Correlation between predicted and observed levels of airborne tritium at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory site boundary

At the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory, a computer code based on the Gaussian plume model is used to estimate radiation doses from routine or accidental release of airborne radioactive material. Routine releases of tritium have been used as a test of the overall uncertainty associated with these estimates. The ration of concentration to release rate at distances from the two principal release points to each of six site boundary sampling locations has been calcuated using local meteorological data. The concentration of airborne tritiated water vapor is continuously measured at the six sampling stations as part of the Laboratory's environmental monitoring program. Comparison of predicted with observed annual tritiated water concentrations in 1978 showed an average ratio of 2.6 with a range of from 0.97 to 5.8