CHERPAC, an environmental transport code, and its predictions of environmental sensitivities in agricultural and forest ecosystems

Abstract

CHERPAC is a code developed by AECL to predict the time-dependent concentrations of 25 radionuclides in environmental compartments and the resulting radiation dose (ingestion, inhalation, immersion and groundshine) to humans, following an accidental release to the atmosphere from a nuclear facility. CHERPAC was used to investigate environmental sensitivities in agricultural and forest ecosystems. Given the assumptions in the CHERPAC code, it was concluded that doses to humans from agricultural food products are higher than those from groundshine and forest food products. Doses from agricultural products are highest from radionuclide deposition in summer because all plants are at their peak growth and are ingested fresh after the deposition event. The dose is higher if the deposition occurs in dry conditions rather than during heavy rain, because radionclides adhere better to dry plant leaves. For Cs-137, ingestion dose is higher for adults than other age groups, but for Sr-90 and I-131, ingestion dose is highest for infants. This is due to relative food product concentrations, intake rates and DCFs (dose conversion factors). In the forest ecosystem, adult doses are higher than those for children and infants because of the higher rates of intake by adults of forest food products.