Feedback for the interactive online course in January 2022 was 99% positive.
Over 300 regulators, industry or SME representatives and researchers have already benefitted from our training on Radiological Environmental Protection. A focus of the courses is the ERICA Tool. This is now the most widely used radiological environmental assessment software worldwide (more detail below).
This course will update existing users of ERICA on the new functions and features of version 2.0 of the Tool (launched 18 November 2021).
Location:
Online
Cost:
Professionals: £269
Students and alliance members: £219
(above early bird discount - then £50 more thereafter)
Date:
TBC
This course was a bridging course to update those familiar with the previous version of ERICA. We are currently reviewing if we will run this course again.
Please express your interest here, so we can fix a future course date
If you are new to radiological environmental protection and/or the ERICA Tool, please consider our full Radiological Environmental Protection course.
More background on version 2.0 of the ERICA Tool:
The full version 2.0 was launched on 18 November f2021. The updated version of the ERICA Tool includes many new features, changes and updates. These include:
- A different dosimetry approach (implementing ICRP Publication 136)
- Inclusion of noble gases (including Rn)
- Updated transfer parameter (concentration ratios and distribution coefficients) values
- Changes in the implementation of concentration ratios
Course objectives:
To ensure that participants:
- Are aware of the changes to the ERICA Tool;
- Are familiar with new functionalities;
- Have some appreciation of how assessments results may have change (Version 1.3 to version 2.0).
Target audience:
Regulators, industry, consultants, researchers (PhD students are welcome) with experience of using the ERICA Tool.
Level:
It is ESSENTIAL that you have previous experience of using the ERICA Tool.
Places:
Each course will have a maximum of 30 places.
Hardware and software requirements:
You will need a laptop, desktop or tablet to view the teaching sessions. A second (external) screen will be useful for the interactive sessions (but not essential). NOTE: You will not be able to use an Apple Mac or a tablet to run the ERICA Tool model. For the practical exercises included in the course, you will need a laptop/desktop running Windows. System requirements are 32/64 bit Windows 7/8.1/10; 128 MB RAM (Recommended: 512 MB RAM or greater); At least 205 MB of free hard disk space. For the ERICA model to work well, you need a minimum screen resolution of 1024x768.
You can download ERICA 2.0 final version here https://erica-tool.com/ (including update on radionuclides and final Help file)
We will use Zoom for interactive online learning. You do not need a Zoom account to join. Please check if your device is compatible with Zoom and that you can access Zoom through the internet connection that you will use during the course. We recommend that you install the Zoom program if you are able to do so: https://ukceh-ac-uk.zoom.us/test
We list a number of guidance documents on how to use Zoom on our FAQ page. This includes information on how to use the web browser version if you are restricted from installing the Zoom App. We will explain the full Zoom functionality at the start of the course.
We will give you access to the online Learning Management System once registered.
Having a webcam is desirable (but not essential). If you plan to participate from an open-plan office or noisy environment, please wear headphones with a built-in microphone.
Bespoke courses:
We would be happy to offer bespoke refresher courses to individual organisations. If this is of interest please contact Dr Ingo Schüder via UKCEHtraining@ceh.ac.uk
Course delivery:
We will deliver this course in a blended learning format. We will use Zoom and a Learning Management System (LMS) to deliver the content.
Course trainers:
Prof. David Copplestone (University of Stirling), Prof. Mike Wood (University of Salford).
Course developers:
Prof. Nick Beresford (UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology); Prof. David Copplestone (University of Stirling), Prof. Mike Wood (University of Salford).
This course was created by key developers of national and international approaches to protect the environment from ionizing radiation. They are members of relevant ICRP committees and working groups, lead IAEA activities in the field, and continue to develop new methodologies and conduct field/laboratory experimentation in the area. David Copplestone was previously employed by a UK regulator (the Environment Agency), and Mike Wood and Nick Beresford won a Times Higher Education award for their work in the area. Both Nick Beresford and David Copplestone contributed to the development and testing of version 2.0 of the ERICA Tool.
Our colleague Professor Nick Beresford, a pioneer in the field of radioecology, sadly died on 1 May 2023. Read more about Nick here: https://www.ceh.ac.uk/professor-nick-beresford
Feedback from previous participants on the full Radiological environmental protection course:
"The organisation was impeccable and the teachers very helpful and undoubtedly among the greatest experts in their field. I certainly recommend the Radioecology courses offered by UKCEH to anyone who intends to approach the subject " - (Giuseppe Lepori, eni, Italy January 2022)
"Great course - I will definitely recommend. It was great to have direct access to the experts" - (Cathy-Emery-Scheib, Environmental Agency, January 2022)
"Excellent refresher programme, highly recommend" - (Learner feedback January 2022)
"As for the introductory course (Radiological Environental Protection), the refresher course met my expectations. The organisation was impeccable and as regards the teachers very helpful and undoubtedly among the greatest experts in the field. I certainly recommend the Radioecology courses offered by UK CEH to anyone intends to approach the subject."
"Great course - I will definitely recommend it. It is great to have direct access to the experts."
“The course was great and has given me the confidence to use the ERICA tool in practice. Highly recommended!” (Dr Fiona Charalambous, ARPANSA, November 2020)
“It has been a great course run by the absolute experts in radiological risk assessment with an excellent cohort of co-learners from industry, government, and academia.” (Darren Koppel, Curtin University Australia, November 2020)
“It was absolutely fantastic to have access to some of the best radioecologists and to see the beginnings of our own regional radioecology community emerging.” (Liesel Green, ARPANSA, November 2020)
"Having been on a lot of training over the last few years I am extremely impressed by the tutors knowledge, approachability, enthusiasm, and teaching ability. Often training is delivered by experts with no ability to engage with or adapt to their target audience. Overall I felt like I came away understanding some content I had previously struggled with. Thank you for the time and effort given to developing this course; it is appreciated." (learner from Magnox, 2019)
“An excellent interactive course with a good balance of lectures and practicals. Practicals reinforced the learning from lectures.”
“Really useful course to help clarify what you need to consider and more importantly why”
“Practical exercises really useful – feel I have enough knowledge to go away and useful/develop my understanding of ERICA. An excellent interactive course.”
“The course provided a comprehensive insight into the ERICA tool and its application. As well as interactive use of the software, case-studies relevant to Australian users were presented and considered by the trainees. The trainers had an in-depth knowledge of the software and the methodologies required to successfully interpret its outputs. I would highly recommend this course to anyone with an interest in environmental radiation protection.”
“The National Nuclear Regulator in Pretoria, South Africa, expresses its gratitude to UKCEH, in particular Prof. Nick Beresford and Cath Barnett, for making the effort to present the course on RADIOLOGICAL PROTECTION OF THE ENVIRONMENT (BIOTA) in Pretoria. The course was very interesting and well presented. It was a privilege to attend a course of such an outstanding quality. We hope to have much more collaboration in the future.”