . . . . . . . . . 2.28
2.5 DECONTAMINATION EFFICIENCIES FOR VARIOUS SURFACES . . . 2.29
2.5.1 Cost and Efficiencies of Decontamination Methods . 2.29
xi
3.0 THE SITE DATA BASE . . . . . . . . . . 3.1
3.1 SELECTION OF THE GRID . . . . . . . . 3.1
3.1.1 Rectangular Grid . . . . . , . . 3.1
3.1.2 Radial Grid. . . . . . . . . 3.2
3.1.3 Irregular Grid Based on Political Subdivision
Boundaries . . . . . . . . . 3.3
3.2 CONTENTS OF THE SITE DATABASE . . . . . . . 3.3
3.2.1 Contamination Level . . . . . . . 3.3
3.2.2 Type of Property Contaminated . . . . . 3.4
3..2.3 Value of the Contaminated Property . . . . 3.5
3.3 SOFTWARE TOOLS FOR PREPARING THE SITE DATABASE . . . 3.5
4.0 DECON - A COMPUTER PROGRAM FOR ESTIMATING DECONTAMINATION/
INTERDICTION COSTS AND SCHEDULES . . . . . . . 4.1
4.1 METHODS USED IN CRAC2 . . . . . . . . 4.1
4.2 1NFOR§MATION PRODU$pOBB Y ECVN , .. 4.3
4. Maximizing roper y a ues tirough Site-Restoration
Actions . . . . . . . . . . 4.3
4.2.2 Algorithm to Maximize Property Values . . . . 4.5
4.2.3 Effects on Property Values When No Decontamination is
Required . . . . . . . . . 4.7
4.2.4 Property that Cannot Be Decontaminated . . . 4.7
4.2.5 Properties with Negative Net Present Values . . 4.8
4.2.6 Contamination Model . . . . . . . 4.8
4.3 SPECIAL FEATURES . . . . . . . . . 4.8
4.3.1 Subarea Analysis . . . . . . . . 4.9
j:4~ restR4%viAnaslysis 1
{
4.3.4 Required Methods . . . . . . . . 4.10
4.3.5 Variation in Exposure Levels . . . . . 4.11
4.3.6 User-Selectable Parameter Values . . . . . 4.11
4.3.7 Future Capabilities . . . . . . . 4.12
4.4 FLEXIBILITY OF DECON . . . . . . . . 4.13
5.0 A CASE STUDY USING DECON . . . . . . . . . 5.1
5.1 PREPARATION FOR CONDUCTING THE CASE STUDY . . . . 5.1
5.1.1 Purpose of the Models . . . . . . . 5.1
5.1.2 Running the Models . . . . . . . 5.1
xii
5.2 RESULTS 5.5
5.2.1 Base Case . . . . . . 5.6
5.2.2 Decontamination Schedules . . . 5.6
5.2.3 Micro-Analysis of a Grid Element . . . 5.14
5.2.4 Restrictions on Specific Operations . . 5.16
5.2.5 Required Method . . . . 5.16
5.2.6 Varying Exposure Factors . . 5.16
5.2.7 Cleanup Standards vs. Decontamination Costs 5.22
5.2.8 Conclusions . . . . . 5.23
REFERENCES R.1
APPENDIX A: CALCULATION OF COSTS, RATES, AND INPUT SHARES OF
DECONTAMINATION METHODS 0 . . . A.1
A.O INTRODUCTION A.1
A.1 ASPHALT ROADS . A.5
A.1.1 Mobile Vacuumized Street Sweeping A.5
A.1.2 Low-Pressure Water Wash . A.2 5
A.1.3 High-Pressure Water . A.3 7
A.1.4 Very High-Presssure Water Flushing A.5 9
A.1.5 Foam . . . A.63
A.1.6 Strippable Coating A. 67
A.1.7 Planing . . A.7 2
A.1.8 Tack Coat . . A.7 8
A.1.9 Sealer . . * A.8 2
A.1.10 Road Oil . A.8 7
A.1.11 Thin Asphalt Overlay A.9 0
A.1 .12 Resurface . . A.9 6
A.1.13 Medium-Thickness Asphalt Ove!rlav A.9 6
A.1.14 Removal and Replacement 0 A.97
A.2 CONCRETE ROADS . A.102
A.2.1 Vacuum . . . . . A.102
A.2.2 Low-Pressure Water Wash A.102
A.2.3 High-Pressure Water Wash A.102
A.2.4 Very High-Pressure Water Wash A.102
A.2.5 Foam . . . . A.103
A.2.6 Strippable Coating . A.103
A.2.7 Planing . . . . A.103
A.2.8 Tack Coat . . . 0 A.103
A.2.9 Sealer . . . . . A.103
A.2.10 Road Oil . . . . A.104
A.2.11 Thin Asphalt Overlay . A.104
A.2.12 Resurface . . . A.105
A.2.13 Medium-Thickness Asphalt Overlay A.105
A.2.14 Removal and Replacement . 9 A.106
xiii