IAEA Workshop about Radioactivity in Scrap Metal Module
IAEA Workshop about Radioactivity in Scrap Metal Module 05 - PREVENTION IAEA International Atomic Energy Agency
This presentation describes the roles and responsibilities of the State and the regulatory body to prevent radioactive sources from finding their way into the scrap metal stream, the role of industry, and the actions that the IAEA has taken in response to such incidents IAEA 2
The role of the State IAEA 3
Government shall… • establish through legislation a national regulatory body to regulate the introduction and conduct of any practice involving sources of radiation UN Security Council Resolution 1540 is a security driven measure, but with implications for how states regulate and control radioactive sources IAEA 4
“Regulatory Body” means… • …an authority or a system of authorities designated by the government of a State as having legal authority for conducting the regulatory process, including issuing authorizations, and thereby regulating nuclear, radiation, radioactive waste and transport safety. IAEA 5
The state should ensure that the regulatory body has the authority to… (a) Develop safety principles and criteria; (b) Establish regulations and issue guidance; (c) Require any operator to conduct a safety assessment; (d) Require that any operator to provide it with any necessary information, including information from its suppliers; (e) Issue, amend, suspend or revoke authorizations and to set conditions; IAEA 6
The state should ensure that the regulatory body has the authority to… (f) Require an operator to perform a systematic safety reassessment or a periodic safety review over the lifetime of facilities; (g) Enter a site or facility at any time to carry out an inspection; (h) Enforce regulatory requirements; (i) Communicate directly with governmental authorities at higher levels when ( ) necessary ( ). IAEA 7
The state should ensure that the regulatory body has the authority to… (j) Obtain documents and opinions from private or public organizations or persons as may be necessary (k) Communicate to the public; (l) Make available to other governmental bodies, national and international organizations, and to the public, information on incidents and abnormal occurrences, and other information, as appropriate; IAEA 8
The state should ensure that the regulatory body has the authority to… (m) Liaise and co-ordinate with other governmental or nongovernmental bodies having competence in such areas as health and safety, environmental protection, security and transport of dangerous goods; (n) Liaise with regulatory bodies of other States and with international organizations to promote co-operation and exchange of regulatory information. IAEA 9
The role of the state regarding radioactive material in scrap metal: every state should… • in order to protect people, property and the environment, take the appropriate measures necessary to ensure, to the extent possible, that consignments do not contain radioactive material. • ensure that provisions are established regarding the responsible organizations and arrangements for dealing with the response to, and the consequences of, any discovery of radioactive material in a consignment within its territory. IAEA 10
The role of the state regarding radioactive material in scrap metal: every state should… • . . ensure that these provisions are consistent with requirements for radiological emergencies, transport of radioactive material, and radioactive waste management, as appropriate. • implement provisions such that operators of metal recycling facilities are encouraged to report the discovery of radioactive material in order that appropriate action may be taken by the State to bring the material under regulatory control. IAEA 11
The role of the state regarding radioactive material in scrap metal: every state should… • ensure that any radioactive waste arising from radioactive material that has been inadvertently incorporated into a consignment is managed in an appropriately safe manner. • encourage importing facilities to make it a contractual obligation, where appropriate, for the exporting facility to provide a radiation monitoring report with detailed information, to obtain assurance that the consignment contains no radioactive material, as far as can be ascertained. IAEA 12
Radiation monitoring report - sample contents: 1. Identification of the exporting facility (name, address, telephone number, etc. ); 2. Identification of the importing facility (name, address, telephone number, etc. ); 3. (Unique) identifier of the consignment that has been monitored; 4. Type and quantity of scrap metal and/or semifinished products in the consignment IAEA 13
Radiation monitoring report - sample contents: 5. Details of the radiation monitoring carried out, e. g. , instruments used and readings obtained; position of the monitoring equipment relative to the consignment; 6. Background and investigation levels used; 7. Name, signature and position of the appropriately trained person who carried out the monitoring; 8. Statement that radioactive material was not discovered in the consignment prior to dispatch; 9. Date and place of monitoring. IAEA 14
The radiation monitoring report is NOT a guarantee • It is important to note that the radiation monitoring report is not and cannot be a guarantee that a consignment of scrap metal is free from the presence of all radioactive material • The wide variety of possible radioisotopes, their quantity, their range of gamma ray energies and the characteristics of radiation absorbing metals in the consignment make any such guarantee impossible IAEA 15
Roles of the State in international cooperation • Every State should promote cooperation and establish arrangements with relevant importing States, exporting States and State(s) of transit regarding the discovery of, and response to, the presence of radioactive material in consignments. IAEA 16
Role of the State in awareness • Ensure that the appropriate personnel of facilities in the metal recycling industries, and national customs and/or border control authorities are aware: • (a) That radioactive material may inadvertently have been incorporated into a consignment of metal scrap; • (b) Of procedures for reviewing associated radiation monitoring reports; and • (c) Of the actions necessary to deal with the suspected presence of radioactive material in a consignment. IAEA 17
Role of the State in the measures taken to prevent radiation exposure • Every State should, as appropriate, inform persons who may be involved in the discovery of, and response to, radioactive material in consignments, such as industry and government bodies, of the measures it has taken to prevent radiation exposure. IAEA 18
Role of the state in the management of radioactive material discovered in a consignment • ensure that any radioactive material discovered in a consignment within its territory, or under its jurisdiction or control, is promptly brought under regulatory control and managed safely. • promptly inform potentially affected States, directly or through the IAEA or through another mechanism, in the event of it becoming aware that radioactive material may be present in a consignment that has been dispatched. IAEA 19
Role of the state in the management of radioactive material discovered in a consignment • Every importing State or State of transit should, on discovery of radioactive material in a consignment, notify the exporting State without undue delay. • If the importing State or State of transit decides to return radioactive material discovered in a consignment within its territory to the exporting State, the importing State or State of transit should satisfy itself, insofar as practicable, that the exporting State has the appropriate administrative and technical capability, resources and regulatory infrastructure needed to manage the radioactive material safely. IAEA 20
Role of the state in the management of radioactive material discovered in a consignment • Every exporting State should allow for re-entry into its territory of any radioactive material discovered in a consignment initially exported from its territory. • Every State should ensure that the return of any radioactive material discovered in a consignment within its territory should take place in a manner consistent with existing relevant international standards relating to the safe transport of radioactive material. IAEA 21
Role of the Regulatory Body IAEA 22
Role of the Regulatory Body • Liaise and coordinate with the metal recycling industries, and the customs and/or border authorities, in order to ensure effective cooperation in the event of the discovery of radioactive material; • Assist, as necessary, in a graded manner according to the radiation risk, in confirming the presence of radioactive material that has inadvertently been incorporated into scrap metal or the semi-finished products of metal recycling, following notification by the facility, or the customs and/or border authorities or other relevant national authorities; IAEA 23
Role of the Regulatory Body (cont. ) • In cooperation with other relevant national authorities, develop policies and strategies for the safe management of radioactive material discovered in scrap metal, the semifinished products of the metal recycling industry; • Liaise with regulatory bodies in other States, and relevant regional and international organizations to promote cooperation, the exchange of information and the harmonization of approaches concerning matters within the objectives of the radiation protection strategies. IAEA 24
Role of the Regulatory Body (cont. ) • Encourage the development of radiation safety awareness and appropriate training programmes for metal recycling facilities, customs and/or border authorities, police and emergency response organizations; IAEA 25
Summary of principal functions and activities of the regulatory body • Develop regulations and • • • guides Issue authorizations Perform periodic review and assessment Conduct compliance inspections Take enforcement action Investigate incidents and accidents IAEA 26
Role of industry IAEA 27
Role of Industry With respect to each consignment and to the extent practicable, industry should: • conduct a more thorough investigation for the presence of radioactive material than would normally be the case if there is a history of consignments from specific exporting facilities containing radioactive material, • review the radiation monitoring report provided by the exporting facility. If no such report has been provided, a more thorough investigation for the presence of radioactive material should be undertaken than would normally be the case; IAEA 28
Role of Industry (cont. ) • Conduct a visual inspection of the consignment by an appropriately trained person; • Perform radiation monitoring at appropriate stages in the movement and processing of scrap metal and the manufacture of semi-finished products where radioactive material might be detected, including entrances and exits of facilities up to and within the melting facility; IAEA 29
Role of Industry (cont. ) • Specify the immediate safety actions to be taken in the event of: (i) Visible evidence of the presence of a radioactive source in scrap metal; (ii) An investigation level being exceeded; or (iii) The presence of radioactive material in a consignment being otherwise suspected; IAEA 30
Role of Industry (cont. ) • Specification of the procedures to confirm that radioactive material is present and to control and isolate any discovered radioactive material; • Notification to the regulatory body in the event of the discovery of radioactive material in accordance with national arrangements, as appropriate. IAEA 31
IAEA Code of Conduct, Import/Export and Transboundary Movement of Metal Scrap Most IAEA member states have the relevant regulatory framework and their regulatory bodies performs the appropriate functions to prevent radioactive sources from becoming orphaned IAEA 32
IAEA documents pertaining to radioactivity in scrap metal IAEA 33
IAEA International Catalogue of Sealed Radioactive Sources and Devices (ICSRS) IAEA 34
How the IAEA gathers international experience and disseminates information IAEA 35
How big is the problem and what are the costs? • Decontamination Response Radiological accident Prevention $ • Waste management • Legal aspects • Loss of clients $$$ $ IAEA 36
Emergency Response • Emergency Response is a critical phase • A well prepared, shared and rehearsed emergency response plan is essential to: • Ensure effectiveness • Protect the workforce, public and environment • Optimise costs • Sustain confidence of the public and rest of industry • Sustain relationships with other involved States IAEA 37
Summary • • • The role of the state The radiation monitoring report The role of the regulatory body The role of industry IAEA activities to prevent, control, respond to and to share information about events involving radioactivity in scrap metal IAEA 38
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