Instruction IS-41, dated July 26, 2016, of the Nuclear Safety Council, approving the requirements for the physical protection of radioactive sources. Published in: «Official State Gazette» No. 224, of September 16, 2016, pages 66771 to 66782 (12 pages). Section: III. Other provisions Department: Nuclear Safety Council Reference: BOE-A-2016-8514 PDF of the provision: http://www.boe.es/boe/dias/2016/09/16/pdfs/BOE-A-2016-8514.pdf
Tenth. Specific requirements for physical protection to be applied during the transport of radioactive sources.
- Article 26.3 of Royal Decree 1308/2011, of September 26, establishes that: «When transfers of radioactive sources of categories 1 and 2 are carried out within mobile equipment, radioactive devices, or transport containers, to be used in the activities authorized to the radioactive installation to which they belong, the Physical Protection Plan presented by the holder of the radioactive installation, in accordance with the provisions of Article 24, must consider and cover the risks inherent in these transfers.» Paragraph 4 of this same article states that these transfers do not require prior notification as long as they are carried out under the exclusive responsibility of the holder of the radioactive sources and using their own means of transportation.
- Transfers from the corresponding radioactive installation to the workplace, and vice versa, shall be expressly included in its operating authorization.
- The technical requirements described in this article shall also apply to the transfer of radioactive sources of category 3.
- The transported radioactive sources may be temporarily stored at the workplace provided that the physical protection measures comply with the requirements set out in this instruction, or otherwise, measures are taken that provide the same level of protection as required by the mentioned requirement.
- All entries and exits of sources from the radioactive installation must be recorded in a logbook.
- The installation shall have procedures to ensure that the transfers have been expressly authorized by the holder and are carried out in accordance with the requirements set forth in this Instruction.
- Vehicles used for the transport of radioactive sources must be equipped with the following systems, provided they do not compromise the intervention of emergency services:
a) They must be equipped with an alarm system to detect any attempt at intrusion into the vehicle or the cargo compartment in which the source or sources are being transported.
b) They must be equipped with an anti-theft system that includes an electronic immobilizer system.
c) They must be equipped with a lock or security padlock in the cargo compartment. The walls of this compartment, as well as the hinges of its doors, must be protected in such a way that they offer the same level of delay as the lock or security padlock.
- The transport container used for the transport of radioactive sources:
a) Must be equipped with a lock or security padlock.
b) During transport, it must be secured to the vehicle chassis or to a structure firmly attached to the chassis by chains with security padlocks or any other tie-down that provides an equivalent delay capability.
- Whenever possible, the driver, operator, or any other personnel of the holder of the radioactive source must continuously monitor the transport vehicle when the source or sources are inside. In all cases, the time the vehicle remains unattended must be kept to a minimum, and in all cases, it must be parked in a supervised location.
- The driver or operator of the radioactive source must be provided with communication means permanently and have written instructions on how to act in case of any event that may threaten the physical protection of the transported sources.
- Prior to the transfer, coordination with the customer must be carried out regarding the date and time of transfer, as well as the possibility of storage of the radioactive sources.
- The manner in which these requirements are specifically implemented must be described in the Physical Protection Plan of the original radioactive installation.