Optimization of radiation protection

The practical and theoretical problems raised by the optimization of radiological protection merit a review of decision-making methods, their relevance, and the way in which they are used in order to better determine what role they should play in the decision-making process. Following a brief summary of the theoretical background of the cost-benefit analysis, we examine the methodological choices implicit in the model presented in the International Commission on Radiological Protection Publication No. 26 and, particularly, the consequences of the theory that the level of radiation protection, the benefits, and the production costs of an activity can be treated separately.