MOIRA-PLUS: A decision support system for the management of complex fresh water ecosystems contaminated by radionuclides and heavy metals

Abstract

Abstract. The accidental release of radioactive substances into the environment leads to the necessity of applying suitable countermeasures for the restoration of the polluted environment. However, despite their obvious benefits, such interventions may result in detrimental effects of economic, ecological and social nature that must be carefully evaluated.MOIRA-PLUS is a PC-based user-friendly, Computerised Decision Support System (CDSS) that helps decision makers to choose optimal countermeasure strategies for different kinds of aquatic ecosystems and contamination scenarios.CDSS MOIRA-PLUS is based on: a) Validated models to evaluate the behaviour of radionuclides in contaminated water bodies and biota and to assess the effect of countermeasures on the contamination levels; b) Models to assess the radiation dose to people and biota (fish) by the relevant exposure pathways, the effect of countermeasures, and the associated economic impact; c) Multi-Attribute value Analysis (MAA) module to assess the effectiveness of different management strategies by accounting for the social, the ecological and economic detriments and costs in relation to their benefits.The flexible structures of the environmental models implemented in MOIRA-PLUS allow the application of these models to several other types of pollutants, such as heavy metals. The CDSS can be applied to complex water systems comprised of lakes, reservoirs and rivers. The main principles underpinning the functioning of the CDSS MOIRA-PLUS will be described and discussed.

Risk Assessment System Based on WebGIS for Heavy Metal Pollution in Farmland Soils in China

“…Decision support theory, methods, and algorithms have been discussed by many researchers in the literature [36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43]. In this study, a decision support system for risk assessment of heavy metal pollution in farmland soils (DSS-RAHMP) is proposed ( Figure 1) and can be used for common risk assessment practices for heavy metal pollution in farmland soils.…”

“…With the rapid growth of heavy metal pollution monitoring data, an intelligent management information system should be established by using current advanced information technologies to effectively integrate massive amounts of data for data sharing, data mining [35], and decision support [36,37]. In this study, a decision support system based on web-based GIS (WebGIS) for risk assessment of heavy metal pollution in farmland soils is constructed and aims to assess the potential safety risk in farmland soils.…”

Using graphical models and multi-attribute utility theory for probabilistic uncertainty handling in large systems, with application to the nuclear emergency management

“…Among the other DSSs to support decisions in the case of radioactive contaminations, more recently MOIRA ( [11], [12]) and its newest version MOIRA-PLUS ( [13]) provide support for the identification of optimal remedial strategies to restore water systems after accidental introduction of radioactive substances.…”

Overview and main achievements of the EURANOS project: European approach to nuclear and radiological emergency management and rehabilitation strategies

“…In the second period, the decision aiding component, the usefulness and applicability of the hydrological model chain and the application of the MOIRA system (Monte et al, 2009) for the long term contamination of water catchments were demonstrated by the end users. Further demonstrations focused on small scale applications dealing with releases other than from a nuclear power plant and the two handbooks on assisting in the management of contaminated food production systems and contaminated areas.…”