On 17 April 2008 the Estonian government approved the national radiation safety development plan developed by the Ministry of the Environment, which sets out the measures designed to guarantee radiation safety and ensure that the state is able to cope with emergency situations involving radiation. Radiation safety operations are currently managed by the Environmental Inspectorate and the Radiation Centre, both of which come under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Environment, but are insufficient. For example, there is not even a national partnership network for the discovery and neutralisation of unclaimed sources of radiation. Neither is there any clarity when it comes to which agencies are expected to react to radiation threats or how they should go about it. The key locations in terms of radiation safety in Estonia are the former nuclear site at Paldiski and the radioactive waste disposal sites at Tammiku and Sillamäe. However, in terms of natural radiation there are regions of the country in which residents are consuming drinking water with an elevated level of radionuclides and where the buildings register excessive radon content. “Unfortunately, natural radiation is not being taken into account in the planning of new residential districts and the construction of new buildings,” said Pesur. “The development plan also draws attention to the need to clarify the use of medical radiology and its supervision.” The radiation safety development plan concludes that a separate action plan should be drawn up in order to reduce the risks associated with the treatment of radioactive waste and that residents should be informed of potential threats and taught what to do in the event of a radiation hazard. Pesur says that the necessary measures can be planned on the basis of experience to date, but that additional information will also need to be gathered and analysed. Implementation of the radiation safety development plan between now and 2017 will cost approximately 150 million kroons. The majority of this amount will be spent on reducing the risks involved in the handling of radioactive waste, for which foreign specialists are planned to be involved. Implementation of the plan is vital primarily due to the protection it will offer for people’s lives and their health. Development of the plan was a joint effort involving the Ministry of Education and Research, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Social Affairs. The public were also privy to the draft plan, which was published on the Ministry of the Environment website. The environmental effects of the development plan were assessed at the same time as the development plan was produced. The plan must be updated every ten years. For further information please contact: See also http://www.envir.ee/356061 (18.04.2008) |
