International Conference on Safety and Security of Radioactive Sources – Accomplishments and Future Endeavours

Persons who wish to attend the conference virtually through the conference and meetings App can register as an observer here.

Background

Radioactive sources are extensively used for beneficial purposes around the world in medical, industrial, agricultural, research and educational applications. Ensuring their safety and security remains a matter of global attention and significant improvements and advancements have been made in this respect over the past decades. Despite these efforts, incidents and emergencies that could have significant consequences still occur, reminding States of the need to continue towards enhancing the safety and security of radioactive sources throughout their lifecycle; and the goal of globally achieving the highest possible level of safety and security of radioactive sources requires a coordinated approach.

The need for a coordinated international approach to the safety and security of radioactive sources was first discussed at a conference held in Dijon, France, in September 1998, and was the catalyst for a number of subsequent conferences. In December 2000, a conference was held in Buenos Aires, Argentina focusing on the responsibilities of senior regulators dealing with a coordinated international approach to the safety and security of radioactive sources. In March 2003 an international conference was convened in Vienna, Austria, to facilitate the discussion of specific issues related to the security of radioactive sources in the light of growing concerns following the events of 11 September 2001. Then in September 2003, a conference in Rabat, Morocco, dealt with promoting the establishment of sustainable national infrastructures for radiation safety, including control over radioactive sources. Almost two years later in June–July 2005, a conference took place in Bordeaux, France, focusing on the first provisions of the Code of Conduct on the Safety and Security of Radioactive Sources (hereafter referred to as “the Code”), and called for the establishment of a formalized process of information exchange between States in order to further facilitate implementation of the Code. Most recently, a conference was held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, in October 2013, highlighting the need to ensure the Global Control of Sources Throughout Their Life Cycle, and to identify means to maintain the highest level of safety and security.

The Code, which was approved in September 2003 by the IAEA Board of Governors and the IAEA General Conference, serves as guidance to States for, inter alia, the development and harmonization of policies, laws and regulations on the safety and security of radioactive sources. To date, 140 States have written to the IAEA Director General to express their intention to work towards following the guidance of the Code. Since 2003, the Code’s supplementary Guidance on the Import and Export of Radioactive Sources and Guidance on the Management of Disused Radioactive Sources have also been approved and many activities have taken place at the national, regional and international levels to promote the use of the Code and its supplementary Guidance.

An action plan in support of “the IAEA to continue developing and updating existing guidance, including through the Nuclear Security Series, for the management of radioactive sources, complementing the guidance in the Code of Conduct on the Safety and Security of Radioactive Sources, and assisting States in implementing such guidance” was developed at the final Nuclear Security Summit held in Washington, D.C., from March 31 to April 1, 2016 attended by senior representatives of some IAEA Member States. In addition, in the Ministerial Declaration from the 2020 International Conference on Nuclear Security (ICONS 2020), held in Vienna, Austria, from 10 to 14 February 2020, Member States committed to “maintaining effective security of radioactive sources throughout their life cycle, consistent with the objectives of the Code of Conduct on the Safety and Security of Radioactive Sources and its supplementary guidance documents.”

In support of such efforts, the IAEA continues to publish standards, recommendations and guidance for the safety and security of radioactive sources in the relevant IAEA Safety Standards Series and Nuclear Security Series and supports Member States in their use of these publications in a number of ways, and in coordination with other bilateral or multilateral initiatives.

Purpose and Objectives

The purpose of the conference is to foster the exchange of experiences and anticipated future developments related to establishing and maintaining a high level of safety and security of radioactive sources throughout their life cycle.
The conference will provide a forum to:

• Exchange information on meeting current challenges relating to the safety and security of radioactive sources, including lessons learned during the COVID 19 pandemic;
• Increase awareness about and exchange experience regarding preparedness for and response to radiological incidents and emergencies involving radioactive sources;
• Foster coordination among national competent authorities for the safety and security of radioactive sources;
• Share experiences in the development of governmental (e.g., policy and strategy), legislative and regulatory frameworks for radioactive sources and associated facilities;
• Exchange information regarding the planning, establishment, maintenance and sustainability of national radiation safety and nuclear security regimes for radioactive sources, including safety and security systems for facilities and activities (other than transport), as well as knowledge management, education and training;
• Review the impact of research and technological advancements relating to future applications of nuclear sciences and technologies on safety and security of radioactive sources;
• Share experiences in technological advances and future planning for establishment, maintenance and sustainability of safety and security measures;
• Facilitate cooperation among all competent authorities and other stakeholders at the national and international levels, as applicable;
• Promote IAEA safety standards and nuclear security guidance, and their use by States;
• Promote the universalization and use of relevant legally binding (e.g., Joint Convention of the Safety Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management – “Joint Convention", Convention on Assistance in the Case of a Nuclear Accident or Radiological Emergency – “Assistance Convention”, and International Convention on the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism – ICSANT) and non-legally binding (e.g., Code of Conduct on the Safety and Security of Radioactive Sources and its supplementary Guidance) international instruments.

The conference will not address the safety and security of nuclear material in use, transport and storage, nor the response to related nuclear security events. Further, the conference will not discuss any sensitive nuclear security information and issues of a political nature. The safe and secure transport of radioactive
sources will be addressed separately during the IAEA “International Conference on the Safe and Secure Transport of Nuclear and Radioactive Materials” (CN-280), to be held in Vienna on 12-17 December 2021, which will inform the conference.

Call for Papers

Contributions on the topics listed above are welcome as oral or poster presentations. All submissions, apart from invited papers, must present original work, which has not been published elsewhere.

Submission of Synopses

Synopses (approximately 500 to 600 words on one or a maximum of two printed A4 pages, may contain any charts, graphs, figures and references) should give enough information on the content of the proposed paper to enable the Programme Committee to evaluate it. Anyone wishing to present at the conference must submit a synopsis in electronic format using the conference’s file submission system (IAEA-INDICO), which is accessible from the conference web page (see Section Q). The synopsis can be submitted through this system from 5 June 2021 until 15 September 2021. Specifications for the layout will be available on IAEA-INDICO. The system for electronic submission of synopsis, IAEAINDICO, is the sole mechanism for submission of contributed synopsis.

Authors are encouraged to submit synopsis as early as possible. The IAEA will not accept submissions via email. In addition, authors must electronically submit the following two forms to their appropriate governmental authority using the InTouch+ platform (see Section H) for transmission to the IAEA.
These forms must be received by the IAEA no later than 1 October 2021:
-Participation Form (Form A)
-Form for Submission of a Paper (Form B)

IMPORTANT: The Programme Committee will consider uploaded synopses only if these two forms have been received by the IAEA through the established official channels (see Section H).

G.2. Acceptance of Synopses

The Secretariat reserves the right to exclude synopses that do not comply with its technical or scientific quality standards and that do not apply to one of the topics listed in Section C. Authors will be informed by 15 January 2022 as to whether their submission has been accepted, either orally or as a poster, for presentation at the conference. Accepted synopses will also be reproduced in an unedited electronic compilation of synopses which will be made available to all registered participants of the conference.
Authors selected for oral presentations and invited speakers will be asked to provide an extended synopsis (3 to 5 pages) by 15 March 2022. Longer manuscripts will only be accepted at the discretion of the Secretariat and only in exceptional cases. Guidelines and a template for the preparation and
submission of the extended synopsis will be available on IAEA-INDICO.

Proceedings

Following the conference, the IAEA will publish a summary report. The proceedings will be made available to read online.

Key Deadlines & Dates

• 15 October 2021: Submission of synopses through IAEA-INDICO (extended deadline)
• 15 February 2022: Notification of acceptance of synopses for oral or poster presentation (extended deadline)
• 04 March 2022: Submission of Form B (together with Form A) through the InTouch+ platform (extended deadline)
• 04 March 2022: Submission of Form C (together with Form A) through the InTouch+ platform (extended deadline)
• 15 April 2022: Electronic submission of extended synopses through IAEA-INDICO (extended deadline)
• No deadline: Submission of Form A only (no paper submission, no grant request) through the InTouch+ platform

Exhibitions

A limited amount of space will be available for commercial vendors’ displays/exhibits during the conference. Interested parties should contact the Scientific Secretariat by email by 11 February 2022.

Greening

To demonstrate its commitment to sustainability, the IAEA will organize this conference as a 'green meeting' according to the guidelines of the Austrian Ecolabel.

There will be a focus on the areas of paper smart documentation, waste reduction and recycling, and environmentally friendly catering.

Conference app

The IAEA Conferences and Meetings App provides a one-stop access to information on the Conference and  exhibitions. The app also allows users to put together their own personalized schedule of events. Via this app participants will be able to view contributed papers and the latest conference programme, message other participants, and view PowerPoint presentations released after the event. Participants will receive an email inviting them to register for the app approximately one week before the symposium.

For iPhone or iPad users, get your free download through the Apple iTunes Store; those with Android devices can visit the Google Play Store.