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Technical Article 1

Safety Regulations Governing the Transport of Radioactive Material

Introduction

Thousands of shipments of radioactive materials of all kinds are transported on international and national routes, each day. Radioactive shipments, which are transported by inland waterways, air, sea, rail and road, can range from cobalt sources for medical and industrial uses, smoke detectors, to nuclear fuel cycle materials for electricity generation.

Over the past several decades the safety of these shipments has been ensured by stringent measures that has been continuously reviewed and updated. Because these cargoes pose hazards to people, property and the environment, safety measures have been developed.

The IAEA Regulations for the Safe Transport of Radioactive Material were published in 1961, on the basis of knowledge given by Member States as well as international organisations.

They are called Regulations but in fact they are recommended regulatory standards for international transport activities.

It is necessary and binding for each State or international/regional organisation to decide on their application. The IAEA Regulations have been used or practised by Member States since 1969.

The IAEA Regulations regulations have been adopted by the principal international organisations having responsibility for transport by inland waterways, air, sea and land. The United Nations Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods have always paid direct attention to the IAEA Regulations, and fully unite them. Almost anywhere in the world, the Regulations apply to the transport of radioactive material.

The IAEA Regulations for the Safe Transport of Radioactive Material

Regularly The IAEA Regulations have been reviewed allowing them to keep up with scientific and technological advancements. The Regulations are based on the rule of action that radioactive material being transported should be packaged sufficiently to supply protection against the different kinds of potential hazards of the material under standard and possible accident conditions. Safety, therefore, relies firstly on the packaging whatever the transport method is. The principle target is to defend people, property and the environment against the immediate and consequential effects of an accident with radiation during transport. The requirements laid down in the Regulations must make safe the containment of the radioactive material, the command of the outside radiation level, the effectual hindrance of a chain reaction and the restriction of damage caused by heat. Because safety relys firstly on the packaging, the Regulations apply several performance standards in this field. The regulations make measures for five different primary packages (Excepted, Industrial, Type A, Type B and Type C) and set the rules agreeing their structure according to both their function and the physical shape of the radioactive material they may comprise. The IAEA Regulations enforce associated test processes to illustrate conformances with the obligatory standard criteria. The Regulations also pay attention to marking and labelling stipulations, and demands put on packages in transportation.

International and regional modal regulations or agreements

The supply of the IAEA Regulations are not only mirrored in the national requisite of Member States, but also in the rules connected to each fashion of transport as distibuted by international or regional organisations.

Transport by Sea

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) issued important international regulations known as the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code (IMDG Code) in 1965. This Code is for the transport of dangerous goods of any discription by sea. It directs issues such as packing and container transportation, with specific attention to the seperate confinement of material that is not compatible. The IMO guides for radioactive material are made on the IAEA Regulations. The IMDG Code proposes advice to those engaged in the transport and movement of radioactive material during transport at sea. The IMO issued the Code for the Safe Carriage of Irradiated Nuclear Fuel, Plutonium and High-Level Radioactive Wastes in containers on ships (INF Code) in addition to the IAEA Regulations in 1993. Although the container package design remains the first safety measure, this Code presents favorable guidance for the design of vessels transporting radioactive material. These additional clauses concentrate on such points as strength of the container after an transport accident, protection from fire, and design resistance. The INF Code was made compulsory and retitled the International Code for the Safe Carriage of Packaged Irradiated Nuclear Fuel, Plutonium and High-Level Radioactive Waste on Board Ships in January 2001.

Transport by Air

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is reliable for all factors of international civil aviation. It expands standards and recommended practices through the elaboration of Annexes to the 1944 Convention on International Civil Aviation. The ICAO selected Annex 18 addressing the transport by air of dangerous goods whilst publishing a set of Technical Instructions (TI) categorising the standards for these transports in 1981. The TI include a sequence of dangerous goods, as well as standards for containers, doucmentation, marking and labelling fully in accordance with the IAEA Regulations. The International Air Transport Association (IATA), an industry organisation representing airlines, issues every year the Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR) which are also in accordance with the ICAO TI as well as the IAEA Regulations.

Transport by Land

The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE) issues the European Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (known as ADR). It includes standardss for the categorisation, packaging, labelling and marking of dangerous goods by road. The IAEA Regulations have been accepted to be relevant to the transport of radioactive material under the ADR. There are 46 contracting States to this Agreement currently. The Intergovernmental Organisation for International Carriage by Rail (OTIF) is accountable for the regulations relating to the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Rail (RID). These are assembled in the agreement concerning the Intergovernmental Organisation for International Carriage by Rail . There are 42 Contracting parties to these Regulations today, which make use of the IAEA Transport Safety Regulations. The MERCOSUR/MERCOSUL1 Agreement of Partial Reach to Facilitate the Transport of Dangerous Goods signed by Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay controls the road and rail transportation of dangerous goods, incorporating radioactive material, between these States and is in accordance with the IAEA Transport Safety Regulations.

Other Transport Methods

The UN/ECE has developed for inland waterways the European Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road with the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Inland Waterways (ADN), while the Central Commission for the Navigation on the Rhine (CCNR) has proclaimed the article relating to the Carriage of Dangerous Goods on the Rhine (ADNR). These arangements have included the IAEA Regulations as the stipulations for the radioactive material transport. Concerning radioactive material that is transported by post. this is controlled directly by the Universal Postal Convention and its precise requirements and regulations are published by the Universal Postal Union. The transport of exempted quantities of radioactive material is allowed by this convention, within the definition of the IAEA Regulations, and must adhere to IAEA stipulations.