On Monday, 8 April, a group of Ukrainian pupils from the upper grades of Kunratice Primary School visited the National Radiation Protection Institute. Ms Jitka Svobodová and Mr Vladimír Vícha, high school teachers and staff of the Institute of Experimental and Applied Physics of the Czech Technical University, came up with the idea to prepare a "project day" for them and to introduce them to CzechRad equipment used by SÚRO for civil radiation measurements in the Czech Republic.
"Our aim is to spread awareness that citizens of the Czech Republic can independently participate in monitoring radiation in their surroundings. And today, of course, such awareness-raising work is also connected with the war in Ukraine, more specifically, for example, with the situation at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which is in a combat zone and therefore poses a security risk. People are concerned about this, and we are trying to reassure them. We explain to them what radioactivity is, how it can be measured and possibly shielded," explains Jitka Svobodová.
There are reasons why the Ukrainian pupils of the Kunratice Primary School were the guests of the first "project day". As the chairman of the non-profit organization Helping Ukraine, which also participated in the preparation of the event, explains, the Ukrainian children from Kunratice have cooperated with them before:
"They helped us collect wax for the production of trench candles, which we make ourselves and deliver to Ukrainian soldiers at the front. And then chance played its part. One of our co-workers happens to be Eva Čermáková, who is also an employee of SÚRO. So we thought that the children could try something as interesting and exciting as measuring radiation," explains Jan Riedl, founder of Helping Ukraine.
Irina Nesterova, a pedagogical assistant and psychologist at the Kunratice primary school who helps Ukrainian children who are accepted into Czech schools to integrate into the Czech environment, also played a role in the story:
"We have organized something like a Ukrainian community at the school and once a month we organize various events and excursions for children who have come from Ukraine because of the war. And when we received an offer from Eva Čermáková to take part in a 'project day' at SÚRO, we gladly accepted," explains Irina Něstěrovová.
The jointly prepared "project day" was spread over the whole afternoon. The students first saw the various instruments and equipment that SÚRO uses to measure radiation levels and to dispose of any dangerous sources. The pupils were particularly interested in a specially equipped car that functions as a mobile laboratory. During interventions, SÚRO employees can measure the radiation level of various objects and materials on site, assess the riskiness of the situation and take the necessary protective measures promptly.
The main part of the programme, however, was demonstration of CzechRad detectors - handheld devices that allow citizens to measure radiation level in their surroundings and record the measured data independently on territorial maps. The device was developed by SÚRO in cooperation with the Institute of Experimental and Applied Physics of the Czech Technical University within the project "Centre for Supporting the Population in the Event of Actual or Suspected Nuclear and Radiation Emergencies" funded by the Ministry of the Interior under the programme Strategic Support for the Development of Security Research in the Czech Republic 2019 - 2025 (IMPAKT 1), with the support of the State Office for Nuclear Safety.
As SÚRO scientist Jiří Hůlka explains, the CzechRad detector, which SÚRO produces itself, is based on a similar Japanese device called Safecast. It was developed immediately after the Fukushima nuclear accident by scientists linked to a citizens' association that wanted the public to be able to measure not only the level of radiation but also its location - i.e. to create maps of radiation levels. In the immediate aftermath of the disaster, the Japanese government failed to provide enough data on radioactive pollution, so citizens decided to take the initiative into their own hands.
"We have established a friendly relationship with the Safecast manufacturers, we have bought and assembled sixty devices from them, and we have also helped them create manuals for the devices in a number of languages. Later on, however, we realized that it would be more profitable to produce the device from our own components, so together with the Institute for Technical and Experimental Physics of the Czech Technical University we built its Czech analogue, which we called CzechRad. The fact that we have control over the production allows us to produce the detector in larger quantities, and thanks to the project we are going to produce a thousand of them, distribute them to volunteer organisations and gradually cover the whole Czech Republic," explains Jiří Hůlka.
As Vladimír Vícha explained to the children at the beginning, the CzechRad detectors have a Geiger-Müller computer built into them, which registers mainly gamma radiation, and also has a built-in GPS module. The station is not large and can be put in a backpack or in a cross body bag. When switched on, it measures the number of radiation pulses and also records GPS data. And with the help of the data obtained, maps can then be created, on which the radiation level in a certain area is already shown in a different colour.
During the afternoon the pupils had to independently manage several tasks with the help of CzechRad detectors. First, they tested that radioactive pulses can be detected at low levels in the natural environment. But also that their number can be increased by attaching a material with higher radioactivity to the detector (the children carried out experiments with ordinary fertiliser or uranium slides, materials that cannot endanger health).
The next task was then to shield the radioactivity, either with plain paper, plexiglass or an iron plate. The students could record the results measured with the CzechRad independently in prepared graphs and use them to evaluate the background radiation level. The most rewarding part of the programme was the "treasure hunt", i.e. the sources of radioactivity hidden in the vast premises of SÚRO. But the pupils also found them with the help of CzechRad detectors without any problems.
The last and most challenging task is mapping the radiation in the designated area. The data measured with the detector and stored on a memory card can be transferred to the maps of the Czech Republic with the help of special software and thus add a piece to the puzzle of nationwide monitoring.
"The students were able to experience in practice how the radiation levels in their immediate surroundings change. Each team took measurements on their own equipment and, although their results varied, the comparison concluded that the mean value of the measured radiation was basically the same everywhere. We wanted to demonstrate to them the statistical nature of the measurements, which in a broader sense is a good tool against panic: somewhere the radiation is higher, somewhere lower, but on average it is not dangerous," comments Vladimír Vícha on his work with the students.
CzechRad should eventually be used throughout the Czech Republic, according to SÚRO staff. Gradually, some schools, town halls or volunteer fire brigades will have detectors at their disposal to measure radiation levels in their immediate surroundings on a volunteer basis. According to sociologists and psychologists who are also involved in the project, the fact that they can obtain the results independently increases the population's sense of security and its resistance to various false and alarmist messages.
