Determination and use of the monetary values of the averted person-sievert for use in radiation protection decisions in Hungary.

Abstract

The monetary value of the averted dose is a key element in the implementation of the optimization principle both in radiation praxis and intervention. The main concept of this principle is to select options so as to maintain exposures at a reasonable level. The feature of this concept is to look for the minimal total cost, i.e., the sum of the costs of protection and health detriment. In its publications, ICRP emphasized the need for developing models which also take into account the "subjective" aspects of health detriment in the optimization process, such as the perception of risk by individuals and the need to put more emphasis on equity in the distribution of individual doses. This paper proposes a modified alpha-value model based on CEPN's model (Centre d'Etude sur L'Evaluation de la Protection dans le Domaine Nucleaire) to put more emphasis on recently published considerations about the smaller effects of the portion of collective dose derived from small doses. The parameters of the monetary value of unit collective dose averted, which is a key element of this type of model, can be estimated by means of approaches like human capital (HC) and willingness to pay (WTP) from the point of view of economic theories. The present study summarizes the results achieved by WTP among the radiation specialists mainly from the Paks Nuclear Power Plant, Hungary. The aim of the effort was to determine the value of a statistical life and the monetary value of a unit person-sievert associated with averted occupational exposure due to ionizing radiation. To apply the WTP method, a questionnaire has been prepared on the basis of the one introduced by CEPN in the late 1990's. The investigations show that the value of US$6,200 person-Sv(-1) seems to be acceptable for the alphabase-value for the occupational situation in Hungary in 1999. WTP assessments should be applied with caution since the economic level of the country, the workplace surveyed, and the computational methods affect the results. In addition, achieving a high level safety culture must rely on international cooperation both from the theoretical and practical viewpoints, and international markets affect the associated costs. Therefore the monetary requirements cannot always be assessed solely on a national basis.