Radiological impact assessment approaches for Life Cycle Assessment: a review and possible ways forward

Abstract

Many industrial processes routinely release radionuclides into the environment. Such emissions may be recognised in the inventory phase of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), but they are rarely carried forward to the Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) phase because a standard approach for assessing their impact is still lacking. The aim of this article is to collect and critically analyse radiological impact assessment methodologies to establish a basis for developing a standard approach. Seven methodologies are reviewed. Amongst these, the human health damages approach is the only methodology to date to be included in LCIA methodologies. Furthermore, five of the reviewed methodologies are concerned with impacts on humans, whilst the remaining two address effects on the environment. The article concludes that even though a number of methodologies are currently available, none is suitable as the basis for a standard procedure in LCIA. Two main features have been identified as crucial: the ability to treat all types of waste forms by which radionuclides can be released and the use of a fate analysis that returns average (rather than worst case) estimates of impacts. In light of the findings of this review, a novel framework for radiological impact assessment on humans has been devised; its development is being pursued by the authors.