Occupational Radiation Exposure at Commercial Nuclear Power Reactors and Other Facilities 2024: Fifty-Seventh Annual Report (NUREG-0713, Volume 46)
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Publication Information
Manuscript Completed: March 2026
Date Published: March 2026
Prepared by:
T. A. Brock
D. A. Hagemeyer*
D. B. Holcomb*
*Oak Ridge Associated Universities
1299 Bethel Valley Road, SC-200, MS-21
Oak Ridge, TN 37830
T. A. Brock, NRC Project Manager
Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research
Abstract
This report summarizes the occupational exposure data maintained in the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Radiation Exposure Information and Reporting System database. The bulk of the information in this report was compiled from the 2024 annual reports submitted by five of the seven categories1 of NRC licensees subject to the reporting requirements of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations 20.2206, “Reports of individual monitoring.” The annual reports submitted by these licensees consist of radiation exposure records for each monitored individual. These records are analyzed for trends and presented in this report in terms of collective dose and the distribution of dose across the monitored individuals. The term “dose” throughout this report refers to the total effective dose equivalent (TEDE) unless otherwise specified.
Annual reports for 2024 were received from a total of 166 NRC licensees from the five categories included in this report. Collectively, these reports indicate that 133,240 individuals were monitored, 59,338 of whom received a measurable TEDE (a TEDE that is reported as a positive value; see table 3-1). With the data adjusted to account for transient individuals, there were 90,579 unique individuals monitored, 42,352 of whom received a measurable TEDE (see section 5).
The collective TEDE incurred by these individuals was 6,816 person-rem (68,160 person-millisieverts [mSv]), which represents a 10 percent decrease from the 2023 value (see table 3-1). The 2024 collective TEDE is 1 percent higher than the 5-year average of 6,721 person-rem (2019–2023), which is not a statistically significant change.2 The decrease in collective TEDE in 2024 was due to decreases in three categories: industrial radiography licensees (10 percent decrease), commercial nuclear power reactor licensees (12 percent decrease), and fuel cycle licensees (10 percent decrease). The manufacturing and distribution licensees experienced a statistically significant increase in collective TEDE (19 percent increase). Data for independent spent fuel storage installations indicate a numerical increase in collective TED (56 percent increase); however, the data do not indicate a statistically significant change in the collective TEDE.
The number of individuals receiving a measurable TEDE increased by 1 percent from 2023 and was 2 percent above the 5-year average but was not statistically significant. With the data adjusted to account for transient individuals, the average measurable TEDE in 2024 remained at 0.16 rem (1.6 mSv), which is the same as the 5-year average. The average measurable TEDE is defined as the total collective TEDE divided by the number of individuals receiving a measurable TEDE.
In calendar year 2024, the average annual collective TEDE per reactor for light-water reactor (LWR) licensees was 53 person-rem (530 person-mSv). This is a 13 percent decrease from the value reported for 2023 (table 4-3) but does not represent a statistically significant change from the 5-year average. The total number of outage hours at commercial nuclear power plants increased slightly from 2023 to 2024. The collective TEDE for the LWR licensee category decreased by 649 person-rem (6,490 person-mSv), from 5,552 person-rem (55,520 person-mSv) in 2023 to 4,903 person-rem (49,030 person-mSv) in 2024.
The average annual collective TEDE per reactor was 95 person-rem (950 person-mSv) for the 31 boiling-water reactors (BWRs) and 32 person-rem (320 person-mSv) for the 62 pressurized-water reactors (PWRs). The 2024 value for BWRs is 10 percent lower than the 5-year average annual collective TEDE per BWR, which represents a statistically significant decrease. The 2024 value for PWRs is 3 percent higher than the 5-year average annual collective TEDE per PWR, which does not represent a statistically significant increase.
There were 22,509 individuals monitored by two or more licensees during the monitoring year. The assessment of the average measurable TEDE per individual is adjusted each year to account for the reporting of measurable doses for transient individuals by multiple licensees. The adjustments to account for transient individuals are noted in the footnotes for the applicable figures and tables.
1 The seven categories are (1) commercial nuclear power reactors and test reactor facilities, (2) industrial radiographers, (3) fuel processors (including uranium enrichment facilities), fabricators, and reprocessors, (4) facilities involved in manufacturing and distribution of byproduct material, (5) independent spent fuel storage installations, (6) facilities for land disposal of low-level waste, and (7) geologic repositories for high-level waste. Because there are currently no licensed geologic repositories for high-level waste and no NRC-licensed low-level waste disposal facilities in operation, this report considers only five categories.
2 Section 2.2 of this report presents additional statistical comparisons.
Page Last Reviewed/Updated Friday, March 13, 2026
Page Last Reviewed/Updated Friday, March 13, 2026