Initial Efforts to Address the Safety/Security Interface for the Transport of Low-activity Radioactive Material

Regulations governing the safe transport of radioactive material have been developed and maintained at the international and national levels for more than six decades. Following the events of 9/11, a similar effort was initiated for security during the transport of radioactive material; however, safety and security provisions have generally been developed independent of each other. As part of an international effort to address the provisions that complement or conflict with each other in the interface between safety and security during transport, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) convened a consultant meeting in October 2016, to initiate work on (a) identifying needs and developing a plan to address the needs for the transport of low-activity radioactive material with respect to the interface between transport safety and transport security, (b) development of a model workshop that will inform IAEA Member States of the interface between transport safety and security, and (c) development of a draft IAEA publication on the interface between transport safety and transport security. Specifically, the materials addressed by the consultants were limited to Category 3 to 5 radioactive sources as well as other low activity radioactive material (including nuclear materials) below 3000 A2 – as defined in the IAEA transport safety regulations – or below 10D – as defined in the IAEA Code of Conduct [5] – depending on the radionuclide(s) involved. Emphasis was placed on these materials since, worldwide, little emphasis is placed on security for their transport. The products of the first meeting were: (a) an overview of the needs and methods for clarifying safety/security interfaces, (b) a draft agenda for a workshop on the safety/security interface of low- activity radioactive material during transport, and (c) an initial draft of a proposed IAEA publication on “Managing the Interface Between Safety and Security for the Transport of Low-activity Radioactive Material”. A second meeting to further address these issues was scheduled to convene in Vienna in late May 2017. This paper will elaborate on the work performed at the first of these consultancy meetings.