Section 720. Dose limits for individual members of the public

Article 4. Radiation Dose Limits for Individual Members of the Public

A. Each licensee shall conduct operations so that:

1. The total effective dose equivalent to individual members of the public from the licensed operation does not exceed 100 millirem (1 mSv) in a year exclusive of the dose contribution from background radiation, from any medical administration the individual has received, from exposure to individuals administered radioactive material and released under 12VAC5-481-1870, from voluntary participation in medical research programs, and from the licensee's disposal of radioactive material into sanitary sewerage in accordance with 12VAC5-481-930; and

2. The dose in any unrestricted area from external sources exclusive of the dose contribution from individuals administered radioactive material and released in accordance with 12VAC5-481-1870 does not exceed 2 millirem (0.02 millisievert) in any one hour.

B. If the licensee permits members of the public to have access to controlled areas, the limits for members of the public continue to apply to those individuals.

C. Notwithstanding subdivision A 1 of this section, a licensee may permit visitors to an individual who cannot be released under 12VAC5-481-1870 to receive a radiation dose greater than 100 millirem (1 mSv) if:

1. The radiation dose received does not exceed 500 millirem (5 mSv); and

2. The authorized user as defined in 12VAC5-481-10 has determined before the visit that it is appropriate.

D. A licensee or licensee applicant may apply for prior agency authorization to operate up to an annual dose limit for an individual member of the public of 500 millirem (5 mSv). The licensee or license applicant shall include the following information in this application:

1. Demonstration of the need for and the expected duration of operations in excess of the limit in subsection A of this section;

2. The licensee's program to assess and control dose within the 500 millirem (5 mSv) annual limit; and

3. The procedures to be followed to maintain the dose as low as is reasonably achievable.

E. In addition to these requirements, a licensee subject to the provisions of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's generally applicable environmental radiation standards in 40 CFR Part 190 shall comply with those standards.

F. The agency may impose additional restrictions on radiation levels in unrestricted areas and on the total quantity of radionuclides that a licensee may release in effluents in order to restrict the collective dose.

Historical Notes

Derived from Volume 22, Issue 25, eff. September 20, 2006; amended, Virginia Register Volume 24, Issue 18, eff. June 12, 2008; Volume 32, Issue 24, eff. August 25, 2016.

Statutory Authority

§ 32.1-229 of the Code of Virginia.