NRC NEWS

 U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

 OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION IV

 611 Ryan Plaza Drive - Suite 400

 Arlington TX 76011-8064

No. IV-01-021 May 22, 2001

CONTACT: Breck Henderson 

Phone: 817-860-8128

Cellular: 817-917-1227

e-mail: bwh@nrc.gov

NRC PROPOSES TO FINE THE TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY SYSTEM $2,400

FOR ERRORS IN SHIPPING RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has proposed a fine of $2,400 against the Texas

Engineering Experiment Station/Texas A&M University Systemís Nuclear Science Center in College

Station, Texas, which operates a small nuclear research reactor, for failure to properly secure a

shipping container with radioactive material inside. The error could have resulted in transportation

workers receiving radiation exposure in excess of federal limits.

The shipment, containing radioactive Bromine-82 with a 35 hour half-life, was made last

December 4 from the Nuclear Science Center to Tru-Tec Services Inc., a company that performs

industrial testing. When the shipment arrived in St. Croix, the Virgin Islands, on December 8, the

shipping container was found unsecured with the radioactive liquid Bromine-82, packaged in three

small containers, resting in a recessed area on top. Normally the 750 pound shipping container should

be secured shut with the radioactive material properly shielded. A number of transportation companies

were involved in this shipment.

Without appropriate shielding, any individuals standing within a few feet of the Bromine-82 for

a few minutes, could have received a radiation dose greater than 0.1 rem, which is the federal limit for

exposure from licensed material for members of the public. This amount of radiation is not considered

sufficient to cause acute health effects. People receive an average of 0.3 rem from natural sources

during a year, and radiation workers may receive up to an additional 5 rem annually from licensed

material. The NRC investigation, while acknowledging the realistic likelihood that someone could

have been exposed, did not find any individuals who could be verified as having received a radiation

exposure in excess of the limit.

The NRC staff concluded that the failure of the Nuclear Science Center to properly install a

securing device on the shipping container was one of the causes of this incident, which had a clear

potential to expose members of the public to radiation in excess of federal limits. Accordingly, the

NRC classified the violations as a Severity Level II problem. The NRC uses a four-level scale, with

Level I being the most severe. 
NRC officials decided to reduce the assessed fine by half because the error by the Nuclear

Science Center was only one of the contributors to this very significant incident and the Center took

prompt and comprehensive corrective actions. These actions included suspending radioactive

shipments, a prompt evaluation of the incident, increased management supervision of shipping

activities, and improved training of people involved in shipping.

The Texas Engineering Experiment Station/Texas A&M University System has 30 days to

either pay the penalty or file a protest.

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