GUIDE ST 12.

2 / 8 OCTOBER 2003

THE RADIOACTIVITY OF
BUILDING MATERIALS
AND ASH
1 GENERAL 3
2 ACTION LEVELS 3
3 ACTIVITY INDEXES AND THEIR USE 4
3.1 Materials used in house building 4
3.2 Materials used in road, street and related construction work 4
3.3 Materials used in landfill and landscaping 4
3.4 Handling of ash 4

4 MAINTAINING THE LEVEL OF SAFETY 5

4.1 Obligations of the responsible party 5
4.2 Other guidelines 5

This Guide is valid as of 1 November 2003 until further notice. It replaces Guide ST
12.2 ”The Radioactivity of Construction Materials, Fuel Peat and Peat Ash”, issued
on 2 February 1993.

Helsinki 2005 ISSN 0789-4554

ISBN 952-478-047X (pdf)
ISBN 952-478-048-8 (html)

STUK • SÄTEILYTURVAKESKUS Osoite/Address • Laippatie 4, 00880 Helsinki

STRÅLSÄKERHETSCENTRALEN Postiosoite / Postal address • PL / P.O.Box 14, FIN-00881 Helsinki, FINLAND
RADIATION AND NUCLEAR SAFETY AUTHORITY Puh./Tel. (09) 759 881, +358 9 759 881 • Fax (09) 759 88 500, +358 9 759 88 500 • www.stuk.fi
Authorization
Under section 70, paragraph 2, of the Radiation Act (592/1991), STUK – Radiation
and Nuclear Safety Authority (Finland) issues general instructions, known
as Radiation Safety Guides (ST Guides), concerning the use of radiation and
operations involving radiation.
The Radiation Act stipulates that the party running a radiation practice is
responsible for the safety of the operations. The responsible party is obliged
to ensure that the level of safety specified in the ST Guides is attained and
maintained.

Translation. Original text in Finnish.

GUIDE ST 12.2 / 8 OCTOBER 2003
1 General
All building materials contain small amounts
of radioactive substances. Materials originating
from rock and soil contain mainly natural
radionuclides, including uranium (238U) and
thorium (232Th) and their decay products and
the radioactive isotope of potassium (40K).
Some industrial by-products may also contain
radionuclides originating from radioactive fallout.
If such a by-product is incorporated in building
material, the final product will also contain these
artificial nuclides.
Ash, which is generated while combustion of
peat, wood, forest processed chips, field biomass
or by-products of wood industry contains both
natural radionuclides and artificial radionuclides
originating from fallout. Ash is used as landfill,
in landscaping, in concrete and as bulk material
under roads. It may also be taken to dumps or
mounded.
In this guide ash means any ash being
generated in power production.
This guide presents action levels related to
gamma radiation exposure caused by building
materials and materials used in road, street and
related building or materials used in landfill and
landscaping. It also presents the action levels for
the handling and disposal of ash. Guidelines are
also given for maintaining the required level of
safety.
This guide applies only to naturally occurring
radioactive substances and radionuclides spread
into the environment as a result of radioactive
fallout. This guide does not apply to radionuclides
produced in nuclear industry or in the use of
radiation.
2 Action levels
The purpose of the action levels laid down
for building materials and ash is to limit the
radiation exposure due to these materials. The
action level stands for the excess of effective
dose due to their gamma radiation to the dose
from radioactive nuclides in the ground. If it is
discovered or there is reason to suspect that the
radioactivity in these materials is liable to cause
doses greater than action level, the party running
STUK
a radiation practice (hereafter the responsible
party) is required to investigate the radiation
exposure caused by the practice as directed in
section 45 of the Radiation Act. According to
the Radiation Decree, section 26, the report of
the investigation shall be made available to the
Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK).
When necessary, STUK will issue instructions on
limiting the exposure.
Materials used in house building
The action level for the radiation dose of the
public due to the gamma radiation caused by
building materials used in house building is
1 mSv per year.
The radon concentration of indoor air depends
on the amount of radon originating from the
soil, filling gravel, building materials and radon
released from water. When the exposure due
to the gamma radiation caused by building
materials is limited to 1 mSv per year, it is
unlikely that the excess of radon concentration
released to indoor air from building materials
would exceed the reference level. The Ministry of
Social Affairs and Health has issued a separate
order on the upper limits for radon concentration
in places of residence (944/1992).
Materials used in road, street and
related building and materials used
in landfill and landscaping
The action level for the radiation dose of the
public due to the gamma radiation caused by
landfill materials, materials used in landscaping
and materials used in road, street and related
building is 0.1 mSv per year.
Handling ash
The action level for the radiation dose of a worker
due to handling ash is 1 mSv per year. Guide-
lines regarding the radiation exposure of workers
are presented in Guide ST 12.1.
Mounding, landfill and landscaping
The action level for the radiation dose of the
public due to the gamma radiation caused by
landfill materials, materials used in landscaping
and mounding materials is 0.1 mSv per year.
3
STUK
Ash incorporated in concrete
When ash is added into a material that will be
used in house building, the gamma radiation from
the contained caesium (137Cs) shall not contribute
more than 0.1 mSv per year to the total effective
dose of the public due to the material.
3 Activity indexes
and their use
Activity indexes are used to asses whether or
not the action level is exceeded. The activity
index is calculated from activity concentration
measurements of the material.
The activity index is calculated on the basis
of the activity concentrations of radium (226Ra) in
the uranium decay series, thorium (232Th) in the
thorium decay series, potassium (40K) and cae-
sium (137Cs) from fallout. Other nuclides may be
taken into consideration in special cases.
If the activity index exceeds 1, the responsible
party is required to show specifically that the
relevant action level is not exceeded. If the
activity index is 1 or less than 1, the material can
be used, so far as the radioactivity is concerned,
without restriction.
If necessary, the radiation exposure due to
the practice can be investigated case-specifically
without separate examination of the activity
index.
3.1 Materials used in house building
The activity index for the final building material
used in house building is
C Th C Ra C
I 1= + + K ,
200 300 3000
where CTh, CRa and CK are the activity
concentrations of 232Th, 226Ra and 40K in the final
product, expressed in Bq/kg.
The activity index I1 is also applied for
the filling materials used under and near the
building.
If the activity index I1 is 1 or less than 1, the
material can be used as building material, so
far as the radioactivity is concerned, without
restriction.
In case of superficial or other materials with a
restricted use in house building (for example thin
4
GUIDE ST 12.2 / 8 OCTOBER 2003
wall or floor tiles), the activity index I1 must be 6
or less than 6.
3.2 Materials used in road, street
and related construction work
The activity index for materials used in road,
street and related building is
I2=
C Th C Ra C K
+ +
C
+ Cs ,
500 700 8000 2000
where CTh, CRa, CK and CCs are the activity
concentrations of 232Th, 226Ra, 40K and 137Cs in the
material, expressed in Bq/kg.
If the activity index I2 is 1 or less than 1, the
material can be used, so far as the radioactivity
is concerned, without restriction.
In case of materials with a restricted use
(for example usual paving stones and flags), the
activity index I2 must be 1.5 or less than 1.5.
3.3 Materials used in landfill
and landscaping
The activity index for materials used in landfill
and landscaping is
C Th C CK C
I 3= + Ra + + Cs ,
1500 2000 20000 5000
where CTh, CRa, CK and CCs are the activity
concentrations of 232Th, 226Ra, 40K and 137Cs in the
material, expressed in Bq/kg.
If the activity index I3 is 1 or less than 1, the
material can be used, so far as the radioactivity
is concerned, without restriction.
If the activity index I3 exceeds 1, the
responsible party is required to make a specific
investigation on the disposal of the material.
3.4 Handling of ash
The activity index in ash handling is
C Th C CK C Cs
I4= + Ra + + ,
3000 4000 50000 10000
where CTh, CRa, CK and CCs are the activity
concentrations of 232Th, 226Ra, 40K and 137Cs in the
dry ash, expressed in Bq/kg.
If the activity index I4 is 1 or less than 1, so far
as the radioactivity is concerned, no restrictions
GUIDE ST 12.2 / 8 OCTOBER 2003
are laid down for handling the ash.
If the activity index I4 exceeds 1, the responsible
party is required to take care of protection of the
workers involved in ash handling as laid down in
Guide ST 12.1.
4 Maintaining the
level of safety
4.1 Obligations of the responsible party
The responsible party shall ensure that all
radiation safety requirements for the production,
use, handling and disposal of ash and materials
are met. Further, the responsible party shall
ensure that all investigations and measurements
needed to guarantee the radiation safety are
carried out.
The amount of radioactivity in peat and peat
ash may be so high that the peat producer, the
user of the peat as fuel or the user of the peat
ash is a responsible party under the Radiation
Act. The peat producer is accordingly obliged to
inform those burning the peat of the contained
radioactivity. In turn, those burning the peat
must further inform users of the peat ash of
the contained radioactivity. Furthermore, if
necessary, the users of other kind of ash must be
informed of the contained radioactivity.
4.2 Other guidelines
Industrial by-products or wastes
incorporated in building materials
When there are plans to incorporate industrial
by-products or wastes in building materials and
it is discovered or there is reason to suspect that
these contain radioactive nuclides in greater
amounts than normal, the activity concentrations
of these radioactive nuclides in the final product
shall be measured. Where necessary, also other
nuclides than those listed in section 3 shall be
taken into consideration. If a by-product or waste
containing radioactive nuclides is incorporated in
building materials, it must be confirmed that the
action level 1 mSv per year laid out in the second
paragraph of chapter 2 is not exceeded.
STUK
Ash incorporated in concrete
When ash is added to concrete the action level
0,1 mSv per year set out in the last paragraph
of chapter 2 is not exceeded if the activity
concentration of 137Cs in the ash is less than
1000 Bq/kg and the maximum amount of ash
incorporated in the concrete is 120 kg/m3. If the
amount of ash incorporated in the concrete is less
than 120 kg/m3, the activity concentration of the
ash may be correspondingly higher.
Filling gravel used in house building
The major source of radon in indoor air is
the radon released from soil into the house.
The radon released from filling gravel may
remarkably contribute to the radon concentration
of indoor air also because of its permeability.
The radioactivity of the filling gravel must be
investigated if there is reason to suspect that it
contains natural radioactive nuclides in greater
amounts than normal. If that becomes evident,
special attention shall be paid to the radon
safety level of the foundations and, if necessary,
rock material with a lower activity concentration
shall be used.
Reducing the level of gamma radiation
Even if activity index I2 or I3 exceeds the value
1, material can often be used for the purposes
described in items 3.2 or 3.3, provided that it
is covered with a sufficiently thick layer of ma-
terial that absorbs gamma radiation.
Fuel peat
The radioactivity of the fuel peat should be
measured especially where the area of the peat
bog under production is larger than 50 hectares
or where the production exceeds 20 000 m3
per year. If the ash percent is not known, the
activity concentration of a nuclide in the peat
ash can be calculated by multiplying the activity
concentration of that nuclide in the peat by 20.
Mounding of ash
To ensure against the inhalation of radioactive
nuclides, ash mounds must always be covered by
a material that prevents the dust from rising.
5
STUK
Disposal of ash in dump
If the activity index I4 of ash is 1 or less than
1, the ash can, so far as its radioactivity is con-
cerned, be disposed in a guarded dump without a
specific investigation.
Representativeness of the material samples
If there is reason to suspect that the activity
concentration of building material or ash is
varying remarkably the sampling shall
be planned in such a way that samples are
representative in regard to the material to be
examined. The measurements shall be carried
out using a method proved to be reliable. The
measuring equipment must be calibrated in an
appropriate way.
6
GUIDE ST 12.2 / 8 OCTOBER 2003
Further information
The basis of the formulas of the activity indexes
and the calculation methods for estimating ra-
diation doses caused by materials are presented
in the bibliographical reference 2.
Bibliography
1. European Commission. Radiological protection
principles concerning the natural radioactiv-
ity of building materials. Radiation Protection
112. Luxembourg: Office for Official Publi-
cations of the European Communities; 2000.
2. Markkanen M. Radiation dose assessments for
materials with elevated natural radioactivity.
Report STUK-B-STO 32. Helsinki: Radiation
and Nuclear Safety Authority - STUK; 1995.
3. Mustonen R. Building materials as sources of
indoor exposure to ionizing radiation. STUK-
GUIDE ST 12.2 / 8 OCTOBER 2003
ST GUIDES (28 October 2005)
General Guides
ST 1.1 Safety of radiation practices, 23 May 2005
ST 1.3 Warning Signs for Radiation Sources,
10 November 1999
ST 1.4 Radiation User's Organization, 16 April 2004
ST 1.5 Exemption of the Use of Radiation from the
Safety Licence and Reporting Obligation,
1 July 1999
ST 1.6 Operational Radiation Protection,
29 December 1999
ST 1.7 Radiation Protection Training in Health Care,
17 February 2003
ST 1.8 Qualifications of Persons Working in
Radiation User’s Organization and Radiation
Protection Training Required for Competence,
16 April 2004
Radiation Therapy
ST 2.1 Quality Assurance in Radiotherapy,
22 May 2003
ST 2.2 Radiation Safety of Radiotherapy Equipment
and Treatment Rooms, 2 February 2001.
Diagnostic Radiology
ST 3.1 Use and Regulatory Control of Dental X-ray
Installations, 27 May 1999
ST 3.2 Mammography Equipment and Their Use, 13
August 2001
ST 3.3 Diagnostic X-ray Equipment and Its Use,
27 August 1992
ST 3.4 Quality Control of Image Intensifier -
Television Chains, 24 October 1991
ST 3.5 Quality Control of Diagnostic X-ray Equip-
ment and Film Processing, 3 December 1991
ST 3.6 Radiation Safety in X-ray Facilities,
24 September 2001.
ST 3.7 Breast Cancer Screening Based on
Mammography, 28 March 2001
Industry, Research, Education and
Commerce
ST 5.1 Radiation Safety of Sealed Sources and
Equipment Containing Them,
17 February 1999
ST 5.3 Use of Ionising Radiation in the Teaching of
Physics and Chemistry, 17 February 1999
ST 5.4 Trade in Radiation Sources, 2 October 2000
ST 5.6 Radiation Safety in Industrial Radiography,
17 February 1999
STUK
ST 5.8 Installation, Repair and Servicing of
Radiation Appliances, 17 February 1999
Unsealed Sources and Radioactive
Wastes
ST 6.1 Radiation Safety Requirements for
Radionuclide Laboratories, 1 July 1999
ST 6.2 Radioactive Wastes and Discharges,
1 July 1999
ST 6.3 Use of Radiation in Nuclear Medicine,
18 March 2003
Radiation Doses and Health
Surveillance
ST 7.1 Monitoring of Radiation Exposure,
25 February 2000
ST 7.2 Application of Maximum Values for
Radiation Exposure and Principles for the
Calculation of Radiation Dose, 1 July 1999
ST 7.3 Calculation of the Dose Caused by Internal
Radiation, 1 July 1999
ST 7.4 Registration of Radiation Doses,
25 February 2000
ST 7.5 Medical Surveillance of Occupationally
Exposed Workers, 29 December 1999
(in Finnish)
Non-Ionizing Radiation
ST 9.1 Radiation Safety Requirements and
Regulatory Control of Tanning Appliances
1 December 2003 (in Finnish)
ST 9.2 Radiation Safety of Pulsed Radars,
2 September 2003 (in Finnish)
ST 9.3 Radiation Safety during Work on Masts at
FM and TV Stations, 2 September 2003 (in
Finnish)
ST 9.4 Radiation Safety of High Power Display
Lasers, 8 October 1993 (in Finnish)
Natural Radiation
ST 12.1 Radiation Safety in Practices Causing
Exposure to Natural Radiation, 6 April
2000
ST 12.2 The Radioactivity of Building Materials
and Ash, 8 October 2003
ST 12.3 Radioactivity of Household Water,
9 August 1993
ST 12.4 Radiation safety in aviation, 20 June 2005.