Basic safety standards

To ensure that during normal operation, maintenance and decommissioning, and in emergency situations, the radiation exposure to workers and the public is kept below the dose limits given in the Basic Safety Standards for Radiation Protection (BSS). The standards are set at a maximum of 5 REM annually and a maximum of 3 REM quarterly. 

Prevention and control essentially deals with the eliminaUon of diose conditions which make die explosion possible. Tliis is accomplished through die application of basic safety standards, acceptable safe pracUces and good engineering judgement. Primary standards md safe pracUces applicable midcr die various explosion categories are available in die literature. ... 

IAEA, International Basic Safety Standards for Protection Against Ionizing Radiation and for the Safety of Radiation Sources, Safety Series 115, International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna, 1996. 

For the detailed recommendations, we refer the reader to the full text of the Basic Safety Standards published by IAEA. Here we list some of the highlights ... 

Numerous studies have been done on the effects of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki these studies have led to the most recent modifications of Basic Safety Standards. 

An environmental monitoring program should be established if there is a need for it as discussed in the BSS (Basic Safety Standards). 

The Basic Safety Standards were mainly used to establish the criteria for use in assessing whether the radiological conditions at Mururoa and Fangataufa atolls represent any hazard to people presently in the region or who may reside on the atolls, and in making recommendations on any monitoring or remedial action that might be required. 

International Atomic Energy Agency (1996). Basic Safety Standards. IAEA, Vienna, Austria. 

The state of the physical conditions encountered on these first inspections was poor. Some 70 years of excessive material had built up in comers and wherever else stuff could be dumped. No floor demarcation was present, and basic safety standards were nonexistent. Windows were generally dirty, and the floors were covered with dirt, electrical extension cords, hoses, and other obstructions. 

Basic standards (type A). These fundamental standards contain general principles for safe design or measurement techniques/levels for EMC and may be applied to products when appropriate. The A and B standards are especially important for EMC and machinery. Some examples of basic safety standards for machinery are EN 292-1/-2 (Design Concepts), and EN 1050 (Risk Assessment). The EN 61000-4-X series (lEC 801-X) for immunity levels is an example of basic standards for EMC. 

This Safety Guide, which is jointly sponsored by the FAO, the IAEA, the International Labour Office, the PAHO and the WHO, gives detailed guidance on the key elements for the organization and operation of a national regulatory infrastructure for radiation safety, with particular reference to the functions of the national regulatory body that are necessary to ensure the implementation of the Basic Safety Standards. The Safety Guide is based technically on material first published in IAEA-TECDOC-1067 which was jointly sponsored by the FAO, the IAEA, the OECD/NEA, the PAHO and the WHO. The requirements established in GS-R-1 have been taken into account. 

The Basic Safety Standards [2] can be applied only by means of an effective infrastructure for radiation safety, which includes adequate legislation and regulations, an efficient regulatory system, supporting experts and services, and a commitment to safety shared by all those with responsibilities for protection and safety, including both management and workers. 

Regulatory bodies should establish a basic foundation of performance regulations that is consistent with the general principles of radiation safety. Regulations should be based on the Basic Safety Standards [2] and other international standards for radiation protection and the safety of radiation sources. Due account shall also be taken of internationally recognized standards and recommendations, such as IAEA safety standards (Ref [1], para. 5.28). 

Exemption is a regulatory mechanism that provides operators with relief from regulatory requirements, including those for notification and authorization of practices or sources within a practice. Where exemption is considered appropriate, the exemption criteria presented in Schedule 1 of the Basic Safety Standards [2] should be applied for such purposes. This Schedule describes those practices or sources within a practice that can be automatically exempted without further consideration from the requirements of the Basic Safety Standards and those sources for which a conditional exemption may be granted. 

Notification is the mechanism that provides initial information to the regulatory body about the possession of a source or the intention to conduct a practice. The Basic Safety Standards [2] require that the regulatory system itself requires that any such possession of a source or intention to conduct a practice, unless exempted, be notified to the regulatory body. For those sources and sources within practices for which normal exposures are expected to be very small and the likelihood and magnitudes of potential exposures are negUgible, but which are not suitable for exemption for some reason (e.g. to prevent uncontrolled waste disposal), the regulatory body may only require notification. 

Suppliers are one of the parties identified as having responsibihties for the apphcation of the Basic Safety Standards (Ref [2], para. 1.7). The regulatory body shall take into account, as necessary, the activities of suppliers of services and products to the operator (Ret [1], para. 5.12). The regulatory body should require supphers of sources and equipment, as well as companies that provide maintenance services, to be authorized. The regulatory body should, as necessary, require these organizations to ... 

Important factors that are relevant to justification in relation to safety and which may lead to optimized protection, as required in the Basic Safety Standards (Ref [2], para. 111.15), include the following ... 

The Basic Safety Standards [2] state that the regulatory body should require that all parties develop a safety culture, which establishes that, as an overriding priority, radiation safety issues receive the attention warranted by their significance. This requirement for fostering a safety culture also applies to the regulatory body, since the regulatory body and its staff are essential... 

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