FORCON: Local decision support system for the provision of advice in agriculture - Methodology and experience of practical implementation

Experience gained in the CIS in the aftermath of the Chernobyl accident has demonstrated a need for the development of a practical decision support system capable of providing advice on agricultural countermeasure strategy at the local level. Such a system is being developed within the agricultural countermeasures module of Joint Study Project 1 under the umbrella of the EC-CIS Agreement on the Consequences of the Chernobyl Accident. This system, which has received the acronym FORCON, takes into account such factors as soil type, current farming practice and management. This paper gives an overview of the main features of the FORCON system. Methodology, models and associated databases used in the system are described. The criteria for the evaluation of the existing radiological situation in agriculture and estimation of the effectiveness of countermeasures are discussed. The comparable analysis of different strategies for implementing countermeasures in a settlement situated on contaminated territory are presented.