NRC NEWS

 U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 

 Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200

 Washington, DC 20555-001 E-mail: opa@nrc.gov 

 Web Site: http://www.nrc.gov/OPA

No. 01-084 July 9, 2001

NRC PROPOSES AMENDING SKIN DOSE LIMIT

 FOR WORKERS AT NUCLEAR FACILITIES

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is proposing to amend its standards for protection against

radiation. The proposed changes would revise the method for determining the amount of radiation to

the skin that workers receive when conducting licensed activities. 

The proposed rule, which would revise Part 20 of the Commissionís regulations, is based on

recent recommendations from the Congressionally chartered National Council on Radiation Protection

and Measurements (NCRP Report No. 130 and Statement No. 9) and responds to the need to establish

more risk-informed limits for dose from radioactive particles, sometimes known as ìhot particles,î and

doses to very small areas of the skin. This approach is also consistent with the regulations of the

Department of Energy.

Under the proposal, the dose to the skin would be averaged over the most highly exposed 10

square centimeters instead of being averaged over one square centimeter. This change is based on

scientific studies that demonstrate that risks from doses to small areas of the skin are less than risks to

larger areas from the same dose. 

Current rules require frequent monitoring of workers to detect hot particles and small area

exposures that have insignificant health implications. These conservative efforts to prevent small,

insignificant skin doses result in higher whole-body doses with a higher risk than the avoided skin

doses. 

The health effects from small-area skin doses, such as reddening of the skin, that might occur

from a hot particle exposure are considered by the NCRP to be very small as compared to the increased

whole-body deep doses from monitoring and work inefficiencies. To avoid exceeding the current dose

limit, protective clothing and cumbersome gloves may be used that result in workers being subjected to

non-radiological hazards, such as heat stress and other injury consequences. Workers are also hampered

by the excessive use of protective equipment and clothing, requiring them to spend more time

completing a job in radiation areas. Additionally, small-area overexposures can result in licensee

citations and the possibility that a worker might not be permitted to work in a radiation area for the

balance of the year.
The rulemaking is designed to establish a uniform, risk-informed skin dose limit for all sources

of shallow radiation exposures, including hot particles and small area skin contaminations. The rule

would also lessen physical stress and reduce whole-body doses to workers by reducing the frequency of

monitoring for hot particles. The net result is a substantial increase in worker safety and a cost-effective

reduction in unnecessary regulatory burden with little to no impact on worker safety. 

Interested persons are invited to submit comments within 75 days after publication of a Federal

Register notice on this subject, expected shortly. Comments may be submitted to the Secretary, U.S.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C. 20555-0001, ATTN: Rulemakings and

Adjudications Staff. They can be delivered to 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland, between

7:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. on Federal workdays. Comments may also be submitted via the NRCís

interactive rulemaking web site at http://ruleforum.llnl.gov .

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