Practising a nuclear emergency across borders

Together with several European institutions, the BfS trains an emergency which will hopefully never occur: Together with the Swiss National Alarm Centre, the Federal Police, and teams from France and the Czech Republic, the BfS takes part in a helicopter measurement exercise for a nuclear emergency from 26 June to 30 June 2017.

Ready for operation across borders

The main objective of this exercise is to co-ordinate the measuring teams such that they are instantaneously ready for operation across borders in a nuclear emergency. "In the event of a radiological accident it is vital to know the distribution and amount of radioactivity in the environment as soon as possible. That way, the further propagation can be forecast and citizens can be protected against harmful effects," Inge Paulini, President of the BfS, explains the exercise.

"The phase-out of nuclear energy marks the end of nuclear power plant operation in Germany but not of the safety and protective culture," Paulini says. "Because radiation does not stop in front of borders. For as long as nuclear power plants are operated in neighbouring states, the co-operation with other European radiation protection authorities is of the essence, also for the long run, in order to be able to concentrate the available forces and to protect the citizens effectively in the event of an emergency."

Therefore, the BfS connects internationally with various institutions and additionally organises on a regular basis measurment flights and exercises in various regions in Germany, together with the Federal Police.

Airborne measuring systems

From the air, it can be determined quickly and for large areas

• What radioactive substances deposited on the ground,
• What areas are especially affected in a nuclear emergency, and
• What radiation exposure to the population can be derived.

Furthermore, airborne measuring systems enable the detection of radioactive single sources.

During the international exercise, BfS specialists measure from a helicopter especially the spatial distribution of radioactive substances naturally occurring in the ground. In particular the instruments' measurement accuracy and the co-operation of the measuring teams are checked. Exercises on a regular basis improve the systems' accuracy and the co-operation of the teams coming from various countries and institutions. Besides, knowledge of the natural background radiation occurring normally in a region facilitates the opportunity to compare in the event of an emergency.

The helicopters, which are loaded with high-sensitivity measuring systems, can fly over and map an area of about 100 square metres within about three hours. The measurement results are already available shortly after landing and provide the radiation protection teams with decisive hints for possible, further, detailed examinations.

Training area

Starting point of the current measurement flights is Dübendorf near Zurich. The training area encloses an area of about ten per cent of Switzerland.