The RODOS System: Decision Support For Nuclear Off-Site Emergency Management In Europe

INTRODUCTION Experience gained after the Chernobyl accident clearly demonstrated the importance of improving administrative, organisational and technical emergency management arrangements in Europe. The more important areas where technical improvements were needed were early warning monitoring, communication networks for the rapid and reliable exchange of radiological and other information and decision support systems for off-site emergency management. Administratively, the most pressing need was to promote greater coherence in response to any future emergency; a lack of coherence contributed to the loss of public confidence in how the consequences of the Chernobyl accident were managed in different European countries. The scope and content of the European Commission’s research, in the area of nuclear emergency management following the Chernobyl accident, were largely determined by these needs. Under the auspices of its RTD (Research and Technological Development) Framework Programmes, the European Commission has supported the development of the RODOS (Real-time On-line DecisiOn Support) system for off-site emergency management. The main objectives of the RODOS project were: