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Technical Meeting on the Global Radium-226 Management Initiative
Sealed radioactive sources (SRSs) are used extensively in industry, medicine, agriculture, and various research areas. A radioactive source that is no longer in use, or not intended to be used, for the practice for which an authorization has been granted, is deemed as disused. These Disused Sealed Radioactive Sources (DSRS) must be properly managed to ensure that the whole life cycle is safe and secure, as cost effective, and the impact to the environmental is minimized.
Many Member States have legacy stocks of 226Ra, which may present a long-term management challenge for some of them. The IAEA understands this challenge presented by long-lived radionuclides and continues to seek suitable solutions for the stored legacy 226Ra. Conversely, the Secretariat notes that several Member States may have a use for such legacy 226Ra stocks, particularly, in the field of targeted alpha therapy in nuclear medicine.
In light of the above, the Secretariat is coordinating an activity focussing on 226Ra recycling referred as the “Global Radium-226 Management Initiative”. In the frame of this initiative a platform to facilitate information exchange between Member States possessing legacy 226Ra sources and Member States with capabilities and suitable recycling facilities has been established. In this regard, the International Atomic Energy Agency is organizing a Technical Meeting on the Global Radium-226 Management Initiative at the IAEA Headquarters in Vienna, Austria and virtually via Cisco Webex from 5-9 June 2023.
The objective of the event is to review the implementation status of the Global Radium-226 Management Initiative. The Contact Points appointed by Member States participating in this initiative will discuss their inventory of legacy Radium-226 sources and the capabilities for recycling these sources in recipient Member States. It will also provide an opportunity to discuss the effectiveness of the platform established to facilitate information exchange between Member States possessing legacy Radium-226 sources and Member States with capabilities and suitable recycling facilities. Challenges and practical experiences in packaging and transporting Radium-226 sources will also be discussed.
Grants:
A limited number of grants are available to support the attendance of selected participants provided that, in the IAEA’s view, the participant will make an important contribution to the event. There is no registration fee.
Deadline for submitting nominations: 10 March 2023