Research and analysis

Errata: corrections to RIFE reports

Updated 7 November 2024

Previous RIFE reports are available on the National Archives.

RIFE 28, 2022

General Summary (HTML version only) and Section 3 Highlights (HTML Version and Page 82 of the PDF version)

“Radiation dose from historical discharges of naturally occurring radionuclides (non-nuclear industry) was lower in 2022. The contribution to ‘total dose’ from Sellafield discharges decreased in 2022.”

Should read

“Radiation dose from historical discharges of naturally occurring radionuclides (non-nuclear industry) was higher in 2022. The contribution to ‘total dose’ from Sellafield discharges decreased in 2022.”

This has been amended in the HTML version only.

RIFE 28 Technical Summary Tables (On-line version only)

The note

“The doses from man-made and naturally occurring radionuclides at Sellafield were 0.014 and 0.14mSv, respectively.  The source of man-made radionuclides was Sellafield; naturally occurring ones were from the phosphate processing works near Sellafield at Whitehaven. Minor discharges of radionuclides were also made from the LLWR near Drigg site into the same area”

Should read

“The doses from man-made and naturally occurring radionuclides at Sellafield were 0.014 and 0.22mSv, respectively.  The source of man-made radionuclides was Sellafield; naturally occurring ones were from the phosphate processing works near Sellafield at Whitehaven. Minor discharges of radionuclides were also made from the LLWR near Drigg site into the same area”

A revised version of this file was made available alongside the HTML version of the report.

Table 1.1, Page 54 and HTML Version

The direct radiation doses for Sizewell were transposed. The entry in the main table for Sizewell should have read “0.010mSv” and the corresponding footnote read

“Sizewell exposure shows those for Sizewell B. Sizewell A (0.001) not used. The dose to workers at Sizewell A from Sizewell B was 0.0073”

The corresponding dose text (Section 4.1.5, page 168) should read

“The ‘total dose’ from all pathways and sources of radiation was 0.011mSv in 2022 (Table 4.1) or approximately 1% of the dose limit, and down from 0.016mSv in 2021. This decrease in dose (from 2021) was mostly due to a lower estimate of direct radiation from the site in 2022 (Table 1.1). The representative person was unchanged from 2021. The trend in ‘total dose’ over the period 2011 to 2022 is given in Figure 4‑1. Any variation in ‘total dose’ from year to year was due to a change in the contribution from direct radiation from the site. The ‘total dose’ has declined (reduced by a factor of 5 or 6), following the closure of the Magnox reactors at Sizewell A in 2006 (Figure 4.1, [47]). “

These changes also apply to Tables 1.2, 1.3, and 4.1 as given in the Errata tables and to figures (S, 1.2 and 4.1). Corrected versions of Figure 1.2 and 4.1 are presented in RIFE 29.

Section 3.3.1, Page 102 and HTML Version

Ravenglass. The text

“The dose to a person who spends a long time over the marsh in the Ravenglass Estuary was 0.014mSv in 2022, and a decrease from that in 2021 (0.019mSv). This decrease in dose was due to lower occupancy over salt marsh (Appendix 4, Table A4.2) and to a lesser extent the lower gamma dose rates over salt marsh close to Eskmeals.”

Should read

“The dose to a person who spends a long time over the marsh in the Ravenglass Estuary was 0.015mSv in 2022, and a decrease from that in 2021 (0.019mSv). This decrease in dose was due to lower occupancy over salt marsh (Appendix 4, Table A4.2) and to a lesser extent the lower gamma dose rates over salt marsh close to Eskmeals.”

These changes also apply to Tables 1.4 and 3.16 as given in the Errata tables.

Table 3.3, Page 130 (PDF version only)

The values in the 16th column (before gross alpha and gross beta) represent ²⁴¹Am activity concentrations, not ²⁴¹Pu.

Section 4.1.2, Page 162 and HTML version

The sentence “Heysham 1 commenced operation in 1983 and Heysham 2 began operating in 1988. It is estimated that Heysham 1 and 2 will continue to generate electricity until 2024 and 2028, respectively”

should read

“Heysham 1 commenced operation in 1983 and Heysham 2 began operating in 1988. It is estimated that Heysham 1 and 2 will continue to generate electricity until 2026 and 2028, respectively.”

The sentence “Regulated discharges of radioactive liquid effluent are made via outfalls into Morecambe Bay.”

should read

“Permitted discharges of radioactive liquid effluent are made via outfalls into Morecambe Bay.”

The sentence “In general, activity concentrations in 2022 were similar (in comparison to those in recent years) and the effect of liquid disposals from Heysham was difficult to detect above the Sellafield background.”

Should read

“In general, activity concentrations in 2022 were similar in comparison to those in recent years and the effect of liquid disposals from Heysham was difficult to detect above the Sellafield background.”

These amendments have been made in the HTML version only.

Section 6.2, Barrow (HTML version only)

The text for this section was omitted in error and is presented below.

6.2 Barrow, Cumbria

At Barrow, BAE Systems Marine Limited builds, tests and commissions new nuclear-powered submarines. Gaseous discharges were reported as nil and liquid discharges of tritium, carbon-14 and cobalt-60 to sewer were all very low (<1% of the annual limit) in 2022. The most recent habits survey was undertaken in 2012 (Garrod CJ an others 2013b).

The ‘total dose’ from all pathways and sources of radiation was 0.030mSv (Table 6.1) in 2022, or 3% of the dose limit, and down from 0.044mSv in 2021. Virtually all of this dose was due to the effects of Sellafield discharges. As in recent years, the representative person was adults living on a local houseboat. The decrease in ‘total dose’ was mostly due to gamma dose rates being measured over different substrates at Askam Pier, from one year to the next.

As in 2021, source specific assessments for a high-rate consumer of locally grown food and a person living on a local houseboat gave exposures that were less than the ‘total dose’ in 2022 (Table 6.1). No assessment of seafood consumption was undertaken in 2022 because of the absence of relevant monitoring data. However, the dose from seafood consumption is less important than that from external exposure on a houseboat (Environment Agency, Food Standards Agency, Northern Ireland Environment Agency, and others 2014).

The FSA’s terrestrial monitoring is limited to vegetable and grass (or silage) sampling. The Environment Agency monitors gamma dose rates and analysis of sediment samples from local intertidal areas and is directed primarily at the far-field effects of Sellafield discharges. The results are given in Table 6.3(a) and Table 6.3(b). No effects of discharges from Barrow were apparent in the concentrations of radioactivity in vegetables and silage, most reported as less than values. In 2022, the reported gross beta concentration (due to the far-field effects of Sellafield discharges) in Walney Channel sediment was higher in comparison to that in 2021. The gamma dose rates in intertidal areas near Barrow in 2022 are given in Table 6.3(b) and Table 3.9. As in previous years, gamma dose rates were enhanced above those expected due to natural background, and generally lower than those measured in 2021. Any enhancement above natural background is most likely due to the far-field effects of historical discharges from Sellafield.

Table 8.5, Page 300

The headings in the second part of the table should read, ¹³⁷Cs^d, ²³⁸Pu^c, ^239+240Pu^c, ²⁴¹Am^c, Gross alpha and Gross beta, respectively.

Concentration of carbon-14 in terrestrial foods (FSA samples only)

Due to issues relating to the integrity and condition of a certified standard solution and an internal quality control material for the combustion method used for measuring carbon-14 in FSA’s terrestrial food materials, which were acquired in early 2022, the carbon-14 results produced in for samples collected in 2022 had to be reviewed and corrected to ensure that they meet rigorous quality standards. Where necessary, appropriate correction factors have been applied to these data and are presented below. In all cases, the carbon-14 activity concentrations (and hence, doses) published in the RIFE28 report, which was published in November 2023 were overestimated by very small amounts. Changes to assessments, tables, figures, and text are also summarised below. The amended tables have been restricted to those sites affected.

In all concentration tables - these data give the mean carbon-14 radioactivity concentration (fresh), Bq kg^-1, except for milk and freshwater where units are Bq l^-1 and for sediment and soil where dry concentrations apply. Data are arithmetic means unless stated as ‘max’.’ Max’ data are selected to be maxima. If no ‘max’ value is given, the mean value is the most appropriate for dose assessments. For milk, it is the number of farms from which milk is sampled and the number of analyses is greater and depends on the bulking regime.

Note for Table 3.16: The breakdown of dose for adult root vegetable consumers (maximum effect of gaseous releases and direct radiation) was presented incorrectly in the ODS version of the table and is presented below for completeness. It is correct in the PDF version.

Note for Table 5.1: This was presented incorrectly in RIFE 28 and included for completeness.

Revised dose plots for Figures 1.2, 3.1, 3.6 to 3.9, 4.1 and 5.1 will be presented in RIFE 29, alongside the revised Figure 3.10. The differences in bar heights for Figures S and 1.3 are imperceptible, so have not been replicated.

These data are given in the Errata tables.

‘Total dose’ from gaseous discharges and direct radiation (section 3.3.1, page 98, first paragraph)

The sentences

“The most important radionuclides were americium-241 (34%), polonium-210 (in seafood,10%), carbon-14 (8%), strontium-90 (4%) and iodine-129 (4%). other age groups received lower exposure than the ‘total dose’ for adults of 0.010mSv (10-year-old children: 0.007mSv, 1-year-old infants: 0.007mSv and prenatal children: <0.005mSv).”

Should read

“The most important radionuclides were americium-241 (35%), polonium-210 (in seafood,10%), carbon-14 (6%), strontium-90 (4%) and iodine-129 (4%). other age groups received lower exposure than the ‘total dose’ for adults of 0.010mSv (10-year-old children: 0.007mSv, 1-year-old infants: 0.006mSv and prenatal children: <0.005mSv).”

Doses from terrestrial food consumption (Section 3.3.1, page 100)

The paragraph

“In 2022, infants (1-year-old) consuming milk at high rates and exposed to external and inhalation pathways from gaseous discharges received the highest dose for all ages. The estimated dose was 0.012mSv in 2022 (Table 3.16), or approximately 1% of the dose limit to members of the public and up from 0.010mSv in 2021. Other age groups received less exposure than the infants (1-year-old) dose of 0.012mSv in 2022 (adults: 0.011mSv; 10-year-old children: 0.009mSv; prenatal children: 0.005mSv).”

Should read

“In 2022, infants (1-year-old) consuming milk at high rates and exposed to external and inhalation pathways from gaseous discharges received the highest dose for all ages. The estimated dose was 0.011mSv in 2022 (Table 3.16), or approximately 1% of the dose limit to members of the public and up from 0.010mSv in 2021. Other age groups received less exposure than the infants (1-year-old) dose of 0.011mSv in 2022 (adults: 0.011mSv; 10-year-old children: 0.009mSv; prenatal children: <0.005mSv).”

Doses from atmospheric sea to land transfer (Section 3.3.1, page 102, first paragraph)

The sentence

“In 2022, the dose (including contributions from Chernobyl and fallout from nuclear weapons testing) was estimated to be 0.012mSv, which was approximately 1% of the dose limit for members of the public, and up from 0.009mSv in 2021.”

Should read

“In 2022, the dose (including contributions from Chernobyl and fallout from nuclear weapons testing) was estimated to be 0.011mSv, which was approximately 1% of the dose limit for members of the public, and up from 0.009mSv in 2021.”

Heysham – Doses to the Public (Section 4.1.2, page 162, third paragraph)

The sentences

“The estimated dose for terrestrial food consumption was 0.005mSv and down from 0.006mSv in 2021. The small decrease in dose for the terrestrial food consumption was mostly attributed to a lower maximum concentration of carbon-14 in milk measured in 2022.”

Should read

“The estimated dose for terrestrial food consumption was less than 0.005mSv and down from 0.006mSv in 2021. The decrease in dose for the terrestrial food consumption was mostly attributed to a lower maximum concentration of carbon-14 in milk measured in 2022.”

Hinkley Point – Doses to the Public (Section 4.1.3, page 164, third paragraph)

The sentences

“The dose to this consumer of locally grown food was 0.007mSv in 2022 and up from 0.005mSv in 2021. The main reason for the increase in dose was mostly due to higher concentrations of carbon-14 in milk in 2022, in comparison to those in 2021.”

Should read

“The dose to this consumer of locally grown food was 0.006mSv in 2022 and up from 0.005mSv in 2021. The main reason for the increase in dose was mostly due to slightly higher concentrations of carbon-14 in milk in 2022, in comparison to those in 2021.”

Berkeley and Oldbury - Doses to the public (Section 4.2.1, page 171)

The paragraphs

“In 2022, the ‘total dose’ from all pathways and sources of radiation was 0.006mSv (Table 4.1), or less than 1% of the dose limit, and down from 0.013mSv in 2021. The representative person was infants consuming milk and a change from that in 2021 (infants living near the site). The decrease in ‘total dose’ was mostly attributed to lower direct radiation from the Berkeley site in 2022. The trend in the ‘total dose’ over the period 2011 to 2022 is given in Figure 4 1. Any longer-term variations in ‘total doses’ over time are attributable to changes in the contribution from direct radiation.

As in 2021, the source specific assessments for a high-rate consumer of fish and shellfish, in the vicinity of the Berkeley and Oldbury sites, gave exposures that was less than 0.005mSv in 2022 (Table 4.1). The dose to a consumer of fish and shellfish includes external gamma radiation and a component due to the tritium historically discharged from the former GE Healthcare Limited plant at Cardiff. The estimated dose for a high-rate consumer (infant) of locally grown foods gave an exposure of 0.007mSv and was up from less than 0.005mSv in 2021. The increase in dose was mostly due to higher concentrations of carbon-14 in milk, in comparison to those observed in 2021. The estimated dose for houseboat dwellers was 0.009mSv in 2022, and a decrease from 2021 (0.025mSv). The reason for the decrease in estimated dose for houseboat dwellers was because the gamma dose rates recorded at Sharpness were lower on average in 2022, in comparison to the dose rate over mud observed in 2021. The estimate for this pathway is determined as a cautious value (and therefore not included in the ‘total dose’ assessment), because gamma dose rate measurements used were not necessarily representative of the categories of ground type and houseboat location (as identified in the habits survey [179]).”

Should read

“In 2022, the ‘total dose’ from all pathways and sources of radiation was less than 0.005mSv (Table 4.1), or less than 0.5% of the dose limit, and down from 0.013mSv in 2021. The representative person was infants consuming milk and a change from that in 2021 (infants living near the site). The decrease in ‘total dose’ was mostly attributed to lower direct radiation from the Berkeley site in 2022. The trend in the ‘total dose’ over the period 2011 to 2022 is given in Figure 4‑1. Any longer-term variations in ‘total doses’ over time are attributable to changes in the contribution from direct radiation.

As in 2021, the source specific assessments for a high-rate consumer of fish and shellfish, in the vicinity of the Berkeley and Oldbury sites, gave exposures that was less than 0.005mSv in 2022 (Table 4.1). The dose to a consumer of fish and shellfish includes external gamma radiation and a component due to the tritium historically discharged from the former GE Healthcare Limited plant at Cardiff. The estimated dose for a high-rate consumer (infant) of locally grown foods gave an exposure of 0.005mSv and was up from less than 0.005mSv in 2021. The increase in dose was mostly due to slightly higher concentrations of carbon-14 in milk, in comparison to those observed in 2021. The estimated dose for houseboat dwellers was 0.009mSv in 2022, and a decrease from 2021 (0.025mSv). The reason for the decrease in estimated dose for houseboat dwellers was because the gamma dose rates recorded at Sharpness were lower on average in 2022, in comparison to the dose rate over mud observed in 2021. The estimate for this pathway is determined as a cautious value (and therefore not included in the ‘total dose’ assessment), because gamma dose rate measurements used were not necessarily representative of the categories of ground type and houseboat location (as identified in the habits survey [179]).”

Trawsfynydd – Doses to the Public (Section 4.2.5, page 177, second paragraph)

The sentence

“The dose to infants (1-year-old) consuming terrestrial food was 0.038mSv, or less than 4% of the dose limit. This was slightly than in 2021 (0.040mSv) and the main reason for the small decrease in dose was because of lower concentrations of carbon-14 in milk samples collected in 2022.”

Should read

“The dose to infants (1-year-old) consuming terrestrial food was 0.037mSv, or less than 4% of the dose limit. This was slightly lower than in 2021 (0.040mSv) and the main reason for the small decrease in dose was because of lower concentrations of carbon-14 in milk samples collected in 2022.”

7.1 Low Level Waste Repository near Drigg, Cumbria (page 254, last paragraph)

The paragraph

“The ‘total dose’ from all pathways and sources of radiation was 0.16mSv in 2022, or 16% of the dose limit for members of the public of 1mSv (Table 1.2 and Table 7.1) and includes a component due to the fallout from Chernobyl and nuclear weapons testing. This dose was dominated by the effects of naturally occurring radionuclides and the legacy of discharges into the sea at Sellafield, which are near to the LLWR site (see Section 3.3.1). If these effects were to be excluded, and the sources of exposure from the LLWR are considered, the ‘total dose’ from gaseous releases and direct radiation was 0.031mSv in 2022 (Table 1.2). The representative person was infants living near the site. The increase in ‘total dose’ (from 0.029mSv in 2021) was due to a higher estimate of direct radiation from the site in 2022. A source specific assessment of exposure for consumers of locally grown terrestrial food (animals fed on oats), using 2022 modelled activity concentrations in animal products, gives an exposure that was 0.006mSv in 2022, and similar to that in recent years.”

Should read

“The ‘total dose’ from all pathways and sources of radiation was 0.16mSv in 2022, or 16% of the dose limit for members of the public of 1mSv (Table 1.2 and Table 7.1) and includes a component due to the fallout from Chernobyl and nuclear weapons testing. This dose was dominated by the effects of naturally occurring radionuclides and the legacy of discharges into the sea at Sellafield, which are near to the LLWR site (see Section 3.3.1). If these effects were to be excluded, and the sources of exposure from the LLWR are considered, the ‘total dose’ from gaseous releases and direct radiation was 0.030mSv in 2022 (Table 1.2). The representative person was infants living near the site. The increase in ‘total dose’ (from 0.029mSv in 2021) was due to a higher estimate of direct radiation from the site in 2022. A source specific assessment of exposure for consumers of locally grown terrestrial food (animals fed on oats), using 2022 modelled activity concentrations in animal products, gives an exposure that was less than 0.005mSv in 2022, and similar to that in recent years.”

8.5 Milk (page 279, second paragraph)

The sentence

“The maximum concentrations of carbon-14 in milk for England (Dorset and Kent), Northern Ireland (Co. Tyrone), Wales (Clywd) and Scotland (Dumfriesshire and Nairnshire) were 22, 25, 43 and less than 16Bq l^-1, respectively.”

Should read

“The maximum concentrations of carbon-14 in milk for England (Dorset and Kent), Northern Ireland (Co. Tyrone), Wales (Clywd) and Scotland (Dumfriesshire and Nairnshire) were 20, 22, 40 and less than 16Bq l^-1, respectively.”

Previous RIFE reports (RIFE 20 to 28, inclusive)

Gaseous discharges of Tritium from Dounreay

In November 2023, Magnox Limited notified SEPA of an issue with the measurement of totalised tritium sampler flowrates associated with gaseous discharges from 2 stacks. As a result, incorrect sample flowrate information had been used in the calculation of gaseous tritium discharges from these stacks.  The revised data for tritium discharges are shown below. The 2014 data are for May to December.

These data are given in the Errata tables.

RIFE 27, 2021

Page 258, Table 6.6

The activity concentration data for ²¹⁰Pb in 2021 samples presented in Table 6.6 were incorrect. The corrected data are presented in the ‘Errata tables’ file on the main RIFE page.

This has resulted in small changes to the sum of doses for the 1-year consumption and occupancy rates and mollusc source specific aquatic assessments as documented below. The reported ‘total dose’ and 5-year averaged consumption and occupancy rate assessments were unchanged.

The paragraph “Taking artificial and enhanced natural radionuclides together…”

Should read “Taking artificial and enhanced natural radionuclides together, the source specific doses were 0.22mSv and 0.25mSv for the annual and five-year rolling average habits data, respectively. The dose to mollusc consumers (2021 data only) was 0.020mSv). These estimates are slightly higher than the estimate of ‘total dose’ from all sources of 0.21mSv. The main reason for this is a difference in the approach to selecting consumption rates for seafood for the representative person. The differences in dose are expected and are within the uncertainties in the assessments (see Appendix 1, Section 3.8).”

The dose to mollusc consumers (2021 data only) was 0.007mSv.

RIFE 22 to 27, 2016 to 2021

Non-nuclear discharge data

Non-nuclear discharge data for this period was not included in the non-nuclear discharge tables within RIFE. These data are available upon request from Natural Resources Wales at enquiries@naturalresourceswales.gov.uk