NEWSLETTER
Radiation Safety andRadioactive Waste Management

May 2009

No.2

Issued byAustralian Nuclear Scienceand Technology
Organisation (ANSTO)FNCA 2008 - Workshop on
Radiation Safety and Radioactive Waste Management (RS & RWM)
November 3- 7, Sydney, Australia

Participants in the 2008 Workshop

The FNCA 2008 Workshop on Radiation Safety and Radioactive Waste Management (RS&RWM) was held in
Sydney, Australia, 3 - 7 November, 2008. The Workshop was hosted by the Australian Nuclear Science andTechnology Organisation (ANSTO) and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT)
of Japan, in cooperation with the Nuclear Safety Research Association (NSRA) of Japan.
Representatives from eight FNCA member countries (Australia, Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia,
Thailand, and Vietnam) were involved in the workshop sessions. The sessions included discussions on policy,
regulations, operations and R&D on RS & RWM. Countries attending the workshop included.
On the first day, following the opening addresses and welcome speeches were made by Mr. Lubi Dimitrovski(ANSTO & Project Leader of Australia), Dr. Ron Cameron (Acting CEO ANSTO, & FNCA Coordinator). Professor
Toshiso Kosako provided the Keynote FNCA Address as the Project Leader of Japan. Session 1 included
explanatory lecture on the theme of Radiation Safety Principles by Dr. Takatoshi Hattori. In Session 2, the country
reports were presented detailing the current status of RS&RWM in each country followed by a Poster/Mini-Exhibition
was held to facilitate enhancement and understanding of the relative important activities in RS & RWM.
On the second day, Sessions 3 and 4 were presented. Session 3 provided topics on specific radiation safety issues
including examples and experiences in radiation measurements using personal dosimeters, decommissioning
management involving mixed wastes (radioactive and asbestos), spent source disposal, dose constraint measures,
and air/water discharge limit assessments. Session 4 focused on radioactive waste management within two specificthemes. Theme 1 comprised of presentations by Australia and Bangladesh on the siting of radioactive waste facilities
and Theme 2 presentations by Thailand and Japan on specific safety issues relating to radioactive waste
management. A technical visit to ANSTO’s waste operation facilities was conducted at the end of Day 2.
1

Workshop

Poster Session

On the third day technical visits were made to the HIFAR & MOATA research reactors, both under various stages ofdecommissioning, to ANSTO’s Low Level Waste Storage Facility and the OPAL Reactor and Bragg Institute.
On the fourth day Session 5 consisted of a Sub-Meeting on Radiation Safety at Nuclear Power Plants & Nuclear
Research Reactors. Session 6 consisted of a Round-Table
discussion on ’Future cooperation with other international
programs such as IAEA/ANSN and RCA/RAS9042’.
The “RS & RWM 3-Year Work Plan for 2008-2010” under the
FNCA framework was discussed and successfully concluded.
All FNCA Project Leaders recognised the valuable technicaldiscussions and networking opportunities provided by the FNCA
RS & RWM Workshop. The benefits of this workshop included
information exchange and the sharing of experiences oncommon radiation safety and radioactive waste management
issues. The Project Leaders were unanimous in their ongoingsupport for the FNCA RS & RWM workshop and the need toVisit to Moata Reactor
sustain this cooperation to ensure that RS & RWM issues arebeing continually addressed in this region. The participants noted a possible exchange of information between the
FNCA and the ANSN.
All participants expressed their gratitude to the organisers, ANSTO, MEXT, and to the cooperation of NSRA.

Topics from Participating Countries
was extended to include activation analysis andneutron radiography from the mid 1970s.

AUSTRALIA

Mr. Lubi Dimitrovski
Waste Operations Manager
Australian
NuclearScienceTechnology Organisation (ANSTO)&

Status of Decommissioning the MOATA
Reactor‘Moata’ is a 100 kW Argonaut type reactor that was
operated for 34 years from 1961 to 1995. The
Australian Atomic Energy Commission (now ANSTO)
installed the Moata research reactor to train scientists
in reactor control and neutron physics and toaccumulate
experimental
nucleardata
onfuel/moderator systems. The scope of operations

Moata (early 2008)

In 1995, the Moata reactor was shutdown as its
continued operation could no longer be economicallyjustified. The fuel was removed and the primarycoolant (demineralised water) drained from thereactor.
2

The reactor core is contained within a monolithic
concrete bioshield, approximately 5.8 m wide, 6.4 mlong and 3.3 m high. The core cavity measuresapproximately 1.2 m wide, 1.5 m long and 1.6 m high.

Material
Graphite
Metallic
components
Concrete
Total

The 90% high enriched uranium (HEU) fuelassemblies consisted of 12 aluminium clad fuel plates
each containing about 22 g of U235 in analuminium/uranium alloy.

Free
release

LLW

ILW

Total
Mass

(kg)

(kg)

(kg)

(kg)

5,400

6,200

0

11,600

150

3,400

0.15

3,550

222,100
227,650

60,30069,90000282,400
297,550

Table 1: Solid waste from decommissioning

The HEU spent fuel assemblies from Moata wereunloaded and stored in pits beside the reactor for 11
years before being sent to the USA in 2006 (under the
US origin HEU return program).

A temporary tent enclosure has been set up on top of
the reactor block to contain any possible
contamination that may arise from the removal of
items from the reactor core.

The licence for Moata changed from an operating
licence to a ‘possess, control and decommission’
licence in 2001 under Australia’s nuclear regulator(ARPANSA).
Decommissioning will compromise of three stages,
preliminary dismantling, dismantling of the bioshield,
and site restoration.
Preliminary dismantling involves the removal of allinternal separable parts of the reactor. The reactor
tanks and connecting coolant pipework, control
absorbers and drives, graphite reflector, internal leadshielding, and various steel support plates will all be
removed in this stage.

Preliminary dismantling tent (Jan 2009)

Metallic items in the core will be removed andwrapped in plastic, labelled and sent forcharacterisation and storage. The graphite will be
removed from the reactor block by crane and placedin specially constructed steel containers. All thegraphite will be stored on site as it is nuclear grade
material.
The preliminary-dismantling stage is expected to becompleted during June 2009.
The bioshield is comprised of 300mm of high density
concrete (50% iron) around the core and normal
density concrete for the remainder. Core-hole drillingsof the low density concrete have been done tocharacterise the concrete. Analysis showed that thelevel of activation was significantly lower than
predicted by early calculations.

Core area showing fuel tanks, pipework, control absorbers andgraphite (Oct 08)

All equipment around Moata such as beam lines andinstruments has been removed previously; theexternal cooling system was removed in mid 2008.
The majority of this equipment was cleared for freerelease, while the remainder stored as low level solid
waste.

A radiological profile of the concrete was establishedand allowed the low density concrete to be classified
as either free release waste (the majority) or low levelsolid waste. Refer to Table 1.

Radiological surveys of the building, surroundings,
reactor and reactor core have been conducted toprovide a baseline for later surveys and tocharacterise the reactor to provide preliminary
estimates for the different waste streams arising fromthe process. Table 1 shows estimates of the different
wastes expected to be produced by thedecommissioning process.

The dismantling of the reactor block (bioshield) will
involve wire cutting it into smaller blocks.
Characterisation has found that the structural integrityof the concrete may limit the size of the blocks thatcan be cut out of the reactor block.
A large tent will be constructed around Moata tocontrol the waste produced by the cutting of theconcrete and to minimise the potential spread ofcontamination.
Concrete blocks will be initially scanned in the building
to ensure that there is no contamination or activated3

parts that leave the building. They will be removed
from the building and taken to a low background area
for re-scanning and clearance.

Radioactive Waste Management Unit, AERE, Savar is
to ensure optimal protection of humans and theenvironment, at present and in the future, fromhazardous effects of ionizing radiations associatedwith radioactive wastes (RW) and radiation sources(RS).

If the concrete satisfies clearance criteria at thesecond radiological check the block will be classified
as free release waste and be disposed of off site. Alllarge material leaving the ANSTO site passes througha radiation vehicle scanner as a final check.

In order to fulfil this objective the Bangladesh
Government has approved the "Central Radioactive
Waste Processing and Storage Facility" project andprovided a total amount of US$1.25 million to
implement the development project under ADP withthe technical assistance of IAEA at the Savar site. The
objectives of this facility are: Collection, Segregation,
Packaging, Conditioning, Treatment and Storage of
low and intermediate level radioactive wastes fromdifferent radiation and nuclear facilities. The facility isintended to serve as a semi-pilot scale infrastructure
for safe pre-disposal management of radioactive
waste including spent radioactive sources.

ANSTO vehicle scanner

Rejected concrete will be returned for further
segregation.
Concrete which exceeds clearance
levels, including the high density concrete from aroundthe core, will be treated as low level solid waste andstored in specially constructed containers within thecurrent ANSTO waste system. Activated concreteand material beneath the reactor will also be removed
and treated in this manner.

Design characteristics
The building layout and the design of the facility werebased on the IAEA generic reference design. The
main building is a single storey building (total area
1163 m2; size: 40 m x 35 m), divided internally into a
number of rooms and areas for different purposes.
The main building consists of a suitable combinationof two main areas:

Radiological surveys will be conducted following theremoval of Moata. Any residual areas of higher thanbackground dose rates will be decontaminated or
removed. The building will then be restored to a fully
functional area with no limitations or classifications
subject to regulatory approval••

receiving and processing area
storage area

Equipment in the facility

The decommissioning process is proceeding andshould be finalised before the end of 2009.

The following major equipment is available in the
CWPSF for segregation, treatment, conditioning of low
and intermediate level liquid and solid wastes within
the facility:

BANGLADESH

Solid waste sorting box: The sorting cabinets havebeen set-up to segregate the different types of mixed
solid low level wastes.
Aqua-Express (liquid waste treatment plant): For thetreatment of liquid low and intermediate level
radioactive waste (LL& ILRW). Productivity of theplant by purified water depends on composition of theinitial liquid waste and makes up to 300 l/h.

Dr. M. Moinul Islam
Principle Scientific Officer
Institute of Nuclear Science & Technology
Atomic Energy Research Establishment
Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission

In-drum mixer: The electrically driven mixer unit for the
cementation of small volume of liquid wastes, sludges,
and an ion-exchange resin, etc.

Establishment of Central Radioactive Waste
Processing and Storage Facility (CWPSF)

In-drum compactor: An in-drum compactor operates
on the compactable waste drum to give compacted
waste drum. The expected volume reduction factors
are in the range of between 2 to 5.

Establishment of CWPSFRadioactive waste is generated from a large numberof different activities in Bangladesh in the use ofradioisotopes in medicine, research, and industry.
Compared to other hazardous waste generated byhuman activity, the amount of radioactive waste isrelatively small. Even though the amount ofradioactive waste produced is very small, extreme
care must be taken when dealing with it. One of themost important objectives of Health Physics andCurrent activities of CWPSF
The following work has been performed during theyear 2000-2008• Pre-operational Safety Analysis Report (PSAR)
has been developed as a part of the licensing
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process of CWPSF

INDONESIA• Some of the RW and SRS are collected,
transported and safely stored in interim-storage
rooms of the CWPSF• Conditioning of some sources (e.g., 226Ra)

Dr. Djarot S. Wisnubroto• Short–lived, low-level solid and liquid wastes
are stored for delay decay, while high active
sources are kept inside the shielding awaiting
further management

Director of Radioactive Waste
Technology Centre
BATAN• Research activities are being conducted withacademic departments

Transportation of Decommissioning Waste
from Yellow Cake Production Facility• A country-wide inventory of RS and RW, toestablish a database, is in progress

A fertilizer company PT. PETROKIMIA GRESIK(PKG) in Gresik, East Java had a facility for recoveryof uranium by-product that operated for only 1 year in
1989. The facility was designed to extract U3O8 from
phosphate rock through phosphoric acid purification;with the final product being yellow cake. The facility
was commissioned at 1989 and generated a small
amount of yellow cake (7.2 ton). However due tomarket problem, the management of the company
decided to cease operations and left the facility
inactive for years. At 2001, Nuclear Energy Regulatory
Agency (BAPETEN) recommended that the facility be
decommissioned, and BATAN was requested by PKG
to put together a decommissioning program for theirfacilities. Permission for decommissioning was given
by BAPETEN (regulatory body) in 2004, but due tobudget issues, this activity was delayed. By the end of
2007, PKG decided to start the decommissioning in
consultation with BATAN personnel, as they wanted touse the area for the construction of a small power
plant facility.

• Physical security system of CWPSF has beenstrengthened with the technical assistance of
the US DOE.

Storage of SRS at CWPSF

Table 1:Quantity of Decommissioning Waste from Yellow Cake
Production Facility

No.

Physical Shape

Form

Quantity1

Concrete debris

Solid

111 drums

2

Sludges

Semi liquid

88 drums

3

Metal scraps

Solid

4 wooden boxes

The decommissioning activity was conducted fromMarch to July 2008. As most of the yellow cake wasalready in storage in BATAN years before thedecommissioning project began, only a small quantityof waste was sent to BATAN at the end of thedecommissioning. Table 1 gives the amount of wastetransported from PKG to BATAN, Serpong on 16-17
July 2008.

Storage of RW drums at CWPSF

Future activities
Approximately 16m3 of LILW have been collected andsafely stored in the CWPSF. There are several spentsealed sources safely stored in CWPSF that need to
be processed to a conditioned form prior to disposal.
Planning is in place to manage these radioactive
wastes and the other wastes generated by the various
stakeholders in Bangladesh in a safe, effective andsecure manner.

5Technology and Education Centre (NUTEC) of JAEA
has been given the leading role in progressing thismission. NUTEC’s HRD activities are conducted inline with government policy and programs, and aim atcomprehensive nuclear education and training.
NUTEC’s training programs are divided into 3
categories;
1. Domestic training courses
2. Cooperation with universities and3. International cooperation.
Every year, NUTEC conducts more than ten different
domestic training courses for Japanese engineers on
atomic energy, which include radiation usage and/or
safety. The total number of engineers who graduatedfrom NUTEC’s training program amounts to around
120,000 since its commencement in 1958. Table 1
gives some examples of domestic training courses
held for radioisotopes and radiation engineers.

Wooden boxes containing metal scraps

One of NUTEC’s international cooperation objectives
on HRD includes the running of international training
courses. This consists of the Instructor Training
Program and the Joint Training Course. Both areconducted under the sponsorship of the Japanese
Government, MEXT. These training courses train the
trainers of the participating countries on the peacefulusage of atomic energy in Asian countries, with theaim to develop a self-sustainable training capability
within each country.

Drums containing sludges

JAPAN

NUTEC has been conducting several courses on thefollowing subjects - radiation safety, nuclear (radiation)
emergency preparedness, reactor engineering, etc., inIndonesia, Thailand and Vietnam in collaboration with
their official organizations, BATAN, TINT (or OAP) and
VAEC respectively. In recent years, theseorganizations have become capable of carrying out
such training courses themselves. Many engineers ofeach country have participated in the programs.
Engineers who wish to participate in future training
programs should contact the official atomic energyorganization in their countries.

Dr. Toshiso Kosako
Professor
Nuclear Professional School
Graduate School of Engineering
The University of Tokyo, JapanMr. Hiroyuki Murakami

Table 1: Example of Domestic Training Courses

Deputy Director
Nuclear Technology & Education Centre
Japan Atomic Energy Agency

Training Courses for Radioisotope and Radiation Engineers
Basic Course

Activities of Japan Atomic Energy Agency on
Human Resources Development in the fields
of nuclear and radiation engineering

SpecialCourseBasic Radiation Course

15 days;once/year

Radiation Safety
Management Course

14 days;once/year

Radiation Protection Basic
Course4 weeks;
once/yearst

In Japan, Human Resources Development (HRD) in
the field of atomic energy has a 50-year history since
its commencement in 1958 at the Radio-isotope
School of Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute(JAERI). JAERI was re-organized into the Japan
Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) by integrating withJapan Nuclear Cycle Development Corporation (JNC)
in 2005. At present, JAEA clearly identifies nuclear
HRD as one of its important missions, and Nuclear

Legal
Qualification
Course1 Class Radiation
Protection Supervisor
Course5 days; 8times/yearrd

3 Class Radiation
Protection Supervisor
Course2 days; 3times/year

Cooperation with the HRD project within the FNCA isalso an important mission for NUTEC, JAEA. Dr. Jun
Sugimoto, the director of NUTEC, is the project leader
6

of the FNCA-HRD project and takes an active role in
the education and training of nuclear engineers. In the
project, utilization of existing nuclear training andeducation resources to meet each country’s HRD
needs, and sharing relevant information among FNCA
member states on HRD toward the development of
atomic energy are considered important. Informationexchange and cooperation on HRD are expected to
be enhanced by effective utilization of the FNCA
website.

MALAYSIA

Dr. Mohd Abdul Wahab
Yusof
Senior Research Officer
Waste Technology & Environment
Division Nuclear Malaysia

Safety Audit at the Waste Technology
Development Centre (WasTeC), Malaysian
Nuclear Agency
Radiation safety is a very important topic for anyone
who deals with radioactive material or radioactive
waste. Being a promoter of radiation safety in
Malaysia, it is the responsibility of the Management of
Nuclear Malaysia to ensure that radiation safety isgiven priority in order to promote public confidence inthe safety of nuclear technology.
In Nuclear Malaysia there are two levels of safety
audits, namely internal audit and external audit. Theinternal audit is carried out by the auditors from
Radiation Safety and Health Division (RSH) whilst
external audits are conducted by the regulatory body.
Beside these two audits, WasTeC also carries out its
own safety audit.
Recently (January 2009) a radiation safety audit has
been performed at WasTeC by two auditors from theRSH. The purpose of the audit is to ensure that all
activities involving radioactive material at WasTeC
comply with the safety rules and procedures and do
not endanger the workers, members of the public andthe environment. The auditors visited working areas in
WasTeC such as the analytical laboratory, counting
room, high radiation laboratory, waste reception,compaction room, laundry, low level effluent treatment
plant and storage facility for radioactive wastes. They
also checked personnel dose monitoring and medical
records.

Instructor Training Program (top) and Joint Training Course(bottom) on the subject of nuclear and radiological emergency
preparedness and response

The overall outcome of the audit showed that WasTeC
was compliant with most of the requirements inradiation safety. The result of the safety audit
demonstrated the commitment to radiation safety by
WasTeC’s staff. It is hoped that this safety culture willcontinue and be adopted by all WasTeC’s staff andNuclear Malaysia.

7

To address the recommendation of the IAEA Mission,
the PNRI started its activities on the preparation ofhuman resource development program for nuclear
power in 2008. These activities involved the
preparation of syllabi for three training modules on
nuclear power. These are:PHILIPPINES
Ms. Maria V. B.
Palattao
Senior Science Research Specialist
Philippine Nuclear Research InstitutePhilippines

Ms. Corazon M. Garcia

Assistant Scientist
Department of Science and Technology
Metro Manila

Module 1: Introduction to Nuclear Power
Module 2: Introduction to Nuclear
Engineering, andModule 3: BNPP Systems and Components.

The three day training course on Module 1 entitled
Introduction to Nuclear Power was conducted in
January 2009. Four teams of engineers and othertechnical personnel totaling about 100 from the NPC,
the DOE and the PNRI participated in this module.
This course is designed to provide the core
information essential in a nuclear power program.

Nuclear Power Development Program in thePhilippines
In early 2008, the Philippine Government requested
for an IAEA mission to advise on the development of
infrastructure to support a nuclear power program andthe feasibility of rehabilitating the mothballed 620 MW
PWR type Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP).

Dr. Carlito R. Aleta, former PNRI Director and IAEA RCA
Coordinator, Div. for Africa and East Asia, lecturing

Training Course on Module 2 will be conductedstarting June 15, 2009. This is a ten- day course andis designed for technical personnel with possible
future involvement in activities related to Nuclear
Power. The NPC, the DOE and the personnel from thelocal Universities were invited to participate in thistraining course.

Bataan Nuclear Power Plant

Consistent with the IAEA recommendations, anInteragency Core Group on Nuclear Power was
established in January 2009 by virtue of a Joint
Department Order No. JDO2009-01-001 and signedby the Secretaries of the Department of Energy (DOE)
and the Department of Science and Technology(DOST). The Core Group is chaired by the DOE
Undersecretary for Planning; and Co-Chaired by the
DOST Undersecretary for R&D and the National
Power Corporation (NPC), the country’s utility
organization, Senior Vice President. The Members of
the Core Group are the following.
Module 3 which is specific to the BNPP Systems andComponents will be held in August, 2009.
The following current initiatives in the Philippine
Congress are also underway.


DOE Task Force on Nuclear Power Program
DOST: Philippine Council on Industry andEnergy Research and Development
Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI)
National Power Corporation (NPC)8House Bill No. 3254 or the “Comprehensive
Nuclear Law” proposes to create a separate andindependent nuclear regulatory authority andaddress gaps in the present laws
House Bill No. 4631 proposes for the
rehabilitation, commissioning and operation of the
BNPP, and appropriates funding for a feasibility
study• International programs• National policies and strategies

THAILAND••••

Ms.Nanthavan Ya-anantNuclear Science Specialist RWM Center
Thailand Institute of Nuclear Technology(TINT)

Storage
Current DSRS disposal status in member states
The “BOSS” concept for DSRS disposal
Regulatory aspects of DSRS disposal

In addition to the above, there were several panel
discussions and a small group session for participants
to work on selected topics.
In a few countries, certain types of DSRS are currently
being disposed of. For example, some US origin
sources repatriated to the US are disposed of at
WIPP. Certain limited categories of sources are being
disposed of in the near surface repositories. No
country has implemented appropriate disposal
solutions for all of its DSRS. The participants encoring
member state organizations involved in R&D activities
to further pursue their R&D efforts.

Mr.Sutat Thiangtrongjit
FNCA RS&RWM Project Leader
Manager of RWM Center Thailand
Institute of Nuclear Technology (TINT)

Sustainable Management of Disused Sealed
Sources - Working Towards Disposal
The IAEA/ANSN International Workshop on“Sustainable Management of Disused Sealed
Sources: Working towards Disposal” was held on
January 12-16 2009, at Centara Duong Tawan Hotelin Chiang Mai, Thailand.
In an effort to highlight these issues and promote thesafe and secure management of DSRS, the Thailand
Institute of Nuclear Technology (TINT), under the
auspices of the Asian Nuclear Safety Network(ANSN), has hosted this international workshop
organized by the IAEA.

Welcoming of participants

Representatives from Asian Nuclear Safety Network (ANSN) from
Philippines & Thailand

About 80 managers and experts from 23 countries
representing national programs, regulatory bodies,international projects and implementing and source
management organizations, attended the workshop.

Conclusion
The participants acknowledged the efforts of IAEA tostrengthen the safety and security of DSRS and tosupport the upgrading of DSRS management
infrastructure in Member States. The “BOSS”(borehole disposal of sealed sources) was recognized
as a mature concept which is ready for
implementation in candidate member states. All
participants identified it as a simple, flexible and costeffective solution that provides for safety and security
for all types of DSRS.

The topics discussed covered the life cycle of disusedsealed radioactive sources (DSRS) with a special
focus on long term management aspects, namely
storage and disposal. The workshop had six themes
as follows:

9

Discovering ANSTOANSTO is the centre of Australia's nuclear science capabilities, operating the nation's only nuclear reactor. ANSTO
offers a wide range of scientific and technical services and expertise to governments and organisations in Australia
and around the world.
What ANSTO does
ANSTO's world-class OPAL research reactor and neutron beam instrument
facility allows scientists from Australia and around the world to conduct
research that can take science, medicine and industry into the future.
ANSTO's vision is to be recognised as an international centre of excellence innuclear science and technology. In that role, ANSTO is a crucial part ofAustralia's science and innovation infrastructure. It's facilities provide essential
capabilities to medical research, industry and research groups.

1. Nuclear medicine

4. Industry support

Imaging organs and looking inside thehuman body was never thoughtpossible a few decades ago, yet now
nuclear medicine is one of the mostrelied upon medical techniques todiagnose and treat major disease.
ANSTO provides 80 per cent of thenuclear medicines to Australian
hospitals to help doctors diagnose and treat diseases such as
cancer, heart disease and other conditions.

ANSTO's wide range of expertiseprovides Australian and international
industry with a variety of services toenhanceproductivity,
increasetechnologicaladvancement
andmanage waste materials.
Some of the services include forensic
carbon dating, silicon irradiation forthe semiconductor industry, nanobiotechnology solutions and radioactive waste management using
Synroc technology, just to name a few.

2. Environment
5. Radiological services
and training

Climatechangeandwater
resources are high on international
agendas and are serious issues
faced by the human race. Australia
itself is looking down the barrel ofthe environmental gun, withincreasing water supply andclimate issues like drought and soil
salinity. ANSTO's Institute forEnvironmental Research (IER)
looks at all of these environmental challenges daily, both in the lab
and out in the field.

As one of Australia's largest
radiation protection services,
ANSTO provides practical training
and expertise in almost all facetsof health physics and the controlof radioactive substances.
The health physics expertise of ANSTO is available on a consultativebasis to organisations such as the defence forces, emergency
services and overseas countries which need training in handlingradioactive materials and compliance with International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA) standards.

3. Operating nuclear facilities

6. Undertakes research

Nuclear science and technology is the core business of ANSTO andits primary nuclear facilities are the:• OPAL research reactor• National Medical Cyclotron• Gamma Technology
Research Irradiator(GATRI)ANSTO undertakes research that advances the application of
nuclear science and technology inareas as diverse as materials,
health, climate change, mining
and engineering.
ANSTO
also
providestheinternational research community
with state-of-the-art facilities toadvance knowledge of how the

Other non-nuclear but complimentary
facilities, such as particle
accelerators, X-ray machines, and electron microscopes, to name afew, are also part of the ANSTO mix.

world works, at the atomic level.

107. International liaison

8. Government andcommunity

ANSTO is at the forefrontof international nuclear researchand technologies. Participating ininternational decision-making andoffering services and expert
advice to organisations overseas,
keeps ANSTO and Australia at the
cutting edge of the nuclear science and technology world.

ANSTO regularly communicatesto government and thecommunity, keeping theminformed of key events andscientific outcomes. This isachieved through formal
reporting and communication tools such as the ANSTO website,
media releases, local community discussions, newsletters and freecommunity site tours.

ANSTO has representatives based both in the United States capital,
Washington DC and Vienna, home to the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA) where ANSTO acts as Australia's
representative on the Board of Governors.

Local councils, relevant Federal Ministers and other governmentrelated personnel, both State and Federal, are kept up to date
about what's happening at ANSTO through reporting systems andregular personal contact.

For more information on any of the above, please contact ANSTO
T: +61 2 9717 3111
E: enquiries@ansto.gov.au
W: www.ansto.gov.au

11