Improving emergency response and recovery
With EU funding, the NERIS-TP(opens in new window) project addressed the knowledge gaps identified by previous initiatives and helped set up a European Technology Platform (TP) on emergency and post-accident preparedness. The European NERIS Platform Association was established as a legal non-governmental organisation, thus making it sustainable in the long term. A committee was set up to deliver a new Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) that identified research topics at the European level. These topics were then ranked to provide a list of key research priorities for future European research programmes. Researchers updated simulation models with the latest recommendations for emergency and existing situations from the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP). A new screening model was developed to handle these recommendations in the decision support systems (DSSs). The project also designed a wizard for helping users devise an appropriate decontamination strategy. Project partners integrated an early notification system with the existing European DSSs ARGOS and RODOS, and further improved several of their components. The result was a series of software tools capable of operating RODOS for any random location on Earth by downloading global meteorological data. Data assimilation capabilities were added to RODOS to enhance downscaling of such data to local circumstances. Project members, together with the NERIS Platform, strengthened nuclear and radiological emergency preparedness in Member States by leveraging local, national and international stakeholders, decision makers and experts. They also engaged various stakeholders in identifying and discussing needs for further research in emergency and recovery issues through several working groups, workshops and training courses. NERIS-TP brought together the science community, industry and emergency response services to exchange best practice, knowledge and technology that will enhance preparedness for response to radiation emergency and recovery situations.