Successful Completion of Nuclear Graduate Secondment at Westlakes
We are pleased to announce the successful completion of Adam Kennedy’s secondment to Westlakes under the NDA Nuclear Graduate scheme.
During his time at the department of Environmental Science, Adam worked on the development of a proof-of-concept terrestrial foodweb model for chronic deposition of radiocaesium to a sand dune ecosystem, and calculation of the doses to biota arising thereof. He also became involved with the BIOPROTA project, an international network of experts considering biosphere dose assessments as applied to ground disposal sites.
Adam’s project relates to the Westlakes Radioecology Group line of research on protection of the environment from the effects of ionising radiation, specifically assessment of radiation dose to ecosystems in order to determine their degree of protection. This is a very topical subject at the moment, as advised by international bodies such as the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
In addition to his research project, Adam has also been supporting the consultancy activities of the team in the area of occupational exposure assessment. Additional consultancy work included analysis for the IAEA of a questionnaire on international experts’ views regarding the relevance of dynamic modelling for ecosystem dose assessments.
Adam’s main modelling project continues beyond his secondment to Westlakes, as he works towards a MSc by research with UCLan. Under the supervision of Dr. Jordi Vives i Batlle (WSC) Adam will attempt to validate the model with field data, producing a scientific discussion of the results and uncertainty analysis, leading to the production of his thesis.
We wish Adam Kennedy the best for his next secondment to the National Nuclear Laboratory and the achievement of his MSc degree.