Environmental Sampling for Safeguards Purposes

Program 93+2 was initiated aiming at strengthening the effectiveness and improving the efficiency of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards systems. In this framework, the application of new safeguards techniques will allow drawing qualitative conclusions rather than quantitative. In particular environmental sampling proved to be a powerful tool to assure the absence of undeclared nuclear activities at certain declared facilities or at undeclared facilities. In the development of the Strengthening Safeguards and the Integrated Safeguards Systems, the State System of Accounting for and Control of Nuclear Material (SSAC) will undoubtedly play an important role. In this framework, the National Regulatory Authority (ARN) of Argentina is implementing environmental sampling techniques as part of SSAC and this may offer the possibility of sharing the laboratories capabilities with the international safeguards agencies. A brief description of current co-operation on this area is also described. This paper shows the experience obtained with environmental sampling in some facilities of Argentina and a general reference to the procedures used by SSAC’s inspectors for sample collection. It also gives a brief description about laboratories already settled in Argentina to perform the analysis of the samples.