British Journal of Radiology (2003) 76, 81-82
© 2003 British Institute of Radiology
doi:
Scientific Basis for Evaluating the Risks to Populations from Space Applications of Plutonium. NCRP Report No 131. By NCRP, pp. ix+280, 2001 (NCRP, Bethesda, MD), $50.00 ISBN 0 929600 64 9
J A Simmons
It is difficult to understand the purpose of this Report or for whom it is intended. The title provides no real guidance; "Space Applications of Plutonium" is dealt with in a few short pages comprising the first two chapters while the remainder essentially covers all you ever wanted to know about plutonium but could never be bothered to search for. From this point of view, it could really be considered as an up-date of the EPRI Special Report, Plutonium: Facts and Inferences (1976) which, although largely concerned with nuclear power, covered much of the same ground. (Surprisingly, the existence of this Report appears to be unknown to the authors of the NCRP Report.)
The physical and chemical properties of plutonium and an explanation of why any is extremely unlikely to be released as the result of an accident to a space probe are covered briefly in Chapters 3 and 4. What might happen to the plutonium if such an accidental release were to occur is discussed in very great detail in a ling Chapter 5, while the ecological risk is noted briefly in Chapter 6. Another very long chapter then considers the metabolism and biokinetics of plutonium.
The chapter on dosimetry largely follows the standard approach of ICRP 60. There is no mention of the applications of microdosimetry in considering the potential hazard to lung and bone and the earlier warnings about the possible errors which might be introduced by the simple application of "dose equivalent" are totally ignored. Chapters 9 and 10 deal with the biological effects of plutonium in laboratory animals and humans respectively, while Chapter 11 covers the human health risks. This begins with the sentence, "There are no direct data on health effects from 238Pu in humans, and only limited data on 239Pu, from which one can estimate health risks". Not surprisingly, this chapter is less than two pages long. The Report closes with a short summary of research needs and conclusions.
Unless one wishes to preserve a continuous run of NCRP Reports, it would be difficult to justify the purchase of this particular one. There is no index to lead a reader to any individual item of information and the list of references is muddled in one or two places. A far better overview of the health implications of the uptake of plutonium by man can be found in a review by R H Clarke et al in the Journal of Radiological Protection, 1996 which provides most of the relevant information in a much more convenient form.
