Risk Assessment and Federal Guidance Programs: Overview
Radiation risk assessment is an important tool for evaluating the human health impacts of exposure to radiation and for determining acceptable levels of radioactivity in the environment. For environmental cleanups, compliance with environmental standards often depends on meeting human health risk objectives. In other situations, control of exposure to radiation can be managed through setting radiation dose limits for workers or members of the public. EPA’s Federal Guidance program produces technical guidance documents for converting concentrations of radioactivity in the environment into both radiation dose and risk.