The scope of the Recommendations ICRP 103
Sunday, April 4, 2010
(44) The Commission’s system of radiological protection applies to all radiation exposures from any source, regardless of its size and origin. The term radiation is used to mean ionising radiation. The Commission has been using the term radiation exposure (or exposure in short) in a generic sense to mean the process of being exposed to radiation or radionuclides, the significance of exposure being determined by the resulting radiation dose (ICRP, 1991b). The term ‘source’ is used to indicate the cause of an exposure, and not necessarily a physical source of radiation (see Section 5.1). In general, for the purposes of applying the Recommendations, a source is an entity for which radiological protection can be optimised as an integral whole.
(45) The Commission has aimed to make its Recommendations applicable as widely and as consistently as possible. In particular, the Commission’s Recommendations cover exposures to both natural and man-made sources. The Recommendations can apply in their entirety only to situations in which either the source of exposure or the pathways leading to the doses received by individuals can be controlled by some reasonable means. Sources in such situations are called controllable sources.
(46) There can be many sources, and some individuals may be exposed to radiation from more than one of them. Provided that doses are below the threshold for deterministic effects (harmful tissue reactions), the presumed proportional relationship between the additional dose attributable to the situation and the corresponding increase in the probability of stochastic effects makes it possible to deal independently with each component of the total exposure and to select those components that are important for radiological protection. Furthermore, it is possible to subdivide these components into groups that are relevant to various purposes.
(47) The Commission has previously distinguished between practices that add doses, and interventions that reduce doses (ICRP, 1991b). The Commission now uses a situation-based approach to characterise the possible situations where radiation exposure may occur as planned, emergency, and existing exposure situations; it applies one set of fundamental principles of protection to all of these situations (see Section 5.6).
(48) The term ‘practice’ has, however, become widely used in radiological protection. The Commission will continue to use this term to denote an activity that causes an increase in exposure to radiation or in the risk of exposure to radiation.
(49) Practices can be activities such as a business, trade, industry or any other productive activity; it can also be a government undertaking, or a charity. It is implicit in the concept of a practice that the radiation sources that it introduces or maintains can be controlled directly by action on the source.
(50) The term ‘intervention’ has also become widely used in radiological protection and has been incorporated into national and international standards to describe situations where actions are taken to reduce exposures. The Commission believesthat it is more appropriate to limit the use of this term to describe protective actions that reduce exposure, while the terms ‘emergency’ or ‘existing exposure’ will be used to describe radiological exposure situations where such protective actions to reduce exposures are required.
(45) The Commission has aimed to make its Recommendations applicable as widely and as consistently as possible. In particular, the Commission’s Recommendations cover exposures to both natural and man-made sources. The Recommendations can apply in their entirety only to situations in which either the source of exposure or the pathways leading to the doses received by individuals can be controlled by some reasonable means. Sources in such situations are called controllable sources.
(46) There can be many sources, and some individuals may be exposed to radiation from more than one of them. Provided that doses are below the threshold for deterministic effects (harmful tissue reactions), the presumed proportional relationship between the additional dose attributable to the situation and the corresponding increase in the probability of stochastic effects makes it possible to deal independently with each component of the total exposure and to select those components that are important for radiological protection. Furthermore, it is possible to subdivide these components into groups that are relevant to various purposes.
(47) The Commission has previously distinguished between practices that add doses, and interventions that reduce doses (ICRP, 1991b). The Commission now uses a situation-based approach to characterise the possible situations where radiation exposure may occur as planned, emergency, and existing exposure situations; it applies one set of fundamental principles of protection to all of these situations (see Section 5.6).
(48) The term ‘practice’ has, however, become widely used in radiological protection. The Commission will continue to use this term to denote an activity that causes an increase in exposure to radiation or in the risk of exposure to radiation.
(49) Practices can be activities such as a business, trade, industry or any other productive activity; it can also be a government undertaking, or a charity. It is implicit in the concept of a practice that the radiation sources that it introduces or maintains can be controlled directly by action on the source.
(50) The term ‘intervention’ has also become widely used in radiological protection and has been incorporated into national and international standards to describe situations where actions are taken to reduce exposures. The Commission believesthat it is more appropriate to limit the use of this term to describe protective actions that reduce exposure, while the terms ‘emergency’ or ‘existing exposure’ will be used to describe radiological exposure situations where such protective actions to reduce exposures are required.
Source: ICRP Publication 103, 2007