Global Industry Trends with Radioactive Sources

Name: Paul Gray Company: Chairman; ISSPA (International Source Supplier and Producers Association) Vice President; External Relationships and Global Logistics, Nordion Inc. IAEA Abu Dhabi, October 2013

ISSPA Mission

To ensure that the beneficial use of radioactive sources continues to be regarded by the public, the media, legislators, and regulators as a safe, secure, viable technology for medical, industrial, and research applications.

Radioactive sources are used worldwide in a wide range of beneficial applications that support the infrastructure of our daily lives

Estimated > 90% of all sealed sources produced globally by ISSPA members

Roughly 45% of the world’s medical disposable products are sterilized using cobalt-60.

Other vital applications, such as cancer treatment, oil exploration , industrial radiography and cargo screening make extensive use of radioactive sources.

Current Industry Foci

• Suppliers heavily involved in improving safety and security of radioactive sources

• Work cooperatively with users and regulators to meet all needs (CI)

• ISSPA actively involved at international and national levels

• Life cycle management of source

Current Industry Trends

1. Life cycle management of sources

2. Recycling and “re-lifing” of disused sources

3. Recommended Working Life (RWL)

4. Hardening of devices

5. GPS tracking on devices

6. Alternative technologies

7. Integration with Regulatory Bodies

Strategies - Long Term Management of DSRS

Recycle Long Term

Storage Disposal

Manufacturers endorse the concept of source life cycle management,

however lack of State repository/disposal infrastructure and regulatory

inconsistencies create undue burdens and disincentives for manufacturers.

1. Life Cycle Management

• Sealed sources should not be considered a waste until they go to final disposal repository

• One-for-one source exchanges and recycling initiatives should be encouraged and supported

• Decrease the regulatory barriers that restrict movement of sources at end of life

Long Term Storage/Disposal of DSRS Issues

• Liability issues associated with quantities possessed.

• Financial responsibility of eventual disposal

• Ultimate disposal path must be available

Final disposal not a viable option through a source manufacturer:

• Source manufacturers do not operate as waste brokers.

• Licensing and regulatory restrictions would greatly limit this.

• Disposal site availability may also be limited by legislatively imposed restrictions, i.e. waste generator or country of origin restrictions

2. What are we doing now?

There are different approaches to handling sources that may be considered “disused” or “spent” •Recycling – recovering material or resourcing

•Modifying device to use lower activity sources or different size capsules

•Re-utilizing (“re-lifing”) a source for a different application, working with gauge suppliers

Recycle – Reutilization of Resources

Industry’s Preferred Option

• Reduces the amount of radioactive material that needs to be produced (and ultimately, disposed of)

• Must be cost effective and technically feasible for a commercial entity

• Various methods available

Recycle – Recover Material

• Source must be disassembled

• Specialized equipment & qualified technicians

• Recover material used as is or re - blended – Co60, AmBe

• May be incorporated into

a larger activity source,

(i.e. teletherapy )

• Regulatory approval

required for process and

source re-use

Recycle – “Re-Life” the Source

• Reutilize the source “as-is” • Inspection and testing

• Extends working-life

• Over encapsulation • Remove and replace outer encapsulation, or

• Over encapsulate entire source, use for same or new application (larger source may require device modification to accommodate it)

Recycle – “Re-life the Source”

Successful re-inspection and test, considering original design parameters, weld integrity, environmental conditions of use and potential gas build up, give the source another period of recommended working life

Recycling Results

Millions of Curies of Co-60 have been recycled One supplier program currently recycles 15% of Cs-137 sources provided to a gauge manufacturer Several suppliers recycle AmBe sources, reducing the need for disposal of very old sources Changes to device to accommodate different sources, gauge manufacturers involved and new licensing

3. Recommended Working Life (RWL)

• Historically : “educated best guess” when source should be replaced based on half life of source, materials of construction and known environment of use

• Experience has now shown that the RWL was very conservative - with supplier’s confirmation, many sources RWL can be doubled

Recommended Working Life (RWL)

• Not intended to be tied to the Special Form status, although some Regulatory Authorities have made this link, causing transport difficulties

• ISO 2919 now references consideration of the RWL

• At the end of the RWL, the source should be inspected by a qualified supplier and potentially “re-lifed”, or recycled, deferring the need for long term storage or disposal

4. Hardening of Devices

Voluntary program to harden some irradiators to

significantly decrease ability to remove source for

malicious purposes

Requires additional and more advanced tools

and knowledge of the hardening feature

Have been upgraded with additional physical

enhancements, such as welding instead of bolts and

tamper resistant hardware

Device modifications done in place of use and

device licensing revised to include

improvements reflected in new manufacture

5. Physical Tracking of Sources

• Currently being done for Category 1 sources

• Some countries and/or suppliers doing for Category 2 industrial radiography devices -

Korea and US DoE potentially

• Tracks the device not the source

• Requires 24/7 surveillance of

system by user or Regulatory

Authority

6. Alternative Technologies

• Some Oil Well logging companies have started to use new methods which eliminate the need for both Cs and AmBe sources.

• One company has switched over to approximately 15% of their tools are nonradioactive tools

•Result: less demand for new sources and thousands of AmBe sources now obsolete and are being recycled

Some industrial radiography is being performed by X-ray, but due to the difficult and remote environments this work is typically performed in, gamma radiography still the only viable option

Growth of Source Utilization

-There has been approximately a 5% growth of sources used for sterilization

-Overall use of industrial radiography sources have been increasing approximately few percent each year

-Growth mainly seen in developing countries

-Use of radioactive sources is fact of life

Challenges

• Some sealed sources may be able to be returned to any capable source manufacturer regardless of country of origin

• Original manufacturers willing to take back sources they produce, liability risk is significant for other’s sources

• This position also addresses issues that arise when the original source manufacturer is no longer in business

• One-for-One source exchange limits the number of disused sources that may otherwise be abandoned

• Cannot estimate disposal costs at time of manufacture – financial assurance

Challenges

• One-for-One exchanges – cost effective way of getting a disused or spent source returned to the manufacturer.

• Prevents lapse of Special Form and Type B certifications. Seamless revalidations of Type B(U) Package Certificates supports the movement of new and disused sources.

• Need Regulatory Authority support / approval

Conclusions and Next Steps

• Ultimate disposal of disused sources needs to be addressed • Sealed sources should not be considered a waste until they

move to the final disposal repository • One-for-one source exchanges and recycling initiatives

should be encouraged • Recycling sources serves as a critical and effective means to

end of life management • Seamless revalidations of Type B(U) Package Certificates

supports the movement of new and disused sources • Practical financial issues need to be addressed in dealing

with end-of-life management

7. Continue to Work Together

Communicate

to manage relevant

threat level changes

Work together

to facilitate

safe and secure

source shipments

Identify process

to address routine

shipment issues

Questions?