Radiation protection and environmental safety surveillance in uranium mining and ore processing in India

Abstract

Radiation protection and environmental safety surveillance has been an integral part of the entire uranium mining and ore processing industry in India since the first uranium mine and the mill were commissioned at Jaduguda in 1967. Workplace and environmental monitoring for gamma radiation, radon, airborne long-lived alpha activity and evaluation of workers’ exposure are undertaken in all facilities. Treated tailings are safely confined in engineered containment facilities and regularly monitored to ensure regulatory compliance. Many monitoring devices such as scintillation cell, low level radon detection system, continuous radon monitor, Rn working level meter and SSNTD/TLD based personal dosimeters have been indigenously developed, calibrated and used for monitoring of workplace, personnel and the environment including dwellings. Regular up-gradation of mining and ore processing operations including ventilation system has helped in keeping workers’ exposures well below the prescribed limit. Treated effluents are mostly recycled for use in plants. All releases to the environment are monitored. Used up part of the tailings pond is being provided with appropriate soil and vegetation cover to reduce gamma radiation and radon flux to near natural background levels. Radiation dose to mine workers has shown a downward trend averaging around 5 mSv.y–1 during the past several years. The indigenously developed instruments and monitoring methodologies are described and workplace and environmental monitoring data for over a decade are summarized in this paper. Role of vegetation and plants in the long-term stabilization, confinement and remediation of uranium tailings is discussed. Impact of the operations on the public domain is found to be negligible.