The role of experts in the development of recovery handbooks: UK and European experience.

The importance of involving experts in the development of strategies for managing areas contaminated as a result of a nuclear accident is now well recognised. Following the Chernobyl accident in 1986, the initial focus, quite understandably, was on the technical aspects of reducing doses to the affected population. Subsequently, work carried out in the UK and elsewhere in Europe looked at the broader impacts of protective actions on agriculture, the environment, and society. From 1997, a group of experts from academia, government, and non-government organisations met regularly in the UK to debate these issues. One of the outputs included the first version of the UK Recovery Handbook for Radiation Incidents in 2005. Based on the success of the UK group, a European network of experts was established, leading to the development of European handbooks in 2009. The UK handbooks are living documents that are updated regularly with substantive input from experts.