Technical Meeting on the Assessment and Evaluation of the Occupational Radiation Protection Appraisal Service

The IAEA Occupational Radiation Protection Appraisal Service (ORPAS) was established to advise Member States on ways to strengthen and enhance the legislative and regulatory infrastructure for occupational radiation protection, technical services relating to protection and safety, such as services for personal dosimetry and the calibration of monitoring and measuring equipment, and practical implementation of Member States’ arrangements for occupational radiation protection. The key objective of ORPAS review is to determine whether the host country has made adequate arrangements for occupational radiation protection and whether these arrangements are functioning to the extent that the practical provisions for occupational radiation protection are effective and generally optimized.

The IAEA safety standard in the area of radiation protection is Radiation Protection and Safety of Radiation Sources: International Basic Safety Standards, GSR Part 3. Review against GSR Part 3 is the core component of the ORPAS process. Other safety requirements such as Governmental, Legal and Regulatory Framework for Safety, GSR Part 1 (Rev. 1), Leadership and Management for Safety, GSR Part 2 , and Safety Assessment for Facilities and Activities, GSR Part 4, are also used in an ORPAS review to cover all facilities and activities where occupational radiation protection is applied, as well as technical service providers and regulatory bodies.

During an ORPAS mission, recommendations and suggestions may be offered to the host country. Recommendations made are related to items of direct relevance to safety as referenced in IAEA Safety Requirements; suggestions made relate to items that, while not essential to ensure compatibility with IAEA Safety Requirements, may enhance the effectiveness of the national arrangements on occupational radiation protection against the guidance presented in IAEA Safety Guides. Good practices identified may also be documented for consideration by other States.

The following topics will be discussed during the event:

• ORPAS guidelines and collaboration platform
• Observations from the completed reviews
• Approach for nuclear embarking and expanding countries
• Questionnaires and eSARIS
• ORPAS database — information exchange platform
• Training for reviewers
• Hybrid and virtual and missions
• Recommendations, suggestions, good practices and links to action plans
• Concept of advisory missions
• Side events for regional networks
• Outlook, perspectives, and demands

Deadline for submitting nominations: 13 August 2021.