Editorial

Innovative integrative tools and platforms. Key results of the PREPARE European Project

¹ Karlsruher Institut für Technologie (KIT), Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, Germany
² Nuclear Protection Evaluation Centre (CEPN), Fontenay-aux-Roses, France
³ Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS), Neuherberg, Germany
⁴ Nuclear Radiation Protection and Safety Institute (IRSN), Paris, France
⁵ Ukrainian Center of Environmental and Water Projects (UCEWP), Kiev, Ukraine
⁶ National Center for Scientific Research “DEMOKRITOS”, Aghia Paraskevi, Greece
⁷ MUTADIS, Paris, France
⁸ Belgian Nuclear Research Centre, SCK•CEN, Mol, Belgium

Abstract

The European project PREPARE (Innovative integrated tools and platforms for radiological emergency preparedness and post-accident response in Europe) aims at closing gaps that have been identified in nuclear and radiological preparedness following the first evaluation of the Fukushima disaster. It started February 2013 and ended January 2016. Fourty-six partners from Europe and Japan, among them universities, national research centres, operational emergency management centres and non-governmental organisations, performed research to close gaps identified following the Fukushima disaster. Among others, the project addressed the review of existing operational procedures for dealing with long lasting releases, cross border problems in radiation monitoring and food safety and further development of missing functionalities in decision support systems ranging from improved source term estimation and dispersion modelling to the inclusion of hydrological pathways for European water bodies. In addition, a so called Analytical Platform was developed exploring the scientific and operational means to improve information collection, information exchange and the evaluation of such types of disasters. The tools developed within the project will be integrated into the two decision support systems ARGOS and RODOS.