European project · Environmental monitoring
ORION
Reliable data for regulators in radiological and nuclear emergencies
About the project
The project analyses and improves environmental monitoring strategies, laboratory analysis methods, the impact of new radiation protection quantities proposed by the ICRU, and how to make safe use of measurements taken by members of the public and by drones during an emergency.
ORION (Optimised and justified decision-making in radiological and nuclear emergencies: trustworthy and accurate data for regulators) aims to reduce uncertainty in the data used by authorities and regulators during radiological and nuclear emergencies, so that protective measures (evacuations, food restrictions and so on) are based on reliable, traceable information.
Project objectives
- Study early warning networks and environmental sampling strategies that affect regulatory decision-making.
- Improve laboratory measurement methods to ensure the safety of food, drinking water and industrial products, and speed up import/export certificates.
- Provide metrological criteria to help regulators implement the new external exposure quantities proposed by the ICRU (Report 95).
- Draw up recommendations on how to use measurements taken by members of the public and by drones during an emergency, to support decision-making by the authorities.
- Support the implementation of Directive 2013/59/Euratom and IAEA standards, and help regulators, manufacturers and laboratories take up the project’s results.
The role of Ibercivis
Ibercivis takes part as an external partner in the consortium (one of 20 participants, from countries such as Finland, France, Portugal, the United Kingdom, Germany, Ukraine and Serbia).
Its role focuses on contributing its experience in citizen science applied to radiation, to help define how data generated by the public can be reliably built into decision-making in radiological emergencies. It takes part in work packages WP4 (citizen and drone measurements), WP5 (dissemination and impact) and WP6 (project management).
Our activities
- Review of European citizen science initiatives on radioactivity measurement (type of device used, calibration, measurement protocols).
- Analysis of methods for sharing and visualising data generated by the public.
- Identification of the main sources of uncertainty in citizen measurements and proposal of methods to reduce them.
- Surveys and interviews with authorities, experts and citizen networks to understand their needs.
- Development and validation (with expert and citizen panels) of a final guide of recommendations on using citizen data in emergency and post-accident management.
- Contribution to the project’s dissemination, communication and coordination tasks.
Project details
Type of project
European
Duration
36 months (July 2026 – June 2029)
Area
Environmental monitoring