Kenneth A. Solomon

Risk management in local communities

This article discusses the current state of risk-management practices in local communities in the United States and offers some alternatives to present policies, which are mainly implicit rather than explicit attempts to limit overall risks of death and injury due to technological and natural causes. The article is divided into three sections. The first discusses the concept of risk-management as presently used in local government. The second section results from a limited survey of local risk-managers. The third section offers some policy alternatives. While generalization is itself risky, all of our observations point toward the conclusion that local government officials have little understanding of, hence little concern for, the quantity of risk posed for citizens by various hazards. If it seems desirable to place risk-management decisions in the hands of local officials, then some capacity for risk quantification, hence comparison, must be developed. The bulk of the policy suggestions at the end of this article concerns possible means through which this capacity might be augmented.

The index of harm: A measure for comparing occupational risk across industries

Abstract This paper presents an index of harm methodology that compares occupational risk among workers exposed to radiological and nonradiological harms. It extends the work of the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) by considering American rather than European and Japanese industry groups, by treating the relative importance of various occupational harms as a parameter rather than an arbitrary constant, and by identifying several ways in which both the methodology and the database could be improved. In the analysis, we examine the risk affects of six occupational harms — three nonradiological (death, accidental injury, and disease or illness) and three radiological (somatic effects, genetic effects, and somatic effects to the fetuses or embryos of pregnant women). We performed our analysis under five different assumptions about the relative importance of averting of the six harms in question. The results of this analysis show that radiological workers exposed to the current industry average of 0.35 rem/year are among the safest of all industry groupings, and the riskiest industries appear to be mining; agriculture, fishing, and farming; construction; transportation; and manufacturing, roughly in that order.

Away-from-reactor storage of spent nuclear fuel : factors affecting demand

This report analyzes factors that affect the magnitude and timing of demand for government AFRs, relative to the demand for other storage options, to assist policymakers in predicting this demand. Past predictions of AFT demand range widely and often appear to conflict. This report helps to explain the apparent conflicts among existing demand predictions by demonstrating their sensitivity to changes in key assumptions. Specifically, the report analyzes factors affecting the demand for government AFR storage facilities; illustrates why demand estimates may vary; and identifies actions that may be undertaken by groups, within and outside the government, to influence the level and timing of demands.

A Value-Impact Approach for Regulatory Decision Making: An Application to Nuclear Power

This paper presents an extended value-impact methodology which aids decision makers in ranking various alternative actions for reducing the risk associated with nuclear power reactors. It extends the state-of-the-art value-impact methodology by using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), a formalized decision making tool for ranking various alternatives based on judgment. The method has been applied to a value-impact study of the implementation of either a vented-containment system or an alternative decay heat removal system as a means for reducing risk at the Grand Gulf nuclear power plant. A ranking of several policy actions which could reduce the economic risk of nuclear power is performed herein. The results of this analysis show that the method provides considerable insight to the solution of topics of interest in the decision making area of nuclear power risk management.

Comparing risk management practices at the local levels of government with those at the state and federal levels

Abstract This paper contrasts the current view of risk management held by local government officials with those views held by both state level and federal level government officials. While generalization is itself risky, all of our observations point towards the conclusion that relative to state and federal officials, local government officials have little understanding of, hence little concern for, the quantity of risk posed for citizens by various hazards. To the extent that it seems desirable to place risk-management type decisions in the hands of local government officials, then some capacity for risk quantification, hence comparison, must be developed. The findings presented in this paper are drawn from both generalized surveys of local and state decision makers and analyses of specific cases studied. These case studies include the decision to: remove asbestos from schools; close down a copper smelting facility in Tacoma, WA; shut off contaminated drinking wells; site hazardous waste facilities; and store hazardous chemicals.

Improving Automotive Safety: The Role of Industry, the Government, and the Driver,

This paper identifies three groups that can improve automotive safety. The three groups are the automotive industry by designing into cars such safety devices as seat belts, roll bars, or air bags; the government by taking such measures as improving road conditions, enforcing seat belt usage laws, or enforcing stricter anti-drunk-driving laws; and finally, the driver by modifying driving habits such as wearing seat belts and not driving while intoxicated.

A survey of monitoring technology for subseabed disposal of radioactive waste

Abstract The subseabed is currently being considered as a disposal site for nuclear waste, and if it does become an option, monitoring to detect escape of the disposed material will be essential. In this paper, we define types of nuclear waste and present the dimensions of the monitoring problems that would be encountered in ocean disposal. We then summarize the characteristics of a number of physical, chemical, biological, and ecological monitoring methods. We also describe the advances and developments that will be necessary before the monitoring functions and support systems can be employed.