[ RadSafe ] ALAP

[Stabin, Michael]

>ALAP stood for "as low as practicable' not "possible".

John is right, I stand corrected. Still interesting how a genuine desire to do well has evolved into this drive to enforce compliance at dose levels at small fractions of natural background and scare people that every photon is to be dreaded. I'm serious, I had a conversation with one of the Believers who said that femtosievert levels of dose are indeed 'dangerous'. You all know this person, a prominent NCRP and ICRP member. If this is true, we must all commit suicide immediately, we are all doomed. But of course it is 'horse hockey'.


Mike

Michael G. Stabin, PhD, CHP
Associate Professor of Radiology and Radiological Sciences
Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences
Vanderbilt University
1161 21st Avenue South
Nashville, TN 37232-2675
Phone (615) 343-4628
Fax   (615) 322-3764
e-mail     michael.g.stabin at vanderbilt.edu
internet   www.doseinfo-radar.com<http://www.doseinfo-radar.com/>
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ALAP stood for "as low as practicable' not "possible".  As I recall, economic
and social considerations were to be taken into account in determining ALAP.
NCRP 39 noted that ALAP posed difficulties for rule makers but states
"nevertheless it is a concise summary of the intention to encourage protection
processes that are better than any prescribed minimal level, and this is the
basic criterion for all cases in which a non-threshold dose-effect relationship
either exists or has to be assumed."

John Ahlquist