Radioactive contaminated land exposure assessment

The radioactively contaminated land exposure assessment (RCLEA) is the recommended approach for the first stage of a tiered approach to assess radioactively contaminated land under the Pt 2A regime.

It applies to long-term radiation exposure situations that may require remedial action to reduce or avert individual doses ('intervention' situations).

It uses the same scenarios as the contaminated land exposure assessment (CLEA) methodology for non-radioactive contaminated land.

RCLEA was updated in June 2011 to take account of a change in the legal definition of “substance” that removes the exclusion for radon and its decay products. The updated methodology includes doses from radon and its decay products.

Initial screening

RCLEA may be used to carry out initial screening assessments. Also, in cases where the scenarios and assumptions are representative of the actual situation, the dose calculated with RCLEA can be compared with the criteria which apply for radioactivity under the extended Pt 2A regime to support determination decisions.

When results remain inconclusive, further assessment is likely to be needed, perhaps involving more detailed modelling.

Documents and software application

Download the guide, technical report and software application.

• CLR 13 Summary Guide - Using RCLEA - The Radioactively Contaminated Land Exposure Assessment Methodology (PDF, 417KB)
• CLR 14 Technical Report - The Radioactively Contaminated Land Exposure Assessment Methodology (PDF, 628KB)
• CLR 15 RCLEA software application 2011 (PDF, 3.16MB)

Further information

For further information on RCLEA, please email Juliet Long.

• Juliet Long