News Releases
Canada Signs Agreement on Import and Export of Radioactive Sources with Thailand at the International Atomic Energy Agency 54th General Conference
10-08
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 24, 2010
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) has signed an Administrative Arrangement on the harmonization of regulatory controls on the import and export of radioactive sources with the Office of Atoms for Peace (OAP) in Thailand.The Arrangement was signed at the International Atomic Energy Agency’s 54th General Conference in Vienna, Austria.
Administrative Arrangements establish measures to ensure that imports and exports of Category 1 and 2 radioactive sources between Canada and its bilateral partners are conducted in a manner consistent with requirements under the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) Code of Conduct on the Safety and Security of Radioactive Sources (the Code) and the IAEA Guidance on the Import and Export of Radioactive Sources (the Guidance).
Canada is a world leader in the manufacture and export of Category 1 and 2 radioactive sources that are subject to the provisions of the IAEA Code and Guidance. The Government of Canada is a leading proponent of establishing and maintaining an effective, efficient and harmonized international regime to ensure the safety and security of such sources. The Government of Thailand equally shares this view, as evidenced by its contributions to the development of the Code and Guidance and their efforts to adopt best practices related to the transfer and control of Category 1 and 2 sources.
“I am very pleased to have concluded this Arrangement with CNSC’s Thai regulatory counterpart”, said CNSC President Michael Binder. “These Arrangements are important instrumental components to implementing the IAEA Code and Guidance. They demonstrate our continued efforts to meet Canada’s international commitments and are evidence of the strong working relationship our countries share regarding nuclear safety and security.”
The signing of the Administrative Arrangement with the OAP contributes to the efforts and commitments the organizations and their Government have made to the establishment of a harmonized international regime to ensure the safety and security of Category 1 and 2 radioactive sources.
For additional information, consult: www.nuclearsafety.gc.ca/eng/lawsregs/agreements/index.cfm
or contact:
Aurele Gervais
CNSC Media Relations
613-996-6860
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Administrative Arrangements for Import and Export of
Radioactive Sources
Canada is a global leader in the export of risk-significant radioactive sources that are subject to the provisions of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Code of Conduct on the Safety and Security of Radioactive Sources (the Code) and the IAEA Guidance on the Import and Export of Radioactive Sources (the Guidance) (PDF). As such, the Government of Canada is a strong proponent of the establishment and maintenance of an effective, efficient and harmonized international regime to ensure the safety and security of such sources. In support of such action, the Government of Canada made a political commitment to the IAEA on the implementation of the import and export control provisions of the Code and Guidance. The CNSC is responsible for implementing the requisite import and export control measures under the Nuclear Safety and Control Act.
The CNSC is pursuing bilateral Administrative Arrangements with international counterpart organizations in various countries to establish measures to ensure that imports and exports of radioactive sources between Canada and these countries are conducted in a manner consistent with the IAEA Code and Guidance. These Arrangements will assist in harmonizing regulatory approaches for the authorization of imports and exports and will facilitate the sharing of regulatory information related to such imports and exports.
Radioactive sealed sources are used around the world in medicine, industry, agriculture, research and education, and vary widely in radiological risk. In 2005, the IAEA published a risk-based ranking of radioactive sources and practice, which uses five categories. The category assigned to each radioactive substance that makes up a sealed source takes into consideration factors such as the radiological risk associated with the source, the nature of the work or application, the mobility of the source, experience from reported accidents, and typical versus unique activities within an application. These factors are used to assign sources to one of the five categories. Category 1 and 2 sources are considered to pose the greatest risk to human health if not managed safely and securely, while Category 5 sources pose the lowest risk. Category 1 sources are used in self-shielded irradiators for experimental purposes or as a means of sterilization. They are also used in gamma knife radiosurgery and teletherapy as part of cancer treatment to control malignant cells. Category 2 sources are used in industrial radiography to detect internal imperfections (voids, cracks, flaws, etc.) in pressure vessels, pipelines, ships and reactor components.
Since the implementation of the enhanced CNSC import and export control program for radioactive sources in April 2007, the CNSC has authorized transfers of risk-significant sources to 81 countries. The CNSC’s regulatory control program is regarded as a “benchmark” program by other IAEA member states, given the measures it has introduced to allow for effective and efficient authorizations.
The establishment of bilateral Administrative Agreements, pursuant to section 21(1) of the Nuclear Safety and Control Act, with regulatory authorities in countries with which Canada has substantial trade in risk-significant radioactive sources, and with countries that share Canada’s commitments to international controls on transfers of radioactive sources, is a key element of Canada’s regulatory control program. The objective of the Arrangements is to establish efficient and harmonized bilateral procedures for the implementation of import and export controls, thus reducing the risk of undue delays in authorizing transfers of such sources. The CNSC’s work in developing a model bilateral Arrangement and its practical application is highly regarded internationally.
CNSC staff has consulted with Canadian industry and examined import/export data to identify key trading countries for which establishment of bilateral Arrangements would be a priority, for both the CNSC and the Canadian exporters. The first of these Arrangements was signed with the USNRC in March 2007 and other Arrangements recently have come into effect with the Autoridad Regulatoria Nuclear (ARN) of Argentina, the Comissão Nacional de Energia Nuclear (CNEN) of Brazil, the Ministerio de Minas y Energía (MINMINAS) of Colombia, the Comisión National de Seguridad Nuclear y Salvaguardias (CNSNS) of Mexico and the Science and Technology Policy Bureau of the Ministy of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan. CNSC staff has recently concluded negotiations and agreed ad ref texts of Arrangements with the regulatory authorities of Australia, Italy and Thailand. Negotiations are ongoing with Belgium, India and the United Kingdom.
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