INSTITUTE NEWS

2nd Meeting of the International Independent Scientific Commission for Investigation of Ru-106 Case in Europe in September—October 2017

On April 11, 2018 IBRAE RAN hosted the 2nd Meeting of the International Independent Scientific Commission for Investigation of Ru-106 Case in Europe in September—October 2017.

The Commission represents an independent group of scientists and specialists from France, Finland, Sweden, Germany, Norway, Great Britain and Russia, whose members are professionals in the area of nuclear safety, emergency response and transport modelling.

The first meeting of the Commission was held on 31st of January, 2018, in Moscow, at IBRAE RAN premises.

At this meeting, a number of conclusions were drawn about the appearance of ruthenium in European countries, including Russia, and the Commission Members agreed that there were no consequences for the health of the population.

Between the meetings the Commission made considerable efforts collecting and analysing the available data on Ru-106 measurements in air and fallouts, meteorological conditions in September—October 2017 in the countries of Europe and Russia, as well as organized sampling in the Chelyabinsk Region and their spectrometric analysis in three independent laboratories, and carried out additional calculations. An extensive database was created. All the results obtained were reported at the 2nd Meeting of the Commission.

Having considered the information provided, the Commission was unable to indicate any reliable hypothesis of the Ru-106 origin within the investigated activities in the field of the atomic energy use. At the same time, the conclusion that Ru-106 had no influence on public health was confirmed.

The Commission Members decided to present the collected information for open access and prepare it for open scientific publications.

After a thorough analysis of the information collected as a result of the Commission’s activities, the Members of the Commission will decide on the need for additional work and follow-up meetings to discuss the results.

Conclusions and decisions agreed upon at the 2nd Meeting of the International Independent Scientific Commission for Investigation of Ru-106 Case in Europe in September—October 2017:

1. With the available data, the Commission could not point out on any verified hypothesis of Ru-106 origin within the nuclear activities that have been investigated.
2. A large Database of measurement results and calculations was created. The Commission is analyzing all data provided to it.
3. It would be worthwhile to make this Database available for other people for further research and analysis.
4. The data and measurement results newly available for the Commission confirm that no health effects are expected in all areas where the radiation monitoring revealed Ru-106 in September—October 2017.
5. Presenting results of the Commission work in scientific magazines is desirable.
6. The Commission acknowledges useful information and clarification provided for 2nd Meeting by experts from PA “Mayak” and IBRAE RAN. The Commission members will analyze the presented data and make decisions on necessity of the future work and meetings of the Commission.