10 CFR 34.42 - Radiation Safety Officer for industrial radiography.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Radiation Safety Officer for industrial radiography. 34.42 Section 34.42 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION LICENSES FOR INDUSTRIAL RADIOGRAPHY AND RADIATION SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR INDUSTRIAL RADIOGRAPHIC OPERATIONS Radiation Safety Requirements § 34.42...

10 CFR 34.42 - Radiation Safety Officer for industrial radiography.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Radiation Safety Officer for industrial radiography. 34.42 Section 34.42 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION LICENSES FOR INDUSTRIAL RADIOGRAPHY AND RADIATION SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR INDUSTRIAL RADIOGRAPHIC OPERATIONS Radiation Safety Requirements § 34.42...

Radiation safety knowledge and practices among Irish orthopaedic trainees.

PubMed

Nugent, M; Carmody, O; Dudeney, S

2015-06-01

Fluoroscopy is frequently used in orthopaedic surgery, particularly in a trauma setting. Exposure of patients and staff to ionising radiation has been studied extensively; however, little work has been done to evaluate current knowledge and practices among orthopaedic trainees. This study aimed to investigate the knowledge and practices of Irish orthopaedic trainees regarding use of ionising radiation. A confidential internet-based survey on workplace radiation safety practices was distributed via email to 40 higher specialist trainees. Questions included related to radiation safety training and regular work practices. A total of 26 trainees completed the questionnaire (65% response rate). All reported regular exposure to ionising radiation. Compliance with body shields was high (25, 96%), however, other protective measures such as thyroid shields were less frequently employed. The 'as low as reasonably achievable principle' was practised regularly by 14 (54%). Radiation safety training was variable-while just over half (14) respondents felt adequately trained in radiation safety, 17 (65%) had attended a radiation protection course. Use of dosimeters was particularly poor, with only 4 (15%) using them regularly and most citing lack of availability as the main barrier. Although most Irish orthopaedic trainees have some knowledge regarding radiation safety, many do not regularly use all available measures to reduce exposure to ionising radiation. Barriers to use of protective mechanisms include lack of availability and perceived impracticality.

An approach to radiation safety department benchmarking in academic and medical facilities.

PubMed

Harvey, Richard P

2015-02-01

Based on anecdotal evidence and networking with colleagues at other facilities, it has become evident that some radiation safety departments are not adequately staffed and radiation safety professionals need to increase their staffing levels. Discussions with management regarding radiation safety department staffing often lead to similar conclusions. Management acknowledges the Radiation Safety Officer (RSO) or Director of Radiation Safety's concern but asks the RSO to provide benchmarking and justification for additional full-time equivalents (FTEs). The RSO must determine a method to benchmark and justify additional staffing needs while struggling to maintain a safe and compliant radiation safety program. Benchmarking and justification are extremely important tools that are commonly used to demonstrate the need for increased staffing in other disciplines and are tools that can be used by radiation safety professionals. Parameters that most RSOs would expect to be positive predictors of radiation safety staff size generally are and can be emphasized in benchmarking and justification report summaries. Facilities with large radiation safety departments tend to have large numbers of authorized users, be broad-scope programs, be subject to increased controls regulations, have large clinical operations, have significant numbers of academic radiation-producing machines, and have laser safety responsibilities.

Hazards of Electromagnetic Radiation to Ordnance (HERO) Safety Test

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-01-10

Ordnance Test Procedure (JOTP)-061 Hazards of Electromagnetic Radiation to...DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE JOINT ORDNANCE TEST PROCEDURE (JOTP)-061 HAZARDS OF ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION TO ORDNANCE (HERO) SAFETY...TEST Joint Services Munition Safety Test Working Group Joint Ordnance Test Procedure (JOTP)-061 Hazards of Electromagnetic Radiation

Safety: Radiation Protection Manual

DTIC Science & Technology

1997-05-30

t e c h n i c a l publication requires it, (2) personnel are required to wear dosimetry , EM 385-1-80 30 May 97 2-4 (3) personnel are required to...of SOPs, review of dosimetry results, changes in standards or guidance, equipment changes, and any other pertinent radiation safety information that...Table 3-4. The EDE is used in dosimetry to account for different organs having different sensitivities to radiation. Table 3-4 Weighting Factors

Health, Safety, and Environment Division

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wade, C

1992-01-01

The primary responsibility of the Health, Safety, and Environmental (HSE) Division at the Los Alamos National Laboratory is to provide comprehensive occupational health and safety programs, waste processing, and environmental protection. These activities are designed to protect the worker, the public, and the environment. Meeting these responsibilities requires expertise in many disciplines, including radiation protection, industrial hygiene, safety, occupational medicine, environmental science and engineering, analytical chemistry, epidemiology, and waste management. New and challenging health, safety, and environmental problems occasionally arise from the diverse research and development work of the Laboratory, and research programs in HSE Division often stem from thesemore » applied needs. These programs continue but are also extended, as needed, to study specific problems for the Department of Energy. The results of these programs help develop better practices in occupational health and safety, radiation protection, and environmental science.« less

[Survey and analysis of radiation safety education at radiological technology schools].

PubMed

Ohba, Hisateru; Ogasawara, Katsuhiko; Aburano, Tamio

2004-10-01

We carried out a questionnaire survey of all radiological technology schools, to investigate the status of radiation safety education. The questionnaire consisted of questions concerning full-time teachers, measures being taken for the Radiation Protection Supervisor Qualifying Examination, equipment available for radiation safety education, radiation safety education for other departments, curriculum of radiation safety education, and related problems. The returned questionnaires were analyzed according to different groups categorized by form of education and type of establishment. The overall response rate was 55%, and there were statistically significant differences in the response rates among the different forms of education. No statistically significant differences were found in the items relating to full-time teachers, measures for Radiation Protection Supervisor Qualifying Examination, and radiation safety education for other departments, either for the form of education or type of establishment. Queries on the equipment used for radiation safety education revealed a statistically significant difference in unsealed radioisotope institutes among the forms of education. In terms of curriculum, the percentage of radiological technology schools which dealt with neither the shielding calculation method for radiation facilities nor with the control of medical waste was found to be approximately 10%. Other educational problems that were indicated included shortages of full-time teachers and equipment for radiation safety education. In the future, in order to improve radiation safety education at radiological technology schools, we consider it necessary to develop unsealed radioisotope institutes, to appoint more full-time teachers, and to educate students about risk communication.

OFFSITE ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING REPORT. RADIATION MONITORING AROUND UNITED STATES NUCLEAR TEST AREAS, CALENDAR YEAR 1982

EPA Science Inventory

A principal activity of the Offsite Radiological Safety Program is routine environmental monitoring for radioactive materials in various media and for radiation in areas which may be affected by nuclear tests. It is conducted to document compliance with standards, to identify tre...

Radiation Protection, Safety and Security Issues in Ghana.

PubMed

Boadu, Mary; Emi-Reynolds, Geoffrey; Amoako, Joseph Kwabena; Akrobortu, Emmanuel; Hasford, Francis

2016-11-01

Although the use of radioisotopes in Ghana began in 1952, the Radiation Protection Board of Ghana was established in 1993 and served as the national competent authority for authorization and inspection of practices and activities involving radiation sources until 2015. The law has been superseded by an Act of Parliament, Act 895 of 2015, mandating the Nuclear Regulatory Authority of Ghana to take charge of the regulation of radiation sources and their applications. The Radiation Protection Institute in Ghana provided technical support to the regulatory authority. Regulatory and service activities that were undertaken by the Institute include issuance of permits for handling of a radiation sources, authorization and inspection of radiation sources, radiation safety assessment, safety assessment of cellular signal towers, and calibration of radiation-emitting equipment. Practices and activities involving application of radiation are brought under regulatory control in the country through supervision by the national competent authority.

Application of an Informatics-Based Decision-Making Framework and Process to the Assessment of Radiation Safety in Nanotechnology

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hoover, Mark D.; Myers, David S.; Cash, Leigh J.

The National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP) has established NCRP Scientific Committee 2-6 to develop a report on the current state of knowledge and guidance for radiation safety programs involved with nanotechnology. Nanotechnology is the understanding and control of matter at the nanoscale, at dimensions between approximately 1 and 100 nanometers, where unique phenomena enable novel applications. While the full report is in preparation, this article presents and applies an informatics-based decision-making framework and process through which the radiation protection community can anticipate that nano-enabled applications, processes, nanomaterials, and nanoparticles are likely to become present or are alreadymore » present in radiation-related activities; recognize specific situations where environmental and worker safety, health, well-being, and productivity may be affected by nano-related activities; evaluate how radiation protection practices may need to be altered to improve protection; control information, interpretations, assumptions, and conclusions to implement scientifically sound decisions and actions; and confirm that desired protection outcomes have been achieved. This generally applicable framework and supporting process can be continuously applied to achieve health and safety at the convergence of nanotechnology and radiation-related activities.« less

Application of an informatics-based decision-making framework and process to the assessment of radiation safety in nanotechnology.

PubMed

Hoover, Mark D; Myers, David S; Cash, Leigh J; Guilmette, Raymond A; Kreyling, Wolfgang G; Oberdörster, Günter; Smith, Rachel; Cassata, James R; Boecker, Bruce B; Grissom, Michael P

2015-02-01

The National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP) established NCRP Scientific Committee 2-6 to develop a report on the current state of knowledge and guidance for radiation safety programs involved with nanotechnology. Nanotechnology is the understanding and control of matter at the nanoscale, at dimensions between ∼1 and 100 nm, where unique phenomena enable novel applications. While the full report is in preparation, this paper presents and applies an informatics-based decision-making framework and process through which the radiation protection community can anticipate that nano-enabled applications, processes, nanomaterials, and nanoparticles are likely to become present or are already present in radiation-related activities; recognize specific situations where environmental and worker safety, health, well-being, and productivity may be affected by nano-related activities; evaluate how radiation protection practices may need to be altered to improve protection; control information, interpretations, assumptions, and conclusions to implement scientifically sound decisions and actions; and confirm that desired protection outcomes have been achieved. This generally applicable framework and supporting process can be continuously applied to achieve health and safety at the convergence of nanotechnology and radiation-related activities.

Application of an Informatics-Based Decision-Making Framework and Process to the Assessment of Radiation Safety in Nanotechnology

DOE PAGES

Hoover, Mark D.; Myers, David S.; Cash, Leigh J.; ...

2015-01-01

The National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP) has established NCRP Scientific Committee 2-6 to develop a report on the current state of knowledge and guidance for radiation safety programs involved with nanotechnology. Nanotechnology is the understanding and control of matter at the nanoscale, at dimensions between approximately 1 and 100 nanometers, where unique phenomena enable novel applications. While the full report is in preparation, this article presents and applies an informatics-based decision-making framework and process through which the radiation protection community can anticipate that nano-enabled applications, processes, nanomaterials, and nanoparticles are likely to become present or are alreadymore » present in radiation-related activities; recognize specific situations where environmental and worker safety, health, well-being, and productivity may be affected by nano-related activities; evaluate how radiation protection practices may need to be altered to improve protection; control information, interpretations, assumptions, and conclusions to implement scientifically sound decisions and actions; and confirm that desired protection outcomes have been achieved. This generally applicable framework and supporting process can be continuously applied to achieve health and safety at the convergence of nanotechnology and radiation-related activities.« less

Are we failing to communicate? Internet-based patient education materials and radiation safety.

PubMed

Hansberry, David R; Ramchand, Tekchand; Patel, Shyam; Kraus, Carl; Jung, Jin; Agarwal, Nitin; Gonzales, Sharon F; Baker, Stephen R

2014-09-01

Patients frequently turn to the Internet when seeking answers to healthcare related inquiries including questions about the effects of radiation when undergoing radiologic studies. We investigate the readability of online patient education materials concerning radiation safety from multiple Internet resources. Patient education material regarding radiation safety was downloaded from 8 different websites encompassing: (1) the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, (2) the Environmental Protection Agency, (3) the European Society of Radiology, (4) the Food and Drug Administration, (5) the Mayo Clinic, (6) MedlinePlus, (7) the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and (8) the Society of Pediatric Radiology. From these 8 resources, a total of 45 articles were analyzed for their level of readability using 10 different readability scales. The 45 articles had a level of readability ranging from 9.4 to the 17.2 grade level. Only 3/45 (6.7%) were written below the 10th grade level. No statistical difference was seen between the readability level of the 8 different websites. All 45 articles from all 8 websites failed to meet the recommendations set forth by the National Institutes of Health and American Medical Association that patient education resources be written between the 3rd and 7th grade level. Rewriting the patient education resources on radiation safety from each of these 8 websites would help many consumers of healthcare information adequately comprehend such material. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

Expanding the scope of practice for radiology managers: radiation safety duties.

PubMed

Orders, Amy B; Wright, Donna

2003-01-01

In addition to financial responsibilities and patient care duties, many medical facilities also expect radiology department managers to wear "safety" hats and complete fundamental quality control/quality assurance, conduct routine safety surveillance in the department, and to meet regulatory demands in the workplace. All managers influence continuous quality improvement initiatives, from effective utilization of resource and staffing allocations, to efficacy of patient scheduling tactics. It is critically important to understand continuous quality improvement (CQI) and its relationship with the radiology manager, specifically quality assurance/quality control in routine work, as these are the fundamentals of institutional safety, including radiation safety. When an institution applies for a registration for radiation-producing devices or a license for the use of radioactive materials, the permit granting body has specific requirements, policies and procedures that must be satisfied in order to be granted a permit and to maintain it continuously. In the 32 U.S. Agreement states, which are states that have radiation safety programs equivalent to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission programs, individual facilities apply for permits through the local governing body of radiation protection. Other states are directly licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and associated regulatory entities. These regulatory agencies grant permits, set conditions for use in accordance with state and federal laws, monitor and enforce radiation safety activities, and audit facilities for compliance with their regulations. Every radiology department and associated areas of radiation use are subject to inspection and enforcement policies in order to ensure safety of equipment and personnel. In today's business practice, department managers or chief technologists may actively participate in the duties associated with institutional radiation safety, especially in smaller institutions, while

[RADIATION SAFETY DURING REMEDIATION OF THE "SEVRAO" FACILITIES].

PubMed

Shandala, N K; Kiselev, S M; Titov, A V; Simakov, A V; Seregin, V A; Kryuchkov, V P; Bogdanova, L S; Grachev, M I

2015-01-01

Within a framework of national program on elimination of nuclear legacy, State Corporation "Rosatom" is working on rehabilitation at the temporary waste storage facility at Andreeva Bay (Northwest Center for radioactive waste "SEVRAO"--the branch of "RosRAO"), located in the North-West of Russia. In the article there is presented an analysis of the current state of supervision for radiation safety of personnel and population in the context of readiness of the regulator to the implementation of an effective oversight of radiation safety in the process of radiation-hazardous work. Presented in the article results of radiation-hygienic monitoring are an informative indicator of the effectiveness of realized rehabilitation measures and characterize the radiation environment in the surveillance zone as a normal, without the tendency to its deterioration.

Radiation safety considerations with therapeutic 90Y Zevalin.

PubMed

Zhu, Xiaowei

2003-08-01

ABSTRACT Radioimmunotherapy with the 90Y-labeled Zevalin radioimmunoconjugate is a new and promising modality in cancer treatment that combines the targeting power of monoclonal antibodies with the cytotoxicity of localized radiation. 90Y is a pure beta emitter, with different physical characteristics than traditional therapeutic radionuclides such as 131I. It is important that radiation safety professionals understand the characteristics of this radionuclide so that effective radiation safety procedures can be implemented with the Zevalin regimen. Because 90Y is a pure beta emitter, the Zevalin regimen is routinely administered as an outpatient procedure and is administered by using plastic shielding. Once the radioimmunoconjugate has been administered, the risk of radiation exposure to healthcare workers and family members is minimal. The primary route of biologic elimination of 90Y Zevalin is through the urinary system, with approximately 7% of the total activity administered eliminated over the course of 1 wk. Standard universal precautions, which should already be in place in healthcare facilities, should be sufficient to prevent radiation exposure to personnel working with patients who have been treated with Zevalin. Written radiation safety instructions for patients are not required, but basic instructions to the patient and his or her family may help further minimize the risk of radiation exposure and help alleviate patient and family concerns.

Health, safety and environmental requirements for composite materials

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hazer, Kathleen A.

1994-01-01

The health, safety and environmental requirements for the production of composite materials are discussed. The areas covered include: (1) chemical identification for each chemical; (2) toxicology; (3) industrial hygiene; (4) fire and safety; (5) environmental aspects; and (6) medical concerns.

Neuro-oncology update: radiation safety and nursing care during interstitial brachytherapy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Randall, T.M.; Drake, D.K.; Sewchand, W.

Radiation control and safety are major considerations for nursing personnel during the care of patients receiving brachytherapy. Since the theory and practice of radiation applications are not part of the routine curriculum of nursing programs, the education of nurses and other health care professionals in radiation safety procedures is important. Regulatory agencies recommend that an annual safety course be given to all persons frequenting, using, or associated with patients containing radioactive materials. This article presents pertinent aspects of the principles and procedures of radiation safety, the role of personnel dose-monitoring devices, and the value of additional radiation control features, suchmore » as a lead cubicle, during interstitial brain implants. One institution's protocol and procedures for the care of high-intensity iridium-192 brain implants are discussed. Preoperative teaching guidelines and nursing interventions included in the protocol focus on radiation control principles.« less

Radiation safety standards and their application: international policies and current issues.

PubMed

González, Abel J

2004-09-01

This paper briefly describes the current policies of the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation and the International Commission on Radiological Protection and how these policies are converted into international radiation safety standards by the International Atomic Energy Agency, which is the only global organization-within the United Nations family of international agencies-with a statutory mandate not only to establish such standards but also to provide for their application. It also summarizes the current status of the established corpus of such international standards, and of it foreseeable evolution, as well as of legally binding undertakings by countries around the world that are linked to these standards. Moreover, this paper also reviews some major current global issues related to the application of international standards, including the following: strengthening of national infrastructures for radiation safety, including technical cooperation programs for assisting developing countries; occupational radiation safety challenges, including the protection of pregnant workers and their unborn children, dealing with working environments with high natural radiation levels, and occupational attributability of health effects (probability of occupational causation); restricting discharges of radioactive substances into the environment: reviewing current international policies vis-a-vis the growing concern on the radiation protection of the "environment;" radiological protection of patients undergoing radiodiagnostic and radiotherapeutic procedures: the current International Action Plan; safety and security of radiation sources: post-11 September developments; preparedness and response to radiation emergencies: enhancing the international network; safe transport of radioactive materials: new apprehensions; safety of radioactive waste management: concerns and connections with radiation protection; and radioactive residues remaining

10 CFR 35.50 - Training for Radiation Safety Officer.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... authorized nuclear pharmacist identified on the licensee's license and has experience with the radiation... Radiation Safety Officer, authorized medical physicist, authorized nuclear pharmacist, or authorized user...

10 CFR 35.50 - Training for Radiation Safety Officer.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... authorized nuclear pharmacist identified on the licensee's license and has experience with the radiation... Radiation Safety Officer, authorized medical physicist, authorized nuclear pharmacist, or authorized user...

10 CFR 35.50 - Training for Radiation Safety Officer.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... authorized nuclear pharmacist identified on the licensee's license and has experience with the radiation... Radiation Safety Officer, authorized medical physicist, authorized nuclear pharmacist, or authorized user...

10 CFR 35.50 - Training for Radiation Safety Officer.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... authorized nuclear pharmacist identified on the licensee's license and has experience with the radiation... Radiation Safety Officer, authorized medical physicist, authorized nuclear pharmacist, or authorized user...

Inaccurate official assessment of radiofrequency safety by the Advisory Group on Non-ionising Radiation.

PubMed

Starkey, Sarah J

2016-12-01

The Advisory Group on Non-ionising Radiation (AGNIR) 2012 report forms the basis of official advice on the safety of radiofrequency (RF) electromagnetic fields in the United Kingdom and has been relied upon by health protection agencies around the world. This review describes incorrect and misleading statements from within the report, omissions and conflict of interest, which make it unsuitable for health risk assessment. The executive summary and overall conclusions did not accurately reflect the scientific evidence available. Independence is needed from the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP), the group that set the exposure guidelines being assessed. This conflict of interest critically needs to be addressed for the forthcoming World Health Organisation (WHO) Environmental Health Criteria Monograph on Radiofrequency Fields. Decision makers, organisations and individuals require accurate information about the safety of RF electromagnetic signals if they are to be able to fulfil their safeguarding responsibilities and protect those for whom they have legal responsibility.

29 CFR 1926.53 - Ionizing radiation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR (CONTINUED) SAFETY AND HEALTH REGULATIONS FOR CONSTRUCTION Occupational Health and Environmental Controls... Protection Against Radiation (10 CFR part 20), relating to protection against occupational radiation exposure...

29 CFR 1926.53 - Ionizing radiation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR (CONTINUED) SAFETY AND HEALTH REGULATIONS FOR CONSTRUCTION Occupational Health and Environmental Controls... Protection Against Radiation (10 CFR part 20), relating to protection against occupational radiation exposure...

Health, Safety, and Environment Division annual report 1989

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wade, C.

1992-01-01

The primary responsibility of the Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE) Division at the Los Alamos National Laboratory is to provide comprehensive occupational health and safety programs, waste processing, and environmental protection. These activities are designed to protect the worker, the public, and the environment. Meeting the responsibilities involves many disciplines, including radiation protection, industrial hygiene, safety, occupational medicine, environmental science and engineering, analytical chemistry, epidemiology, and waste management. New and challenging health, safety, and environmental problems occasionally arise from the diverse research and development work of the Laboratory, and research programs in the HSE Division often stem from these appliedmore » needs. These programs continue but are also extended, as needed, to study specific problems for the Department of Energy. The result of these programs is to help develop better practices in occupational health and safety, radiation protection, and environmental sciences.« less

The status and prospective of environmental radiation monitoring stations in Saudi Arabia

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Al-Kheliewi, Abdullah S.; Holzheimer, Clous

2014-09-30

The use of nuclear technology requires an environmental monitoring program to ensure the safety of the environment, and to protect people from the hazards of radioactive materials, and nuclear accidents. Nuclear accidents are unique, for they incur effects that surpass international frontiers, and can even have a long lasting impact on Earth. Such was the case of the Chernobyl accident in the Ukraine on April 6, 1986. For that purpose, international and national efforts come together to observe for any nuclear or radioactive accident. Many states, including Saudi Arabia which oversees the operation of the National Radiation, Environmental and Earlymore » Monitoring Stations, The Radiation Monitoring Stations(RMS’s) are currently scattered across 35 cities in the country,. These locations are evaluated based on various technological criteria such as border cities, cities of high population density, wind direction, etc. For new nuclear power plants hovering around, it is strongly recommended to increase the number of radiation monitoring stations to warn against any threat that may arise from a nuclear leak or accident and to improve the performance of the existing RMS’s. SARA (Spectroscopic Monitoring Station for air) should be implemented due to the high sensitivity to artificial radiation, automatic isotope identification, free of maintenance, and fully independent due to solar power supply (incl. battery backup) and wireless communication (GPRS)« less

The status and prospective of environmental radiation monitoring stations in Saudi Arabia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Al-Kheliewi, Abdullah S.; Holzheimer, Clous

2014-09-01

The use of nuclear technology requires an environmental monitoring program to ensure the safety of the environment, and to protect people from the hazards of radioactive materials, and nuclear accidents. Nuclear accidents are unique, for they incur effects that surpass international frontiers, and can even have a long lasting impact on Earth. Such was the case of the Chernobyl accident in the Ukraine on April 6, 1986. For that purpose, international and national efforts come together to observe for any nuclear or radioactive accident. Many states, including Saudi Arabia which oversees the operation of the National Radiation, Environmental and Early Monitoring Stations, The Radiation Monitoring Stations(RMS's) are currently scattered across 35 cities in the country,. These locations are evaluated based on various technological criteria such as border cities, cities of high population density, wind direction, etc. For new nuclear power plants hovering around, it is strongly recommended to increase the number of radiation monitoring stations to warn against any threat that may arise from a nuclear leak or accident and to improve the performance of the existing RMS's. SARA (Spectroscopic Monitoring Station for air) should be implemented due to the high sensitivity to artificial radiation, automatic isotope identification, free of maintenance, and fully independent due to solar power supply (incl. battery backup) and wireless communication (GPRS).

Assessment of radiation safety awareness among nuclear medicine nurses: a pilot study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yunus, N. A.; Abdullah, M. H. R. O.; Said, M. A.; Ch'ng, P. E.

2014-11-01

All nuclear medicine nurses need to have some knowledge and awareness on radiation safety. At present, there is no study to address this issue in Malaysia. The aims of this study were (1) to determine the level of knowledge and awareness on radiation safety among nuclear medicine nurses at Putrajaya Hospital in Malaysia and (2) to assess the effectiveness of a training program provided by the hospital to increase the knowledge and awareness of the nuclear medicine nurses. A total of 27 respondents attending a training program on radiation safety were asked to complete a questionnaire. The questionnaire consists 16 items and were categorized into two main areas, namely general radiation knowledge and radiation safety. Survey data were collected before and after the training and were analyzed using descriptive statistics and paired sample t-test. Respondents were scored out of a total of 16 marks with 8 marks for each area. The findings showed that the range of total scores obtained by the nuclear medicine nurses before and after the training were 6-14 (with a mean score of 11.19) and 13-16 marks (with a mean score of 14.85), respectively. Findings also revealed that the mean score for the area of general radiation knowledge (7.59) was higher than that of the radiation safety (7.26). Currently, the knowledge and awareness on radiation safety among the nuclear medicine nurses are at the moderate level. It is recommended that a national study be conducted to assess and increase the level of knowledge and awareness among all nuclear medicine nurses in Malaysia.

21 CFR 14.120 - Establishment of the Technical Electronic Product Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC). 14.120 Section 14.120 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG... Technical Electronic Products Radiation Safety Standards Committee § 14.120 Establishment of the Technical Electronic Product Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC). The Technical Electronic Product Radiation...

21 CFR 14.120 - Establishment of the Technical Electronic Product Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC). 14.120 Section 14.120 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG... Technical Electronic Products Radiation Safety Standards Committee § 14.120 Establishment of the Technical Electronic Product Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC). The Technical Electronic Product Radiation...

21 CFR 14.120 - Establishment of the Technical Electronic Product Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC). 14.120 Section 14.120 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG... Technical Electronic Products Radiation Safety Standards Committee § 14.120 Establishment of the Technical Electronic Product Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC). The Technical Electronic Product Radiation...

21 CFR 14.120 - Establishment of the Technical Electronic Product Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC). 14.120 Section 14.120 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG... Technical Electronic Products Radiation Safety Standards Committee § 14.120 Establishment of the Technical Electronic Product Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC). The Technical Electronic Product Radiation...

21 CFR 14.120 - Establishment of the Technical Electronic Product Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC). 14.120 Section 14.120 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG... Technical Electronic Products Radiation Safety Standards Committee § 14.120 Establishment of the Technical Electronic Product Radiation Safety Standards Committee (TEPRSSC). The Technical Electronic Product Radiation...

Radiation safety of crew and passengers of air transportation in civil aviation. Provisional standards

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Aksenov, A. F.; Burnazyan, A. I.

1985-01-01

The purpose and application of the provisional standards for radiation safety of crew and passengers in civil aviation are given. The radiation effect of cosmic radiation in flight on civil aviation air transport is described. Standard levels of radiation and conditions of radiation safety are discussed.

Corporate Functional Management Evaluation of the LLNL Radiation Safety Organization

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sygitowicz, L S

2008-03-20

A Corporate Assess, Improve, and Modernize review was conducted at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) to evaluate the LLNL Radiation Safety Program and recommend actions to address the conditions identified in the Internal Assessment conducted July 23-25, 2007. This review confirms the findings of the Internal Assessment of the Institutional Radiation Safety Program (RSP) including the noted deficiencies and vulnerabilities to be valid. The actions recommended are a result of interviews with about 35 individuals representing senior management through the technician level. The deficiencies identified in the LLNL Internal Assessment of the Institutional Radiation Safety Program were discussed with Radiationmore » Safety personnel team leads, customers of Radiation Safety Program, DOE Livermore site office, and senior ES&H management. There are significant issues with the RSP. LLNL RSP is not an integrated, cohesive, consistently implemented program with a single authority that has the clear roll and responsibility and authority to assure radiological operations at LLNL are conducted in a safe and compliant manner. There is no institutional commitment to address the deficiencies that are identified in the internal assessment. Some of these deficiencies have been previously identified and corrective actions have not been taken or are ineffective in addressing the issues. Serious funding and staffing issues have prevented addressing previously identified issues in the Radiation Calibration Laboratory, Internal Dosimetry, Bioassay Laboratory, and the Whole Body Counter. There is a lack of technical basis documentation for the Radiation Calibration Laboratory and an inadequate QA plan that does not specify standards of work. The Radiation Safety Program lack rigor and consistency across all supported programs. The implementation of DOE Standard 1098-99 Radiological Control can be used as a tool to establish this consistency across LLNL. The establishment of a

Driving forces behind the Chinese public's demand for improved environmental safety.

PubMed

Wen, Ting; Wang, Jigan; Ma, Zongwei; Bi, Jun

2017-12-15

Over the past decades, the public demand for improved environmental safety keeps increasing in China. This study aims to assess the driving forces behind the increasing public demand for improved environmental safety using a provincial and multi-year (1995, 2000, 2005, 2010, and 2014) panel data and the Stochastic Impacts by Regression on Population, Affluence, and Technology (STIRPAT) model. The potential driving forces investigated included population size, income levels, degrees of urbanization, and educational levels. Results show that population size and educational level are positively (P<0.01) associated with public demand for improved environmental safety. No significant impact on demand was found due to the degree of urbanization. For the impact due to income level, an inverted U-shaped curve effect with the turning point of ~140,000 CNY GDP per capita is indicated. Since per capita GDP of 2015 in China was approximately 50,000 CNY and far from the turning point, the public demand for improved environmental safety will continue rising in the near future. To meet the increasing public demand for improved environmental safety, proactive and risk prevention based environmental management systems coupled with effective environmental risk communication should be established. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A safety radiation marker in the cardiac catheterization lab.

PubMed

Kostakou, Peggy M; Damaskos, Dimitris S; Dagre, Anna G; Makavos, Georgios A; Olympios, Christophoros D

2016-04-01

Nowadays, in order to deal with cardiovascular disease, coronary angiography (CRA) is the best tool and gold standard for diagnosis and assessment. CRA inevitably exposes both patient and operator to radiation. The purpose of this study was to calculate the radiation exposure in association with the radiation absorbed by interventional cardiologists, in order to estimate a safety radiation marker in the catheterization laboratory. In 794 successive patients undergoing CRA and in three interventional cardiologists the following parameters were examined: radioscopy duration, radiation exposure during fluoroscopy, total radiation exposure and the number of stents per procedure. Every interventional cardiologist was exposed to 562,936 μGym2 of total radiation during CRA procedures, to 833,371 μGym2 during elective CRA + percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedures and to 328,250 μGym2 during primary CRA + PCI. Hence, the total amount of radiation that every angiographer was exposed to amounted to 1,724,557.5 μGym2 (median values). During the same period, the average radiation that every angiographer absorbed was 15,253 while the average dose of radiation absorbed during one procedure was 0.06 mSv for each operator. Therefore, the ratio between radiation exposure and the radiation finally absorbed by every operator was 113:1 μGym2/mSv. The present study, indicating the ratio above, offers a safety marker in order to realistically estimate the dose absorbed by interventional cardiologists, suggesting a specified number of permitted procedures and an effective level of radiation use protection tools.

MONITORING ENVIRONMENTAL RADIATION IN THE UNITED STATES(RADNET)

EPA Science Inventory

Operate a national network of sampling stations that regularly submit environmental samples of air, precipitation and drinking water; analyze all samples for radiation at the laboratory; and report data to the public and the radiation protection community. During national radiat...

Attitude and awareness of general dental practitioners toward radiation hazards and safety.

PubMed

Aravind, B S; Joy, E Tatu; Kiran, M Shashi; Sherubin, J Eugenia; Sajesh, S; Manchil, P Redwin Dhas

2016-10-01

The aim and objective is to evaluate the level of awareness and attitude about radiation hazards and safety practices among general dental practitioners in Trivandrum District, Kerala, India. A questionnaire-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 300 general dental practitioners in Trivandrum District, Kerala, India. Postanswering the questions, a handout regarding radiation safety and related preventive measures was distributed to encourage radiation understanding and protection. Statistical analysis were done by assessing the results using Chi-square statistical test, t -test, and other software (Microsoft excel + SPSS 20.0 trail version). Among 300 general practitioners (247 females and 53 males), 80.3% of the practitioners were found to have a separate section for radiographic examination in their clinics. Intraoral radiographic machines were found to be the most commonly (63.3%) used radiographic equipment while osteoprotegerin was the least (2%). Regarding the practitioner's safety measures, only 11.7% of them were following all the necessary steps while 6.7% clinicians were not using any safety measure in their clinic, and with respect to patient safety, only 9.7% of practitioners were following the protocol. The level of awareness of practitioners regarding radiation hazards and safety was found to be acceptable. However, implementation of their knowledge with respect to patient and personnel safety was found wanting. Insisting that they follow the protocols and take necessary safety measures by means of continuing medical education programs, pamphlets, articles, and workshops is strongly recommended.

Environmental Radiation Monitoring at the Areas of the Former Military Technical Bases at the Russian Far East - 12445

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kiselev, Sergey M.; Shandala, Nataliya K.; Titov, Alexey V.

After termination of operation at the serviced facilities of the nuclear fleet of the former Soviet Union, the Military Technical Base in Sysoeva Bay has been reorganized to the site for SNF and RW temporary storage (STS). The main activities of STS are receipt, storage and transmission to radioactive waste reprocessing. Establishment of the RW management regional centre in the Far-Eastern region at the STS in Sysoeva Bay implies intensification of SNF and RW management in this region that can result in increasing ecological load to the adjacent areas and settlements. Regulatory supervision of the radiation safety at the areasmore » of the Former Military Technical Bases at the Russian Far East is one of the regulatory functions of the Federal Medical Biological Agency (FMBA of Russia). To regulate SNF an RW management and provide the effective response to changing radiation situation, the environmental radiation monitoring system is arranged. For this purpose, wide range of environmental media examinations at the Sysoeva Bay STS was performed by Burnasyan Federal Medical Biophysical Centre - a technical support organization of FMBA of Russia in collaboration with the Federal State Geological Enterprise 'Hydrospecgeology' (Federal Agency for Entrails). Regulation during the RW and SNF management is continuous process, which the FMBA of Russia implements in close cooperation with other Russian responsible authorities - the State Atomic Energy Corporation 'Rosatom' and Federal Agency for Entrails. The Environmental radiation monitoring findings served as a basis for the associated databank arrangement. The radio ecological monitoring system was arranged at the facilities under inspection for the purpose of the dynamic control of the radiation situation. It presupposes regular radiometry inspections in-situ, their analysis and assessment of the radiation situation forecast in the course of the STS remediation main stages. Some new data on the radiation situation at

Need for an "integrated safety assessment" of GMOs, linking food safety and environmental considerations.

PubMed

Haslberger, Alexander G

2006-05-03

Evidence for substantial environmental influences on health and food safety comes from work with environmental health indicators which show that agroenvironmental practices have direct and indirect effects on human health, concluding that "the quality of the environment influences the quality and safety of foods" [Fennema, O. Environ. Health Perspect. 1990, 86, 229-232). In the field of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), Codex principles have been established for the assessment of GM food safety and the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety outlines international principles for an environmental assessment of living modified organisms. Both concepts also contain starting points for an assessment of health/food safety effects of GMOs in cases when the environment is involved in the chain of events that could lead to hazards. The environment can act as a route of unintentional entry of GMOs into the food supply, such as in the case of gene flow via pollen or seeds from GM crops, but the environment can also be involved in changes of GMO-induced agricultural practices with relevance for health/food safety. Examples for this include potential regional changes of pesticide uses and reduction in pesticide poisonings resulting from the use of Bt crops or influences on immune responses via cross-reactivity. Clearly, modern methods of biotechnology in breeding are involved in the reasons behind the rapid reduction of local varieties in agrodiversity, which constitute an identified hazard for food safety and food security. The health/food safety assessment of GM foods in cases when the environment is involved needs to be informed by data from environmental assessment. Such data might be especially important for hazard identification and exposure assessment. International organizations working in these areas will very likely be needed to initiate and enable cooperation between those institutions responsible for the different assessments, as well as for exchange and analysis of

Space station internal environmental and safety concerns

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cole, Matthew B.

1987-01-01

Space station environmental and safety concerns, especially those involving fires, are discussed. Several types of space station modules and the particular hazards associated with each are briefly surveyed. A brief history of fire detection and suppression aboard spacecraft is given. Microgravity fire behavior, spacecraft fire detector systems, space station fire suppression equipment and procedures, and fire safety in hyperbaric chambers are discussed.

Efficacy of radiation safety glasses in interventional radiology.

PubMed

van Rooijen, Bart D; de Haan, Michiel W; Das, Marco; Arnoldussen, Carsten W K P; de Graaf, R; van Zwam, Wim H; Backes, Walter H; Jeukens, Cécile R L P N

2014-10-01

This study was designed to evaluate the reduction of the eye lens dose when wearing protective eyewear in interventional radiology and to identify conditions that optimize the efficacy of radiation safety glasses. The dose reduction provided by different models of radiation safety glasses was measured on an anthropomorphic phantom head. The influence of the orientation of the phantom head on the dose reduction was studied in detail. The dose reduction in interventional radiological practice was assessed by dose measurements on radiologists wearing either leaded or no glasses or using a ceiling suspended screen. The different models of radiation safety glasses provided a dose reduction in the range of a factor of 7.9-10.0 for frontal exposure of the phantom. The dose reduction was strongly reduced when the head is turned to the side relative to the irradiated volume. The eye closest to the tube was better protected due to side shielding and eyewear curvature. In clinical practice, the mean dose reduction was a factor of 2.1. Using a ceiling suspended lead glass shield resulted in a mean dose reduction of a factor of 5.7. The efficacy of radiation protection glasses depends on the orientation of the operator's head relative to the irradiated volume. Glasses can offer good protection to the eye under clinically relevant conditions. However, the performance in clinical practice in our study was lower than expected. This is likely related to nonoptimized room geometry and training of the staff as well as measurement methodology.

United States import safety, environmental health, and food safety regulation in China.

PubMed

Nyambok, Edward O; Kastner, Justin J

2012-01-01

China boasts a rapidly growing economy and is a leading food exporter. Since China has dominated world export markets in food, electronics, and toys, many safety concerns about Chinese exports have emerged. For example, many countries have had problems with Chinese food products and food-processing ingredients. Factors behind food safety and environmental health problems in China include poor industrial waste management, the use of counterfeit agricultural inputs, inadequate training of farmers on good farm management practices, and weak food safety laws and poor enforcement. In the face of rising import safety problems, the U.S. is now requiring certification of products and foreign importers, pursuing providing incentives to importers who uphold good safety practices, and considering publicizing the names of certified importers.

Assessment of the effects of environmental radiation on wind chill equivalent temperatures.

PubMed

Shitzer, Avraham

2008-09-01

Combinations of wind-driven convection and environmental radiation in cold weather, make the environment "feel" colder. The relative contributions of these mechanisms, which form the basis for estimating wind chill equivalent temperatures (WCETs), are studied over a wide range of environmental conditions. Distinction is made between direct solar radiation and environmental radiation. Solar radiation, which is not included in the analysis, has beneficial effects, as it counters and offsets some of the effects due to wind and low air temperatures. Environmental radiation effects, which are included, have detrimental effects in enhancing heat loss from the human body, thus affecting the overall thermal sensation due to the environment. The analysis is performed by a simple, steady-state analytical model of human-environment thermal interaction using upper and lower bounds of environmental radiation heat exchange. It is shown that, over a wide range of relevant air temperatures and reported wind speeds, convection heat losses dominate over environmental radiation. At low wind speeds radiation contributes up to about 23% of the overall heat loss from exposed skin areas. Its relative contributions reduce considerably as the time of the exposure prolongs and exposed skin temperatures drop. At still higher wind speeds, environmental radiation effects become much smaller contributing about 5% of the total heat loss. These values fall well within the uncertainties associated with the parameter values assumed in the computation of WCETs. It is also shown that environmental radiation effects may be accommodated by adjusting reported wind speeds slightly above their reported values.

Measurement and standardization of eye safety for optical radiation of LED products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mou, Tongsheng; Peng, Zhenjian

2013-06-01

The blue light hazard (BLH) to human eye's retina is now a new issue emerging in applications of artificial light sources. Especially for solid state lighting sources based on the blue chip-LED(GaN), the photons with their energy more than 2.4 eV show photochemical effects on the retina significantly, raising damage both in photoreceptors and retinal pigment epithelium. The photobiological safety of artificial light sources emitting optical radiation has gained more and more attention worldwide and addressed by international standards IEC 62471-2006(CIE S009/E: 2002). Meanwhile, it is involved in IEC safety specifications of LED lighting products and covered by European Directive 2006/25/EC on the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of the workers to artificial optical radiation. In practical applications of the safety standards, the measuring methods of optical radiation from LED products to eyes are important in establishment of executable methods in the industry. In 2011, a new project to develop the international standard of IEC TR62471-4,that is "Measuring methods of optical radiation related to photobiological safety", was approved and are now under way. This paper presents the concerned methods for the assessment of optical radiation hazards in the standards. Furthermore, a retina radiance meter simulating eye's optical geometry is also described, which is a potential tool for blue light hazard assessment of retinal exposure to optical radiation. The spectroradiometric method integrated with charge-coupled device(CCD) imaging system is introduced to provide more reliable results.

Environmental Monitoring and Characterization of Radiation Sources on UF Campus Using a Large Volume NaI Detector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bruner, Jesse A.; Gardiner, Hannah E.; Jordan, Kelly A.; Baciak, James E.

2016-09-01

Environmental radiation surveys are important for applications such as safety and regulations. This is especially true for areas exposed to emissions from nuclear reactors, such as the University of Florida Training Reactor (UFTR). At the University of Florida, surveys are performed using the RSX-1 NaI detector, developed by Radiation Solutions Inc. The detector uses incoming gamma rays and an Advanced Digital Spectrometer module to produce a linear energy spectrum. These spectra can then be analyzed in real time with a personal computer using the built in software, RadAssist. We report on radiation levels around the University of Florida campus using two mobile detection platforms, car-borne and cart-borne. The car-borne surveys provide a larger, broader map of campus radiation levels. On the other hand, cart-borne surveys provide a more detailed radiation map because of its ability to reach places on campus cars cannot go. Throughout the survey data, there are consistent radon decay product energy peaks in addition to other sources such as medical I-131 found in a large crowd of people. Finally, we investigate further applications of this mobile detection platform, such as tracking the Ar-41 plume emitted from the UFTR and detection of potential environmental hazards.

Developing the radiation protection safety culture in the UK.

PubMed

Cole, P; Hallard, R; Broughton, J; Coates, R; Croft, J; Davies, K; Devine, I; Lewis, C; Marsden, P; Marsh, A; McGeary, R; Riley, P; Rogers, A; Rycraft, H; Shaw, A

2014-06-01

In the UK, as elsewhere, there is potential to improve how radiological challenges are addressed through improvement in, or development of, a strong radiation protection (RP) safety culture. In preliminary work in the UK, two areas have been identified as having a strong influence on UK society: the healthcare and nuclear industry sectors. Each has specific challenges, but with many overlapping common factors. Other sectors will benefit from further consideration.In order to make meaningful comparisons between these two principal sectors, this paper is primarily concerned with cultural aspects of RP in the working environment and occupational exposures rather than patient doses.The healthcare sector delivers a large collective dose to patients each year, particularly for diagnostic purposes, which continues to increase. Although patient dose is not the focus, it must be recognised that collective patient dose is inevitably linked to collective occupational exposure, especially in interventional procedures.The nuclear industry faces major challenges as work moves from operations to decommissioning on many sites. This involves restarting work in the plants responsible for the much higher radiation doses of the 1960/70s, but also performing tasks that are considerably more difficult and hazardous than those original performed in these plants.Factors which influence RP safety culture in the workplace are examined, and proposals are considered for a series of actions that may lead to an improvement in RP culture with an associated reduction in dose in many work areas. These actions include methods to improve knowledge and awareness of radiation safety, plus ways to influence management and colleagues in the workplace. The exchange of knowledge about safety culture between the nuclear industry and medical areas may act to develop RP culture in both sectors, and have a wider impact in other sectors where exposures to ionising radiations can occur.

WNA's worldwide overview on front-end nuclear fuel cycle growth and health, safety and environmental issues.

PubMed

Saint-Pierre, Sylvain; Kidd, Steve

2011-01-01

This paper presents the WNA's worldwide nuclear industry overview on the anticipated growth of the front-end nuclear fuel cycle from uranium mining to conversion and enrichment, and on the related key health, safety, and environmental (HSE) issues and challenges. It also puts an emphasis on uranium mining in new producing countries with insufficiently developed regulatory regimes that pose greater HSE concerns. It introduces the new WNA policy on uranium mining: Sustaining Global Best Practices in Uranium Mining and Processing-Principles for Managing Radiation, Health and Safety and the Environment, which is an outgrowth of an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) cooperation project that closely involved industry and governmental experts in uranium mining from around the world. Copyright © 2010 Health Physics Society

Reduction of adult fingers visualized on pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) chest radiographs after radiation technologist and PICU staff radiation safety education.

PubMed

Tynan, Jennifer R; Duncan, Meghan D; Burbridge, Brent E

2009-10-01

A recent publication from our centre revealed a disturbing finding of a significant incidence of adult fingers seen on the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) chest radiographs. This is inappropriate occupational exposure to diagnostic radiation. We hypothesized that the incidence of adult fingers on PICU chest radiographs would decline after radiation safety educational seminars were given to the medical radiation technologists and PICU staff. The present study's objectives were addressed by using a pretest-posttest design. Two cross-sectional PICU chest radiograph samples, taken before and after the administration of radiation safety education for our medical radiation technologists and PICU staff, were compared by using a chi2 test. There was a 61.2% and 76.9% reduction in extraneous adult fingers, directly exposed to the x-ray beam and those seen in the coned regions of the film, respectively, on PICU chest radiographs (66.7% reduction overall). This reduction was statistically significant (chi2 = 20.613, P < .001). Limiting unnecessary occupational radiation exposure is a critical issue in radiology. There was a statistically and clinically significant association between radiation safety education and the decreased number of adult fingers seen on PICU chest radiographs. This study provides preliminary evidence in favour of the benefit of radiation safety seminars.

Ionizing and Nonionizing Radiation Protection. Module SH-35. Safety and Health.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Center for Occupational Research and Development, Inc., Waco, TX.

This student module on ionizing and nonionizing radiation protection is one of 50 modules concerned with job safety and health. This module describes various types of ionizing and nonionizing radiation, and the situations in the workplace where potential hazards from radiation may exist. Following the introduction, 13 objectives (each keyed to a…

Safety in passenger ships: The influence of environmental design characteristics on people's perception of safety.

PubMed

Ahola, Markus; Mugge, Ruth

2017-03-01

Although objective safety is a widely studied topic in ergonomics, subjective safety has received far less research attention. Nevertheless, most of human decision-making and behavior depends on how we perceive our environment. This study investigates the effects of various environmental design characteristics on people's safety perception in a passenger ship context. Five different environmental design characteristics were manipulated to increase the openness of the space or to create more clear navigation, resulting in 20 different cabin corridors for a passenger ship. Ninety-seven respondents were asked to rate these corridors on the perceived safety in an experiment. The results showed that people feel more safe when the corridors have a curved ceiling, when the walls do not have a split-level design, and when there is a view to the outside. Designers can use these insights when designing future environments. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Monitoring of environmental UV radiation by biological dosimeters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rontó, Gy.; Bérces, A.; Gróf, P.; Fekete, A.; Kerékgyártó, T.; Gáspár, S.; Stick, C.

As a consequence of the stratospheric ozone layer depletion biological systems can be damaged due to increased UV-B radiation. The aim of biological dosimetry is to establish a quantitative basis for the risk assessment of the biosphere. DNA is the most important target molecule of biological systems having special sensitivity against short wavelength components of the environmental radiation. Biological dosimeters are usually simple organisms, or components of them, modeling the cellular DNA. Phage T7 and polycrystalline uracil biological dosimeters have been developed and used in our laboratory for monitoring the environmental radiation in different radiation conditions (from the polar to equatorial regions). Comparisons with Robertson-Berger (RB) meter data, as well as with model calculation data weighted by the corresponding spectral sensitivities of the dosimeters are presented. Suggestion is given how to determine the trend of the increase in the biological risk due to ozone depletion.

MO-E-213-00: What Is Medical Physics Without Radiation Safety?

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

NONE

The focus of work of medical physicists in 1980’s was on quality control and quality assurance. Radiation safety was important but was dominated by occupational radiation protection. A series of over exposures of patients in radiotherapy, nuclear medicine and observation of skin injuries among patients undergoing interventional procedures in 1990’s started creating the need for focus on patient protection. It gave medical physicists new directions to develop expertise in patient dosimetry and dose management. Publications creating awareness on cancer risks from CT in early part of the current century and over exposures in CT in 2008 brought radiation risks inmore » public domain and created challenging situations for medical physicists. Increasing multiple exposures of individual patient and patient doses of few tens of mSv or exceeding 100 mSv are increasing the role of medical physicists. Expansion of usage of fluoroscopy in the hands of clinical professionals with hardly any training in radiation protection shall require further role for medical physicists. The increasing publications in journals, recent changes in Safety Standards, California law, all increase responsibilities of medical physicists in patient protection. Newer technological developments in dose efficiency and protective devices increase percentage of time devoted by medical physicists on radiation protection activities. Without radiation protection, the roles, responsibilities and day-to-day involvement of medical physicists in diagnostic radiology becomes questionable. In coming years either medical radiation protection may emerge as a specialty or medical physicists will have to keep major part of day-to-day work on radiation protection. Learning Objectives: To understand how radiation protection has been increasing its role in day-to-day activities of medical physicist To be aware about international safety Standards, national and State regulations that require higher attention to

29 CFR 1926.54 - Nonionizing radiation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 8 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Nonionizing radiation. 1926.54 Section 1926.54 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR (CONTINUED) SAFETY AND HEALTH REGULATIONS FOR CONSTRUCTION Occupational Health and Environmental Controls...

The Environmental Context of Patient Safety and Medical Errors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wholey, Douglas; Moscovice, Ira; Hietpas, Terry; Holtzman, Jeremy

2004-01-01

The environmental context of patient safety and medical errors was explored with specific interest in rural settings. Special attention was paid to unique features of rural health care organizations and their environment that relate to the patient safety issue and medical errors (including the distribution of patients, types of adverse events…

Guidance on the prevention and mitigation of environmental, health and safety impacts of electromagnetic fields and radiation for electric transit systems

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-01-02

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Office of Planning and Environment (TPE) tasked the Volpe Center to develop guidance for transit planners, in order to address persisting public health and safety concerns with prolonged EMF environmental expo...

Space Weather Nowcasting of Atmospheric Ionizing Radiation for Aviation Safety

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mertens, Christopher J.; Wilson, John W.; Blattnig, Steve R.; Solomon, Stan C.; Wiltberger, J.; Kunches, Joseph; Kress, Brian T.; Murray, John J.

2007-01-01

There is a growing concern for the health and safety of commercial aircrew and passengers due to their exposure to ionizing radiation with high linear energy transfer (LET), particularly at high latitudes. The International Commission of Radiobiological Protection (ICRP), the EPA, and the FAA consider the crews of commercial aircraft as radiation workers. During solar energetic particle (SEP) events, radiation exposure can exceed annual limits, and the number of serious health effects is expected to be quite high if precautions are not taken. There is a need for a capability to monitor the real-time, global background radiations levels, from galactic cosmic rays (GCR), at commercial airline altitudes and to provide analytical input for airline operations decisions for altering flight paths and altitudes for the mitigation and reduction of radiation exposure levels during a SEP event. The Nowcast of Atmospheric Ionizing Radiation for Aviation Safety (NAIRAS) model is new initiative to provide a global, real-time radiation dosimetry package for archiving and assessing the biologically harmful radiation exposure levels at commercial airline altitudes. The NAIRAS model brings to bear the best available suite of Sun-Earth observations and models for simulating the atmospheric ionizing radiation environment. Observations are utilized from ground (neutron monitors), from the atmosphere (the METO analysis), and from space (NASA/ACE and NOAA/GOES). Atmospheric observations provide the overhead shielding information and the ground- and space-based observations provide boundary conditions on the GCR and SEP energy flux distributions for transport and dosimetry simulations. Dose rates are calculated using the parametric AIR (Atmospheric Ionizing Radiation) model and the physics-based HZETRN (High Charge and Energy Transport) code. Empirical models of the near-Earth radiation environment (GCR/SEP energy flux distributions and geomagnetic cut-off rigidity) are benchmarked

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 157

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet environmental radiation monitoring data report for the period of January - March 2014. The report includes results for air, drinking water, precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 155

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet environmental radiation monitoring data report for the period of July - September 2013. The report includes results for air, drinking water, precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 154

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet environmental radiation monitoring data report for the period of April - June 2013. The report includes results for air, drinking water, precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 158

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet environmental radiation monitoring data report for the period of April - June 2014. The report includes results for air, drinking water, precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 156

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet environmental radiation monitoring data report for the period of October - December 2013. The report includes results for air, drinking water, precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

The food and environmental safety of Bt crops.

PubMed

Koch, Michael S; Ward, Jason M; Levine, Steven L; Baum, James A; Vicini, John L; Hammond, Bruce G

2015-01-01

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) microbial pesticides have a 50-year history of safety in agriculture. Cry proteins are among the active insecticidal ingredients in these pesticides, and genes coding for Cry proteins have been introduced into agricultural crops using modern biotechnology. The Cry gene sequences are often modified to enable effective expression in planta and several Cry proteins have been modified to increase biological activity against the target pest(s). Additionally, the domains of different but structurally conserved Cry proteins can be combined to produce chimeric proteins with enhanced insecticidal properties. Environmental studies are performed and include invertebrates, mammals, and avian species. Mammalian studies used to support the food and feed safety assessment are also used to support the wild mammal assessment. In addition to the NTO assessment, the environmental assessment includes a comparative assessment between the Bt crop and the appropriate conventional control that is genetically similar but lacks the introduced trait to address unintended effects. Specific phenotypic, agronomic, and ecological characteristics are measured in the Bt crop and the conventional control to evaluate whether the introduction of the insect resistance has resulted in any changes that might cause ecological harm in terms of altered weed characteristics, susceptibility to pests, or adverse environmental impact. Additionally, environmental interaction data are collected in field experiments for Bt crop to evaluate potential adverse effects. Further to the agronomic and phenotypic evaluation, potential movement of transgenes from a genetically modified crop plants into wild relatives is assessed for a new pest resistance gene in a new crop. This review summarizes the evidence for safety of crops containing Cry proteins for humans, livestock, and other non-target organisms.

The food and environmental safety of Bt crops

PubMed Central

Koch, Michael S.; Ward, Jason M.; Levine, Steven L.; Baum, James A.; Vicini, John L.; Hammond, Bruce G.

2015-01-01

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) microbial pesticides have a 50-year history of safety in agriculture. Cry proteins are among the active insecticidal ingredients in these pesticides, and genes coding for Cry proteins have been introduced into agricultural crops using modern biotechnology. The Cry gene sequences are often modified to enable effective expression in planta and several Cry proteins have been modified to increase biological activity against the target pest(s). Additionally, the domains of different but structurally conserved Cry proteins can be combined to produce chimeric proteins with enhanced insecticidal properties. Environmental studies are performed and include invertebrates, mammals, and avian species. Mammalian studies used to support the food and feed safety assessment are also used to support the wild mammal assessment. In addition to the NTO assessment, the environmental assessment includes a comparative assessment between the Bt crop and the appropriate conventional control that is genetically similar but lacks the introduced trait to address unintended effects. Specific phenotypic, agronomic, and ecological characteristics are measured in the Bt crop and the conventional control to evaluate whether the introduction of the insect resistance has resulted in any changes that might cause ecological harm in terms of altered weed characteristics, susceptibility to pests, or adverse environmental impact. Additionally, environmental interaction data are collected in field experiments for Bt crop to evaluate potential adverse effects. Further to the agronomic and phenotypic evaluation, potential movement of transgenes from a genetically modified crop plants into wild relatives is assessed for a new pest resistance gene in a new crop. This review summarizes the evidence for safety of crops containing Cry proteins for humans, livestock, and other non-target organisms. PMID:25972882

Radiation safety issues related to radiolabeled antibodies. [Contains glossary

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Barber, D.E.; Baum, J.W.; Meinhold, C. B.

1991-03-01

Techniques related to the use of radiolabeled antibodies in humans are reviewed and evaluated in this report. It is intended as an informational resource for the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and NRC licensees. Descriptions of techniques and health and safety issues are provided. Principal methods for labeling antibodies are summarized to help identify related radiation safety problems in the preparation of dosages for administration to patients. The descriptions are derived from an extensive literature review and consultations with experts in the field. A glossary of terms and acronyms is also included. An assessment was made of the extent ofmore » the involvement of organizations (other than the NRC) with safety issues related to radiolabeled antibodies, in order to identify regulatory issues which require attention. Federal regulations and guides were also reviewed for their relevance. A few (but significant) differences between the use of common radiopharmaceuticals and radiolabeled antibodies were observed. The clearance rate of whole, radiolabeled immunoglobulin is somewhat slower than common radiopharmaceuticals, and new methods of administration are being used. New nuclides are being used or considered (e.g., Re-186 and At-211) for labeling antibodies. Some of these nuclides present new dosimetry, instrument calibration, and patient management problems. Subjects related to radiation safety that require additional research are identified. 149 refs., 3 figs., 20 tabs.« less

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 161

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet environmental radiation monitoring data report for the period of January - March 2015. The report includes results for air, drinking water and precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 162

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet environmental radiation monitoring data report for the period of April - June 2015. The report includes results for air, drinking water and precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 163

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet environmental radiation monitoring data report for the period of July - September 2015. The report includes results for air, drinking water and precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 159

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet environmental radiation monitoring data report for the period of July - September 2014. The report includes results for air, drinking water and precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 164

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet environmental radiation monitoring data report for the period of October - December 2015. The report includes results for air, drinking water and precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 160

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet environmental radiation monitoring data report for the period of October - December 2014. The report includes results for air, drinking water and precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 166

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet environmental radiation monitoring data report for the period of April - June 2016. The report includes results for air, drinking water and precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 165

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet environmental radiation monitoring data report for the period of January - March 2016. The report includes results for air, drinking water and precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

41 CFR 102-80.10 - What are the basic safety and environmental management policies for real property?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... safety and environmental management policies for real property? 102-80.10 Section 102-80.10 Public... MANAGEMENT REGULATION REAL PROPERTY 80-SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT General Provisions § 102-80.10 What are the basic safety and environmental management policies for real property? The basic safety and...

Possible directions of refining criteria of radiation safety of spaceflights

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kovalev, Y.Y.; Petrov, V.M.; Sakovich, V.A.

The possibility of characterizing space flight radiation safety is considered using a value which is integrated over the flight time, takes into account the radiation processes in an irradiated body and averages the probability of adverse radiobiological effects with respect to the distribution of solar proton flares of varying intensity. The proposed characteristic is compared with the current standards with reference to a hypothetic interplanetary flight.

Current global and Korean issues in radiation safety of nuclear medicine procedures.

PubMed

Song, H C

2016-06-01

In recent years, the management of patient doses in medical imaging has evolved as concern about radiation exposure has increased. Efforts and techniques to reduce radiation doses are focussed not only on the basis of patient safety, but also on the fundamentals of justification and optimisation in cooperation with international organisations such as the International Commission on Radiological Protection, the International Atomic Energy Agency, and the World Health Organization. The Image Gently campaign in children and Image Wisely campaign in adults to lower radiation doses have been initiated in the USA. The European Association of Nuclear Medicine paediatric dosage card, North American consensus guidelines, and Nuclear Medicine Global Initiative have recommended the activities of radiopharmaceuticals that should be administered in children. Diagnostic reference levels (DRLs), developed predominantly in Europe, may be an important tool to manage patient doses. In Korea, overexposure to radiation, even from the use of medical imaging, has become a public issue, particularly since the accident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant. As a result, the Korean Nuclear Safety and Security Commission revised the technical standards for radiation safety management in medical fields. In parallel, DRLs for nuclear medicine procedures have been collected on a nationwide scale. Notice of total effective dose from positron emission tomography-computed tomography for cancer screening has been mandatory since mid-November 2014. © The International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics.

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 168

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) journal report for the period of October - December 2016. The report includes results for air, drinking water and precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

ESR statement on radiation protection: globalisation, personalised medicine and safety (the GPS approach).

PubMed

2013-12-01

In keeping with its responsibility for the radiation protection of patients undergoing radiological examinations and procedures, as well as of staff who are getting exposed, and with due regard to requirements under European Directives, the European Society of Radiology (ESR) issues this statement. It provides a holistic approach, termed as Globalisation (indicating all the steps and involving all stakeholders), Personalisation (referring to patient-centric) and Safety-thus called GPS. While being conscious that there is need to increase access of radiological imaging, ESR is aware about the increasing inappropriate medical exposures to ionising radiation and wide variation in patient doses for the same examination. The ESR is convinced that the different components of radiation protection are often interrelated and cannot be considered in isolation The ESR's GPS approach stands for: Globalisation (indicating all the steps and involving all stakeholders), Personalisation (referring to patient-centric) and Safety-thus called GPS It can be anticipated that enhanced protection of patients in Europe will result through the GPS approach. Although the focus is on patient safety, staff safety issues will find a place wherever pertinent.

Radiation safety protocol using real-time dose reporting reduces patient exposure in pediatric electrophysiology procedures.

PubMed

Patel, Akash R; Ganley, Jamie; Zhu, Xiaowei; Rome, Jonathan J; Shah, Maully; Glatz, Andrew C

2014-10-01

Radiation exposure during pediatric catheterization is significant. We sought to describe radiation exposure and the effectiveness of radiation safety protocols in reducing exposure during catheter ablations with electrophysiology studies in children and patients with congenital heart disease. We additionally sought to identify at-risk patients. We retrospectively reviewed all interventional electrophysiology procedures performed from April 2009 to September 2011 (6 months preceding intervention, 12 months following implementation of initial radiation safety protocol, and 8 months following implementation of modified protocol). The protocols consisted of low pulse rate fluoroscopy settings, operator notification of skin entrance dose every 1,000 mGy, adjusting cameras by >5 at every 1,000 mGy, and appropriate collimation. The cohort consisted of 291 patients (70 pre-intervention, 137 after initial protocol implementation, 84 after modified protocol implementation) at a median age of 14.9 years with congenital heart disease present in 11 %. Diagnoses included atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia (25 %), atrioventricular reentrant tachycardia (61 %), atrial tachycardias (12 %), and ventricular tachycardia (2 %). There were no differences between groups based on patient, arrhythmia, and procedural characteristics. Following implementation of the protocols, there were significant reductions in all measures of radiation exposure: fluoroscopy time (17.8 %), dose area product (80.2 %), skin entry dose (81.0 %), and effective dose (76.9 %), p = 0.0001. Independent predictors of increased radiation exposure included larger patient weight, longer fluoroscopy time, and lack of radiation safety protocol. Implementation of a radiation safety protocol for pediatric and congenital catheter ablations can drastically reduce radiation exposure to patients without affecting procedural success.

Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) Journal Report 167

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadNet Environmental Radiation Data (ERD) journal report for the period of July – September 2016. The report includes results for air, drinking water and precipitation samples collected as part of EPA's RadNet monitoring program.

30 CFR 285.800 - How must I conduct my activities to comply with safety and environmental requirements?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... safety and environmental requirements? 285.800 Section 285.800 Mineral Resources MINERALS MANAGEMENT... OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF Environmental and Safety Management, Inspections, and Facility Assessments for... safety and environmental requirements? (a) You must conduct all activities on your lease or grant under...

Factors Of Environmental Safety And Environmentally Efficient Technologies Transportation Facilities Gas Transportation Industry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vasiliev, Bogdan U.

2017-01-01

The stable development of the European countries depends on a reliable and efficient operation of the gas transportation system (GTS). With high reliability of GTS it is necessary to ensure its industrial and environmental safety. In this article the major factors influencing on an industrial and ecological safety of GTS are analyzed, sources of GTS safety decreasing is revealed, measures for providing safety are proposed. The article shows that use of gas-turbine engines of gas-compressor units (GCU) results in the following phenomena: emissions of harmful substances in the atmosphere; pollution by toxic waste; harmful noise and vibration; thermal impact on environment; decrease in energy efficiency. It is shown that for the radical problem resolution of an industrial and ecological safety of gas-transmission system it is reasonable to use gas-compressor units driven by electric motors. Their advantages are shown. Perspective technologies of these units and experience of their use in Europe and the USA are given in this article.

19th JANNAF Safety and Environmental Protection Subcommittee Meeting. Volume 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cocchiaro, J. E. (Editor); Becker, D. L. (Editor)

2002-01-01

This volume, the first of two volumes, is a compilation of 22 unclassified/unlimited technical papers presented at the 19th Joint Army-Navy-NASA-Air Force (JANNAF) Safety & Environmental Protection Subcommittee Meeting. The meeting was held 18-21 March 2002 at the Sheraton Colorado Springs Hotel, Colorado Springs, Colorado. Topics covered include green energetic materials and life cycle pollution prevention; space launch range safety; propellant/munitions demilitarization, recycling, and reuse: and environmental and occupational health aspects of propellants and energetic materials.

Evaluation of radiation safety in 29 central Ohio veterinary practices

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Moritz, S.A.; Wilkins, J.R. III; Hueston, W.D.

1989-07-01

A sample of 29 veterinary practices in Central Ohio were visited to assess radiation safety practices and observance of state regulations. Lead aprons and gloves were usually available, but gloves were not always worn. Protective thyroid collars and lead glasses were not available in any practice, lead shields in only five practices, and lead-lined walls and doors in only two practices. Eighteen practices had none of the required safety notices posted.

78 FR 50079 - Information Collection Activities: Safety and Environmental Management Systems (SEMS); Proposed...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-16

... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement [Docket ID BSEE-2013-0005; OMB Control Number 1014-0017: 134E1700D2 EEEE500000 ET1SF0000.DAQ000] Information Collection Activities: Safety and Environmental Management Systems (SEMS); Proposed Collection; Comment Request Correction In notice document 2013-19416 appearing o...

Linking Environmental Sustainability, Health, and Safety Data in Health Care: A Research Roadmap.

PubMed

Kaplan, Susan B; Forst, Linda

2017-08-01

Limited but growing evidence demonstrates that environmental sustainability in the health-care sector can improve worker and patient health and safety. Yet these connections are not appreciated or understood by decision makers in health-care organizations or oversight agencies. Several studies demonstrate improvements in quality of care, staff satisfaction, and work productivity related to environmental improvements in the health-care sector. A pilot study conducted by the authors found that already-collected data could be used to evaluate impacts of environmental sustainability initiatives on worker and patient health and safety, yet few hospitals do so. Future research should include a policy analysis of laws that could drive efforts to integrate these areas, elucidation of organizational models that promote sharing of environmental and health and safety data, and development of tools and methods to enable systematic linkage and evaluation of these data to expand the evidence base and improve the hospital environment.

Radiation technology for environmental conservation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Machi, S.

The use of radiation technology for environmental conservation is becoming increasingly important. Commercial plants for the radiation treatment of sewage sludge to reduce pathogenic micro-organisms have been operating in the Federal Republic of Germany for the past ten years and their technical and economical feasibility has been demonstrated. Irradiation of dried sludge has been developed at the Sandia National Laboratory (USA) using Cs-137, and the construction of a commercial plant is planned in Albuquerque. At the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI), efforts are under way to increase the rate of composting of sludge by radiation. Regarding waste water treatment, a significant synergistic effect of radiation and ozone was found in the reduction of TOC. The construction of a gamma irradiation plant is in the planning stage in Canada, for the disinfection of virus-contaminated waste effluents from the Canadian Animal Disease Research Institute. The treatment of exhaust gases by electron beam has been studied in Japan using a large pilot plant which demonstrated that 90% of SO 2 and 80% of NO x can be removed from the flue gas of iron ore sintering furnaces. The US Department of Energy is assisting in projects for the further development of this technology for combined removal of SO 2 and NO x in flue gas from coal burning power stations.

Environmental radiology assessment in Lahad Datu, Sabah

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Siti Fharhana, Yusof; Wan Muhamad Saridan, Wan Hassan; Ahmad Termizi, Ramli; Mohd Hilmi, Sahini; Mohammad Syazwan, Mohd Sanusi; Nor Afifah, Basri; Nor Zati Hani, Abu Hanifah

2017-10-01

Monitoring terrestial gamma radiation is crucial to prepare a baseline data for environmental radiological protection. Radiological research was carried out in Lahad Datu, Sabah to obtain the radioactivity status and terrestrial gamma radiation level in the area. We measure the terrestrial gamma radiation dose rates and analyse the radioactivity concentration of primordial radionuclides for radiological risk assessment. We identified that the annual estimation of dose effective for public is below the public dose limit, 1 mSv per year. Public and environment safety and health are remain secure. The obtained data and results can be used as reference for environmental radiology protection.

What You Should Know About Pediatric Nuclear Medicine and Radiation Safety

MedlinePlus

What You Should Know About Pediatric Nuclear Medicine and Radiation Safety www.imagegently.org What is nuclear medicine? Nuclear medicine uses radioactive isotopes to create pictures of the human body. These pictures ...

Southern Great Plains Safety Orientation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Schatz, John

2014-05-01

Welcome to the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Climate Research Facility (ARM) Southern Great Plains (SGP) site. This U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) site is managed by Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). It is very important that all visitors comply with all DOE and ANL safety requirements, as well as those of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the National Fire Protection Association, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and with other requirements as applicable.

Key Performance Indicators in the Evaluation of the Quality of Radiation Safety Programs.

PubMed

Schultz, Cheryl Culver; Shaffer, Sheila; Fink-Bennett, Darlene; Winokur, Kay

2016-08-01

Beaumont is a multiple hospital health care system with a centralized radiation safety department. The health system operates under a broad scope Nuclear Regulatory Commission license but also maintains several other limited use NRC licenses in off-site facilities and clinics. The hospital-based program is expansive including diagnostic radiology and nuclear medicine (molecular imaging), interventional radiology, a comprehensive cardiovascular program, multiple forms of radiation therapy (low dose rate brachytherapy, high dose rate brachytherapy, external beam radiotherapy, and gamma knife), and the Research Institute (including basic bench top, human and animal). Each year, in the annual report, data is analyzed and then tracked and trended. While any summary report will, by nature, include items such as the number of pieces of equipment, inspections performed, staff monitored and educated and other similar parameters, not all include an objective review of the quality and effectiveness of the program. Through objective numerical data Beaumont adopted seven key performance indicators. The assertion made is that key performance indicators can be used to establish benchmarks for evaluation and comparison of the effectiveness and quality of radiation safety programs. Based on over a decade of data collection, and adoption of key performance indicators, this paper demonstrates one way to establish objective benchmarking for radiation safety programs in the health care environment.

Code of Sustainable Practice in Occupational and Environmental Health and Safety for Corporations.

PubMed

Castleman, Barry; Allen, Barbara; Barca, Stefania; Bohme, Susanna Rankin; Henry, Emmanuel; Kaur, Amarjit; Massard-Guilbaud, Genvieve; Melling, Joseph; Menendez-Navarro, Alfredo; Renfrew, Daniel; Santiago, Myrna; Sellers, Christopher; Tweedale, Geoffrey; Zalik, Anna; Zavestoski, Stephen

2008-01-01

At a conference held at Stony Brook University in December 2007, "Dangerous Trade: Histories of Industrial Hazard across a Globalizing World," participants endorsed a Code of Sustainable Practice in Occupational and Environmental Health and Safety for Corporations. The Code outlines practices that would ensure corporations enact the highest health and environmentally protective measures in all the locations in which they operate. Corporations should observe international guidelines on occupational exposure to air contaminants, plant safety, air and water pollutant releases, hazardous waste disposal practices, remediation of polluted sites, public disclosure of toxic releases, product hazard labeling, sale of products for specific uses, storage and transport of toxic intermediates and products, corporate safety and health auditing, and corporate environmental auditing. Protective measures in all locations should be consonant with the most protective measures applied anywhere in the world, and should apply to the corporations' subsidiaries, contractors, suppliers, distributors, and licensees of technology. Key words: corporations, sustainability, environmental protection, occupational health, code of practice.

Lunar and Martian environmental interactions with nuclear power system radiators

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Perez-Davis, Marla E.; Gaier, James R.; Katzan, Cynthia M.

1992-01-01

Future NASA space missions include a permanent manned presence on the moon and an expedition to the planet Mars. Such steps will require careful consideration of environmental interactions in the selection and design of required power systems. Several environmental constituents may be hazardous to performance integrity. Potential threats common to both the moon and Mars are low ambient temperatures, wide daily temperature swings, solar flux, and large quantities of dust. The surface of Mars provides the additional challenges of dust storms, winds, and a carbon dioxide atmosphere. In this review, the anticipated environmental interactions with surface power system radiators are described, as well as the impacts of these interactions on radiator durability, which were identified at NASA Lewis Research Center.

Exposure safety standards for nonionizing radiation (NIR) from collision-avoidance radar

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Palmer-Fortune, Joyce; Brecher, Aviva; Spencer, Paul; Huguenin, Richard; Woods, Ken

1997-02-01

On-vehicle technology for collision avoidance using millimeter wave radar is currently under development and is expected to be in vehicles in coming years. Recently approved radar bands for collision avoidance applications include 47.5 - 47.8 GHz and 76 - 77 GHz. Widespread use of active radiation sources in the public domain would contribute to raised levels of human exposure to high frequency electromagnetic radiation, with potential for adverse health effects. In order to design collision avoidance systems that will pose an acceptably low radiation hazard, it is necessary to determine what levels of electromagnetic radiation at millimeter wave frequencies will be acceptable in the environment. This paper will summarize recent research on NIR (non-ionizing radiation) exposure safety standards for high frequency electromagnetic radiation. We have investigated both governmental and non- governmental professional organizations worldwide.

A survey of residents' experience with patient safety and quality improvement concepts in radiation oncology.

PubMed

Spraker, Matthew B; Nyflot, Matthew; Hendrickson, Kristi; Ford, Eric; Kane, Gabrielle; Zeng, Jing

The safety and quality of radiation therapy have recently garnered increased attention in radiation oncology (RO). Although patient safety guidelines expect physicians and physicists to lead clinical safety and quality improvement (QI) programs, trainees' level of exposure to patient safety concepts during training is unknown. We surveyed active medical and physics RO residents in North America in February 2016. Survey questions involved demographics and program characteristics, exposure to patient safety topics, and residents' attitude regarding their safety education. Responses were collected from 139 of 690 (20%) medical and 56 of 248 (23%) physics RO residents. More than 60% of residents had no exposure or only informal exposure to incident learning systems (ILS), root cause analysis, failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA), and the concepts of human factors engineering. Medical residents had less exposure to FMEA than physics residents, and fewer medical than physics residents felt confident in leading FMEA in clinic. Only 27% of residents felt that patient safety training was adequate in their program. Experiential learning through practical workshops was the most desired educational modality, preferred over web-based learning. Residents training in departments with ILS had greater exposure to patient safety concepts and felt more confident leading clinical patient safety and QI programs than residents training in departments without an ILS. The survey results show that most residents have no or only informal exposure to important patient safety and QI concepts and do not feel confident leading clinical safety programs. This represents a gaping need in RO resident education. Educational programs such as these can be naturally developed as part of an incident learning program that focuses on near-miss events. Future research should assess the needs of RO program directors to develop effective RO patient safety and QI training programs. Copyright © 2016

Radiation safety education reduces the incidence of adult fingers on neonatal chest radiographs.

PubMed

Sahota, N; Burbridge, B E; Duncan, M D

2014-06-01

A previous audit revealed a high frequency of adult fingers visualised on neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) chest radiographs-representing an example of inappropriate occupational radiation exposure. Radiation safety education was provided to staff and we hypothesised that the education would reduce the frequency of adult fingers visualised on NICU chest radiographs. Two cross-sectional samples taken before and after the administration of the education were compared. We examined fingers visualised directly in the beam, fingers in the direct beam but eliminated by technologists editing the image, and fingers under the cones of the portable x-ray machine. There was a 46.2% reduction in fingers directly in the beam, 50.0% reduction in fingers directly in the beam but cropped out, and 68.4% reduction in fingers in the coned area. There was a 57.1% overall reduction in adult fingers visualised, which was statistically significant (Z value - 7.48, P < 0.0001). This study supports radiation safety education in minimising inappropriate occupational radiation exposure.

Impact of Jovian radiation environmental hazard on spacecraft and mission development design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Divita, E.

1972-01-01

The environmental impact on the TOPS 12L configuration is discussed. The activities in system environmental design and testing are described, and radiation design restraints based on the upper limit model are given. Range energy cutoffs in aluminum are also presented and the effective shielding thicknesses for electrons and protons of different energies are included. Design integration problems and radiation testing aspects are considered. Data are given for selecting the parts which should be tested in a formal test program, and the piece-part radiation thresholds are tabulated for electrons and protons.

Modernisation and consolidation of the European radiation protection legislation: the new Euratom Basic Safety Standards Directive.

PubMed

Mundigl, Stefan

2015-04-01

With the publication of new basic safety standards for the protection against the dangers arising from exposure to ionising radiation, foreseen in Article 2 and Article 30 of the Euratom Treaty, the European Commission modernises and consolidates the European radiation protection legislation. A revision of the Basic Safety Standards was needed in order (1) to take account of the scientific and technological progress since 1996 and (2) to consolidate the existing set of Euratom radiation protection legislation, merging five Directives and upgrading a recommendation to become legally binding. The new Directive offers in a single coherent document basics safety standards for radiation protection, which take account of the most recent advances in science and technology, cover all relevant radiation sources, including natural radiation sources, integrate protection of workers, members of the public, patients and the environment, cover all exposure situations, planned, existing, emergency, and harmonise numerical values with international standards. After the publication of the Directive in the beginning of 2014, Member States have 4 y to transpose the Directive into national legislation and to implement the requirements therein. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

The hierarchy of environmental health and safety practices in the U.S. nanotechnology workplace.

PubMed

Engeman, Cassandra D; Baumgartner, Lynn; Carr, Benjamin M; Fish, Allison M; Meyerhofer, John D; Satterfield, Terre A; Holden, Patricia A; Harthorn, Barbara Herr

2013-01-01

Manufacturing of nanoscale materials (nanomaterials) is a major outcome of nanotechnology. However, the potential adverse human health effects of manufactured nanomaterial exposure are not yet fully understood, and exposures in humans are mostly uncharacterized. Appropriate exposure control strategies to protect workers are still being developed and evaluated, and regulatory approaches rely largely on industry self-regulation and self-reporting. In this context of soft regulation, the authors sought to: 1) assess current company-reported environmental health and safety practices in the United States throughout the product life cycle, 2) consider their implications for the manufactured nanomaterial workforce, and 3) identify the needs of manufactured nanomaterial companies in developing nano-protective environmental health and safety practices. Analysis was based on the responses of 45 U.S.-based company participants in a 2009-2010 international survey of private companies that use and/or produce nanomaterials. Companies reported practices that span all aspects of the current government-recommended hierarchical approach to manufactured nanomaterials' exposure controls. However, practices that were tailored to current manufactured nanomaterials' hazard and exposure knowledge, whether within or outside the hierarchical approach, were reported less frequently than general chemical hygiene practices. Product stewardship and waste management practices-the influences of which are substantially downstream-were reported less frequently than most other environmental health and safety practices. Larger companies had more workers handling nanomaterials, but smaller companies had proportionally more employees handling nanomaterials and more frequently identified impediments to implementing nano-protective practices. Company-reported environmental health and safety practices suggest more attention to environmental health and safety is necessary, especially with regard to

Mobile phone radiation health risk controversy: the reliability and sufficiency of science behind the safety standards.

PubMed

Leszczynski, Dariusz; Xu, Zhengping

2010-01-27

There is ongoing discussion whether the mobile phone radiation causes any health effects. The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection, the International Committee on Electromagnetic Safety and the World Health Organization are assuring that there is no proven health risk and that the present safety limits protect all mobile phone users. However, based on the available scientific evidence, the situation is not as clear. The majority of the evidence comes from in vitro laboratory studies and is of very limited use for determining health risk. Animal toxicology studies are inadequate because it is not possible to "overdose" microwave radiation, as it is done with chemical agents, due to simultaneous induction of heating side-effects. There is a lack of human volunteer studies that would, in unbiased way, demonstrate whether human body responds at all to mobile phone radiation. Finally, the epidemiological evidence is insufficient due to, among others, selection and misclassification bias and the low sensitivity of this approach in detection of health risk within the population. This indicates that the presently available scientific evidence is insufficient to prove reliability of the current safety standards. Therefore, we recommend to use precaution when dealing with mobile phones and, whenever possible and feasible, to limit body exposure to this radiation. Continuation of the research on mobile phone radiation effects is needed in order to improve the basis and the reliability of the safety standards.

Mobile phone radiation health risk controversy: the reliability and sufficiency of science behind the safety standards

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

There is ongoing discussion whether the mobile phone radiation causes any health effects. The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection, the International Committee on Electromagnetic Safety and the World Health Organization are assuring that there is no proven health risk and that the present safety limits protect all mobile phone users. However, based on the available scientific evidence, the situation is not as clear. The majority of the evidence comes from in vitro laboratory studies and is of very limited use for determining health risk. Animal toxicology studies are inadequate because it is not possible to "overdose" microwave radiation, as it is done with chemical agents, due to simultaneous induction of heating side-effects. There is a lack of human volunteer studies that would, in unbiased way, demonstrate whether human body responds at all to mobile phone radiation. Finally, the epidemiological evidence is insufficient due to, among others, selection and misclassification bias and the low sensitivity of this approach in detection of health risk within the population. This indicates that the presently available scientific evidence is insufficient to prove reliability of the current safety standards. Therefore, we recommend to use precaution when dealing with mobile phones and, whenever possible and feasible, to limit body exposure to this radiation. Continuation of the research on mobile phone radiation effects is needed in order to improve the basis and the reliability of the safety standards. PMID:20205835

The occupational health and safety of flight attendants.

PubMed

Griffiths, Robin F; Powell, David M C

2012-05-01

In order to perform safety-critical roles in emergency situations, flight attendants should meet minimum health standards and not be impaired by factors such as fatigue. In addition, the unique occupational and environmental characteristics of flight attendant employment may have consequential occupational health and safety implications, including radiation exposure, cancer, mental ill-health, musculoskeletal injury, reproductive disorders, and symptoms from cabin air contamination. The respective roles of governments and employers in managing these are controversial. A structured literature review was undertaken to identify key themes for promoting a future agenda for flight attendant health and safety. Recommendations include breast cancer health promotion, implementation of Fatigue Risk Management Systems, standardization of data collection on radiation exposure and health outcomes, and more coordinated approaches to occupational health and safety risk management. Research is ongoing into cabin air contamination incidents, cancer, and fatigue as health and safety concerns. Concerns are raised that statutory medical certification for flight attendants will not benefit either flight safety or occupational health.

Interactions of environmental and safety measures for sustainable road transportation.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2011-01-01

This study examined interactions of environmental and safety measures for road : transportation. The results showed that a vast majority of the examined measures support : both policy objectives and thereby contribute effectively to sustainable trans...

Agricultural Chemicals and Radiation. Ag Ed Environmental Education Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tulloch, Rodney W.

The document is designed to be used as a resource in teaching vocational agriculture high school students about the environment. Agricultural chemicals are the major focus, with some attention to radiation. The importance of safety in agricultural chemical use is stressed, with descriptions of the pesticide label; protective clothing; respiratory…

Moon manned missions radiation safety analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tripathi, R. K.; Wilson, J. W.; de Anlelis, G.; Badavi, F. F.

, from very simple shelters to more complex bases, are considered in full detail (e.g., shape, thickness, materials, etc) with considerations of various shielding strategies. In this first analysis all the shape considered are cylindrical or composed of combination of cylinders. Moreover, a radiation safety analysis of more future possible habitats like lava tubes has been also performed.

[Systemic approach to ecologic safety at objects with radiation jeopardy, involved into localization of low and medium radioactive waste].

PubMed

Veselov, E I

2011-01-01

The article deals with specifying systemic approach to ecologic safety of objects with radiation jeopardy. The authors presented stages of work and algorithm of decisions on preserving reliability of storage for radiation jeopardy waste. Findings are that providing ecologic safety can cover 3 approaches: complete exemption of radiation jeopardy waste, removal of more dangerous waste from present buildings and increasing reliability of prolonged localization of radiation jeopardy waste at the initial place. The systemic approach presented could be realized at various radiation jeopardy objects.

NCRP Program Area Committee 5: Environmental Radiation and Radioactive Waste Issues

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, S. Y.; Napier, Bruce

Program Area Committee 5 of the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP) focuses its activities on environmental radiation and radioactive waste issues. Historically this Committee addressed emerging issues of the nation pertaining to radioactivity or radiation in the environment or radioactive waste issues due either to natural origins or to manmade activities. The Committee continues to identify such issues in the future.

Radiation exposure and safety practices during pediatric central line placement

PubMed Central

Saeman, Melody R.; Burkhalter, Lorrie S.; Blackburn, Timothy J.; Murphy, Joseph T.

2015-01-01

Purpose Pediatric surgeons routinely use fluoroscopy for central venous line (CVL) placement. We examined radiation safety practices and patient/surgeon exposure during fluoroscopic CVL. Methods Fluoroscopic CVL procedures performed by 11 pediatric surgeons in 2012 were reviewed. Fluoroscopic time (FT), patient exposure (mGy), and procedural data were collected. Anthropomorphic phantom simulations were used to calculate scatter and dose (mSv). Surgeons were surveyed regarding safety practices. Results 386 procedures were reviewed. Median FT was 12.8 seconds. Median patient estimated effective dose was 0.13 mSv. Median annual FT per surgeon was 15.4 minutes. Simulations showed no significant difference (p = 0.14) between reported exposures (median 3.5 mGy/min) and the modeled regression exposures from the C-arm default mode (median 3.4 mGy/min). Median calculated surgeon exposure was 1.5 mGy/year. Eight of 11 surgeons responded to the survey. Only three reported 100% lead protection and frequent dosimeter use. Conclusion We found non-standard radiation training, safety practices, and dose monitoring for the 11 surgeons. Based on simulations, the C-arm default setting was typically used instead of low dose. While most CVL procedures have low patient/surgeon doses, every effort should be used to minimize patient and occupational exposure, suggesting the need for formal hands-on training for non-radiologist providers using fluoroscopy. PMID:25837269

25 CFR 559.7 - May the Chairman request Indian lands or environmental and public health and safety documentation...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... and public health and safety documentation regarding any gaming place, facility, or location where... environmental and public health and safety documentation regarding any gaming place, facility, or location where gaming will occur? A tribe shall provide Indian lands or environmental and public health and safety...

25 CFR 559.7 - May the Chairman request Indian lands or environmental and public health and safety documentation...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... and public health and safety documentation regarding any gaming place, facility, or location where... environmental and public health and safety documentation regarding any gaming place, facility, or location where gaming will occur? A tribe shall provide Indian lands or environmental and public health and safety...

25 CFR 559.7 - May the Chairman request Indian lands or environmental and public health and safety documentation...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... and public health and safety documentation regarding any gaming place, facility, or location where... environmental and public health and safety documentation regarding any gaming place, facility, or location where gaming will occur? A tribe shall provide Indian lands or environmental and public health and safety...

Development of a Quality and Safety Competency Curriculum for Radiation Oncology Residency: An International Delphi Study.

PubMed

Adleman, Jenna; Gillan, Caitlin; Caissie, Amanda; Davis, Carol-Anne; Liszewski, Brian; McNiven, Andrea; Giuliani, Meredith

2017-06-01

To develop an entry-to-practice quality and safety competency profile for radiation oncology residency. A comprehensive list of potential quality and safety competency items was generated from public and professional resources and interprofessional focus groups. Redundant or out-of-scope items were eliminated through investigator consensus. Remaining items were subjected to an international 2-round modified Delphi process involving experts in radiation oncology, radiation therapy, and medical physics. During Round 1, each item was scored independently on a 9-point Likert scale indicating appropriateness for inclusion in the competency profile. Items indistinctly ranked for inclusion or exclusion were re-evaluated through web conference discussion and reranked in Round 2. An initial 1211 items were compiled from 32 international sources and distilled to 105 unique potential quality and safety competency items. Fifteen of the 50 invited experts participated in round 1: 10 radiation oncologists, 4 radiation therapists, and 1 medical physicist from 13 centers in 5 countries. Round 1 rankings resulted in 80 items included, 1 item excluded, and 24 items indeterminate. Two areas emerged more prominently within the latter group: change management and human factors. Web conference with 5 participants resulted in 9 of these 24 items edited for content or clarity. In Round 2, 12 participants rescored all indeterminate items resulting in 10 items ranked for inclusion. The final 90 enabling competency items were organized into thematic groups consisting of 18 key competencies under headings adapted from Deming's System of Profound Knowledge. This quality and safety competency profile may inform minimum training standards for radiation oncology residency programs. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Development of a Quality and Safety Competency Curriculum for Radiation Oncology Residency: An International Delphi Study

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Adleman, Jenna; Gillan, Caitlin; Radiation Medicine Program, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto, Ontario

Purpose: To develop an entry-to-practice quality and safety competency profile for radiation oncology residency. Methods and Materials: A comprehensive list of potential quality and safety competency items was generated from public and professional resources and interprofessional focus groups. Redundant or out-of-scope items were eliminated through investigator consensus. Remaining items were subjected to an international 2-round modified Delphi process involving experts in radiation oncology, radiation therapy, and medical physics. During Round 1, each item was scored independently on a 9-point Likert scale indicating appropriateness for inclusion in the competency profile. Items indistinctly ranked for inclusion or exclusion were re-evaluated through webmore » conference discussion and reranked in Round 2. Results: An initial 1211 items were compiled from 32 international sources and distilled to 105 unique potential quality and safety competency items. Fifteen of the 50 invited experts participated in round 1: 10 radiation oncologists, 4 radiation therapists, and 1 medical physicist from 13 centers in 5 countries. Round 1 rankings resulted in 80 items included, 1 item excluded, and 24 items indeterminate. Two areas emerged more prominently within the latter group: change management and human factors. Web conference with 5 participants resulted in 9 of these 24 items edited for content or clarity. In Round 2, 12 participants rescored all indeterminate items resulting in 10 items ranked for inclusion. The final 90 enabling competency items were organized into thematic groups consisting of 18 key competencies under headings adapted from Deming's System of Profound Knowledge. Conclusions: This quality and safety competency profile may inform minimum training standards for radiation oncology residency programs.« less

Provisional standards of radiation safety of flight personnel and passengers in air transport of the civil aviation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1977-01-01

Provisional standards for radiation affecting passenger aircraft are considered. Agencies responsible for seeing that the regulations are enforced are designated while radiation sources and types of radiation are defined. Standard levels of permissible radiation are given and conditions for radiation safety are discussed. Dosimetric equipment on board aircraft is delineated and regulation effective dates are given.

Improving patient safety in the radiation oncology setting through crew resource management.

PubMed

Sundararaman, Srinath; Babbo, Angela E; Brown, John A; Doss, Richard

2014-01-01

This paper demonstrates how the communication patterns and protocol rigors of a methodology called crew resource management (CRM) can be adapted to a radiation oncology environment to create a culture of patient safety. CRM training was introduced to our comprehensive radiation oncology department in the autumn of 2009. With 34 full-time equivalent staff, we see 100-125 patients daily on 2 hospital campuses. We were assisted by a consulting group with considerable experience in helping hospitals incorporate CRM principles and practices. Implementation steps included developing change initiative skills for key leaders, providing training in teamwork and communications, creating site-specific tools for safety and efficiency, and collecting data to document results. Our goals were to improve patient safety, teamwork, communication, and efficiency through the use of tools we developed that emphasized teamwork and communication, cross-checking, and routinizing specific protocols. Our CRM plan relies on the following 4 pillars: patient identification methods; "pause for the cause"; enabling all staff to halt treatment and question decisions; and daily morning meetings. We discuss some of the hurdles to change we encountered. Our safety record has improved. Our near-miss rate before CRM implementation averaged 11 per month; our near-miss rate currently averages 1.2 per month. In the 5 years prior to CRM implementation, we experienced 1 treatment deviation per year, although none rose to the level of "mis-administration." Since implementing CRM, our current patient treatment setup and delivery process has eliminated all treatment deviations. Our practices have identified situations where ambiguity or conflicting documentation could have resulted in inappropriate treatment or treatment inefficiencies. Our staff members have developed an extraordinary sense of teamwork combined with a high degree of personal responsibility to assure patient safety and have spoken up when

Critical Characteristics of Radiation Detection System Components to be Dedicated for use in Safety Class and Safety Significant System

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

DAVIS, S.J.

2000-05-25

This document identifies critical characteristics of components to be dedicated for use in Safety Class (SC) or Safety Significant (SS) Systems, Structures, or Components (SSCs). This document identifies the requirements for the components of the common radiation area monitor alarm in the WESF pool cell. These are procured as Commercial Grade Items (CGI), with the qualification testing and formal dedication to be performed at the Waste Encapsulation Storage Facility (WESF), in safety class, safety significant systems. System modifications are to be performed in accordance with the instructions provided on ECN 658230. Components for this change are commercially available and interchangeablemore » with the existing alarm configuration This document focuses on the operational requirements for alarm, declaration of the safety classification, identification of critical characteristics, and interpretation of requirements for procurement. Critical characteristics are identified herein and must be verified, followed by formal dedication, prior to the components being used in safety related applications.« less

Evaluating the effectiveness of a radiation safety training intervention for oncology nurses: a pretest-intervention-posttest study.

PubMed

Dauer, Lawrence T; Kelvin, Joanne F; Horan, Christopher L; St Germain, Jean

2006-06-08

Radiation, for either diagnosis or treatment, is used extensively in the field of oncology. An understanding of oncology radiation safety principles and how to apply them in practice is critical for nursing practice. Misconceptions about radiation are common, resulting in undue fears and concerns that may negatively impact patient care. Effectively educating nurses to help overcome these misconceptions is a challenge. Historically, radiation safety training programs for oncology nurses have been compliance-based and behavioral in philosophy. A new radiation safety training initiative was developed for Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) adapting elements of current adult education theories to address common misconceptions and to enhance knowledge. A research design for evaluating the revised training program was also developed to assess whether the revised training program resulted in a measurable and/or statistically significant change in the knowledge or attitudes of nurses toward working with radiation. An evaluation research design based on a conceptual framework for measuring knowledge and attitude was developed and implemented using a pretest-intervention-posttest approach for 15% of the study population of 750 inpatient registered oncology nurses. As a result of the intervention program, there was a significant difference in nurse's cognitive knowledge as measured with the test instrument from pretest (58.9%) to posttest (71.6%). The evaluation also demonstrated that while positive nursing attitudes increased, the increase was significant for only 5 out of 9 of the areas evaluated. The training intervention was effective for increasing cognitive knowledge, but was less effective at improving overall attitudes. This evaluation provided insights into the effectiveness of training interventions on the radiation safety knowledge and attitude of oncology nurses.

Radiation Safety System for SPIDER Neutral Beam Accelerator

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sandri, S.; Poggi, C.; Coniglio, A.

2011-12-13

SPIDER (Source for Production of Ion of Deuterium Extracted from RF Plasma only) and MITICA (Megavolt ITER Injector Concept Advanced) are the ITER neutral beam injector (NBI) testing facilities of the PRIMA (Padova Research Injector Megavolt Accelerated) Center. Both injectors accelerate negative deuterium ions with a maximum energy of 1 MeV for MITICA and 100 keV for SPIDER with a maximum beam current of 40 A for both experiments. The SPIDER facility is classified in Italy as a particle accelerator. At present, the design of the radiation safety system for the facility has been completed and the relevant reports havemore » been presented to the Italian regulatory authorities. Before SPIDER can operate, approval must be obtained from the Italian Regulatory Authority Board (IRAB) following a detailed licensing process. In the present work, the main project information and criteria for the SPIDER injector source are reported together with the analysis of hypothetical accidental situations and safety issues considerations. Neutron and photon nuclear analysis is presented, along with special shielding solutions designed to meet Italian regulatory dose limits. The contribution of activated corrosion products (ACP) to external exposure of workers has also been assessed. Nuclear analysis indicates that the photon contribution to worker external exposure is negligible, and the neutron dose can be considered by far the main radiation protection issue. Our results confirm that the injector has no important radiological impact on the population living around the facility.« less

Collaborative Approaches in Developing Environmental and Safety Management Systems for Commercial Space Transportation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zee, Stacey; Murray, D.

2009-01-01

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST) licenses and permits U.S. commercial space launch and reentry activities, and licenses the operation of non-federal launch and reentry sites. ASTs mission is to ensure the protection of the public, property, and the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States during commercial space transportation activities and to encourage, facilitate, and promote U.S. commercial space transportation. AST faces unique challenges of ensuring the protection of public health and safety while facilitating and promoting U.S. commercial space transportation. AST has developed an Environmental Management System (EMS) and a Safety Management System (SMS) to help meet its mission. Although the EMS and SMS were developed independently, the systems share similar elements. Both systems follow a Plan-Do-Act-Check model in identifying potential environmental aspects or public safety hazards, assessing significance in terms of severity and likelihood of occurrence, developing approaches to reduce risk, and verifying that the risk is reduced. This paper will describe the similarities between ASTs EMS and SMS elements and how AST is building a collaborative approach in environmental and safety management to reduce impacts to the environment and risks to the public.

Decreased Radiation Exposure Among Orthopedic Residents Is Maintained When Using the Mini C-Arm After Undergoing Radiation Safety Training.

PubMed

Gendelberg, David; Hennrikus, William L; Sawyer, Carissa; Armstrong, Douglas; King, Steven

2017-09-01

The resident curriculum of the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery emphasizes radiation safety. Gendelberg showed that, immediately after a program on fluoroscopic safety, residents used less radiation when using the mini C-arm to reduce pediatric fractures. The current study evaluated whether this effect lasted. Residents underwent a new annual 3-hour session on mini C-arm use and radiation. Group A included 53 reductions performed before training. Group B included 45 reductions performed immediately after training. Group C included 46 reductions performed 11 months later. For distal radius fractures, exposure time and amount were 38.1 seconds and 83.1 mR, respectively, for group A; 26.7 seconds and 32.6 mR, respectively, for group B; and 24.1 seconds and 40.0 mR, respectively, for group C. When radiation time and amount were compared between group B and group C, P values were .525 and .293, respectively. When group C and group A were compared, P values were <.05 and <.01, respectively. For both bone forearm fractures, exposure time and amount were 41.2 seconds and 90.9 mR, respectively, for group A; 28.9 seconds and 30.4 mR, respectively, for group B; and 31.2 seconds and 43.6 mR, respectively, for group C. When radiation time and amount were compared between group B and group C, P values were .704 and .117, respectively. When group C and group A were compared, P values were .183 and .004, respectively. No significant difference in radiation exposure was noted immediately after training vs 11 months later. A sustained decrease in radiation exposure occurred after an educational program on safe mini C-arm use. [Orthopedics. 2017; 40(5):e788-e792.]. Copyright 2017, SLACK Incorporated.

78 FR 67326 - Safety and Environmental Management System Requirements for Vessels on the U.S. Outer Continental...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-11-12

... 1625-AC05 Safety and Environmental Management System Requirements for Vessels on the U.S. Outer... ``Safety and Environmental Management System Requirements for Vessels on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf... of industry to ensure stakeholders have adequate time to submit complete responses. DATES: Comments...

Organizational-Legal and Technological Aspects of Ensuring Environmental Safety of Mining Enterprises: Perspective Analysis in the Context of the General Enhancement of Environmental Problem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vorontsova, Elena; Vorontsov, Andrey; Drozdenko, Yuriy

2017-11-01

The article is devoted to the analysis of problems of maintenance of ecological safety of the mining enterprises. The aim of the work was the formulation of proposals, the implementation of which, in the opinion of the authors, is capable of raising the level of environmental safety of the mining industry and ultimately ensuring the environmentally oriented growth of the Russian economy.

NCRP Program Area Committee 5: Environmental Radiation and Radioactive Waste Issues.

PubMed

Chen, S Y; Napier, Bruce

2016-02-01

Program Area Committee 5 of the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP) focuses its activities on environmental radiation and radioactive waste issues. The Committee completed a number of reports in these subject areas, most recently NCRP Report No. 175, Decision Making for Late-Phase Recovery from Major Nuclear or Radiological Incidents. Historically this Committee addressed emerging issues of the nation pertaining to radioactivity or radiation in the environment or radioactive waste issues due either to natural origins or to manmade activities.

A review of educational philosophies as applied to radiation safety training at medical institutions.

PubMed

Dauer, Lawrence T; St Germain, Jean

2006-05-01

This paper examines the educational philosophy of radiation safety education programs at medical institutions. The regulatory mandates for radiation safety training have traditionally emphasized competency-based training. This emphasis led to the adoption of a behaviorist philosophy that requires predetermined responses to certain situations. The behaviorist approach determines the roles of teacher and learner as well as the methods to be used. This paper examines these roles and methods and the influence of a highly regulated environment on the adoption of the behaviorist model. The paper also suggests that other educational philosophies, such as the progressive philosophy, should be examined to provide a rich foundation for improving the educational experience and outcomes.

Sample size allocation for food item radiation monitoring and safety inspection.

PubMed

Seto, Mayumi; Uriu, Koichiro

2015-03-01

The objective of this study is to identify a procedure for determining sample size allocation for food radiation inspections of more than one food item to minimize the potential risk to consumers of internal radiation exposure. We consider a simplified case of food radiation monitoring and safety inspection in which a risk manager is required to monitor two food items, milk and spinach, in a contaminated area. Three protocols for food radiation monitoring with different sample size allocations were assessed by simulating random sampling and inspections of milk and spinach in a conceptual monitoring site. Distributions of (131)I and radiocesium concentrations were determined in reference to (131)I and radiocesium concentrations detected in Fukushima prefecture, Japan, for March and April 2011. The results of the simulations suggested that a protocol that allocates sample size to milk and spinach based on the estimation of (131)I and radiocesium concentrations using the apparent decay rate constants sequentially calculated from past monitoring data can most effectively minimize the potential risks of internal radiation exposure. © 2014 Society for Risk Analysis.

TH-E-19A-01: Quality and Safety in Radiation Therapy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ford, E; Ezzell, G; Miller, B

2014-06-15

Clinical radiotherapy data clearly demonstrate the link between the quality and safety of radiation treatments and the outcome for patients. The medical physicist plays an essential role in this process. To ensure the highest quality treatments, the medical physicist must understand and employ modern quality improvement techniques. This extends well beyond the duties traditionally associated with prescriptive QA measures. This session will review the current best practices for improving quality and safety in radiation therapy. General elements of quality management will be reviewed including: what makes a good quality management structure, the use of prospective risk analysis such as FMEA,more » and the use of incident learning. All of these practices are recommended in society-level documents and are incorporated into the new Practice Accreditation program developed by ASTRO. To be effective, however, these techniques must be practical in a resource-limited environment. This session will therefore focus on practical tools such as the newly-released radiation oncology incident learning system, RO-ILS, supported by AAPM and ASTRO. With these general constructs in mind, a case study will be presented of quality management in an SBRT service. An example FMEA risk assessment will be presented along with incident learning examples including root cause analysis. As the physicist's role as “quality officer” continues to evolve it will be essential to understand and employ the most effective techniques for quality improvement. This session will provide a concrete overview of the fundamentals in quality and safety. Learning Objectives: Recognize the essential elements of a good quality management system in radiotherapy. Understand the value of incident learning and the AAPM/ASTRO ROILS incident learning system. Appreciate failure mode and effects analysis as a risk assessment tool and its use in resource-limited environments. Understand the fundamental principles of

The implementation and assessment of a quality and safety culture education program in a large radiation oncology department.

PubMed

Woodhouse, Kristina D; Volz, Edna; Bellerive, Marc; Bergendahl, Howard W; Gabriel, Peter E; Maity, Amit; Hahn, Stephen M; Vapiwala, Neha

2016-01-01

In 2010, the American Society for Radiation Oncology launched a national campaign to improve patient safety in radiation therapy. One recommendation included the expansion of educational programs dedicated to quality and safety. We subsequently implemented a quality and safety culture education program (Q-SCEP) in our large radiation oncology department. The purpose of this study is to describe the design, implementation, and impact of this Q-SCEP. In 2010, we instituted a comprehensive Q-SCEP, consisting of a longitudinal series of lectures, meetings, and interactive workshops. Participation was mandatory for all department members across all network locations. Electronic surveys were administered to assess employee engagement, knowledge retention, preferred learning styles, and the program's overall impact. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Survey on Patient Safety Culture was administered. Analysis of variance was used for statistical analysis. Between 2010 and 2015, 100% of targeted staff participated in Q-SCEP. Thirty-three percent (132 of 400) and 30% (136 of 450) responded to surveys in 2012 and 2014, respectively. Mean scores improved from 73% to 89% (P < .001), with the largest improvement seen among therapists (+21.7%). The majority strongly agreed that safety culture education was critical to performing their jobs well. Full course compliance was achieved despite the sizable number of personnel and treatment centers. Periodic assessments demonstrated high knowledge retention, which significantly improved over time in nearly all department divisions. Additionally, our AHRQ patient safety grade remains high and continues to improve. These results will be used to further enhance ongoing internal safety initiatives and to inform future innovative efforts. Copyright © 2016 American Society for Radiation Oncology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Environmental Radiation Effects: A Need to Question Old Paradigms

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hinton, T.G.; Bedford, J.; Ulsh, B.

2003-03-27

A historical perspective is given of the current paradigm that does not explicitly protect the environment from radiation, but instead, relies on the concept that if dose limits are set to protect humans then the environment is automatically protected as well. We summarize recent international questioning of this paradigm and briefly present three different frameworks for protecting biota that are being considered by the U.S. DOE, the Canadian government and the International Commission on Radiological Protection. We emphasize that an enhanced collaboration is required between what has traditionally been separated disciplines of radiation biology and radiation ecology if we aremore » going to properly address the current environmental radiation problems. We then summarize results generated from an EMSP grant that allowed us to develop a Low Dose Irradiation Facility that specifically addresses effects of low-level, chronic irradiation on multiple levels of biological organization.« less

Implementation of Ultraviolet Radiation Safety Measures for Outdoor Workers.

PubMed

Maguire, Erin; Spurr, Alison

Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) poses a major risk for outdoor workers, putting them at greater risk for skin cancer. In the general population, the incidence of both melanoma and nonmelanoma skin cancers is increasing. It is estimated that 90% of skin cancers in Canada are directly attributable to UVR exposure, making this cancer largely preventable with the appropriate precautions. A scoping review was conducted on the barriers and facilitators to UVR safety in outdoor workers to elucidate why these precautions are not in use currently. We discuss these results according to the Hierarchy of Controls as a means to outline effective and feasible prevention strategies for outdoor workers. In doing so, this review may be used to inform the design of future workplace interventions for UVR safety in outdoor workers to decrease the risk of skin cancer in this vulnerable population.

Environmental, Safety, and Health Considerations: Composite Materials in the Aerospace Industry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chu, Huai-Pu (Compiler)

1994-01-01

The Aerospace Industries Association, Suppliers of Advanced Composite Materials Association, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration co-sponsored a conference on 'Environmental, Safety, and Health Considerations--Composite Materials in the Aerospace Industry.' The conference was held in Mesa, Arizona, on October 20-21, 1994. Seventeen papers were presented in four sessions including general information, safety, waste, and emissions from composites. Topics range from product stewardship, best work practice, biotransformation of uncured composite materials, to hazardous waste determination and offgassing of composite materials.

10 CFR 50.49 - Environmental qualification of electric equipment important to safety for nuclear power plants.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... occurrences, design basis accidents, external events, and natural phenomena for which the plant must be... important to safety, (2) protection of electric equipment important to safety against other natural phenomena and external events, and (3) environmental qualification of electric equipment important to safety...

Recent Accomplishments and Future Directions in US Fusion Safety & Environmental Program

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

David A. Petti; Brad J. Merrill; Phillip Sharpe

2006-07-01

The US fusion program has long recognized that the safety and environmental (S&E) potential of fusion can be attained by prudent materials selection, judicious design choices, and integration of safety requirements into the design of the facility. To achieve this goal, S&E research is focused on understanding the behavior of the largest sources of radioactive and hazardous materials in a fusion facility, understanding how energy sources in a fusion facility could mobilize those materials, developing integrated state of the art S&E computer codes and risk tools for safety assessment, and evaluating S&E issues associated with current fusion designs. In thismore » paper, recent accomplishments are reviewed and future directions outlined.« less

Global real-time dose measurements using the Automated Radiation Measurements for Aerospace Safety (ARMAS) system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tobiska, W. Kent; Bouwer, D.; Smart, D.; Shea, M.; Bailey, J.; Didkovsky, L.; Judge, K.; Garrett, H.; Atwell, W.; Gersey, B.; Wilkins, R.; Rice, D.; Schunk, R.; Bell, D.; Mertens, C.; Xu, X.; Wiltberger, M.; Wiley, S.; Teets, E.; Jones, B.; Hong, S.; Yoon, K.

2016-11-01

The Automated Radiation Measurements for Aerospace Safety (ARMAS) program has successfully deployed a fleet of six instruments measuring the ambient radiation environment at commercial aircraft altitudes. ARMAS transmits real-time data to the ground and provides quality, tissue-relevant ambient dose equivalent rates with 5 min latency for dose rates on 213 flights up to 17.3 km (56,700 ft). We show five cases from different aircraft; the source particles are dominated by galactic cosmic rays but include particle fluxes for minor radiation periods and geomagnetically disturbed conditions. The measurements from 2013 to 2016 do not cover a period of time to quantify galactic cosmic rays' dependence on solar cycle variation and their effect on aviation radiation. However, we report on small radiation "clouds" in specific magnetic latitude regions and note that active geomagnetic, variable space weather conditions may sufficiently modify the magnetospheric magnetic field that can enhance the radiation environment, particularly at high altitudes and middle to high latitudes. When there is no significant space weather, high-latitude flights produce a dose rate analogous to a chest X-ray every 12.5 h, every 25 h for midlatitudes, and every 100 h for equatorial latitudes at typical commercial flight altitudes of 37,000 ft ( 11 km). The dose rate doubles every 2 km altitude increase, suggesting a radiation event management strategy for pilots or air traffic control; i.e., where event-driven radiation regions can be identified, they can be treated like volcanic ash clouds to achieve radiation safety goals with slightly lower flight altitudes or more equatorial flight paths.

Critical Characteristics of Radiation Detection System Components to be Dedicated for use in Safety Class and Safety Significant System

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

DAVIS, S.J.

2000-12-28

This document identifies critical characteristics of components to be dedicated for use in Safety Significant (SS) Systems, Structures, or Components (SSCs). This document identifies the requirements for the components of the common, radiation area, monitor alarm in the WESF pool cell. These are procured as Commercial Grade Items (CGI), with the qualification testing and formal dedication to be performed at the Waste Encapsulation Storage Facility (WESF) for use in safety significant systems. System modifications are to be performed in accordance with the approved design. Components for this change are commercially available and interchangeable with the existing alarm configuration This documentmore » focuses on the operational requirements for alarm, declaration of the safety classification, identification of critical characteristics, and interpretation of requirements for procurement. Critical characteristics are identified herein and must be verified, followed by formal dedication, prior to the components being used in safety related applications.« less

Nurses', physicians' and radiographers' perceptions of the safety of a nurse prescribing of ionising radiation initiative: A cross-sectional survey.

PubMed

Hyde, Abbey; Coughlan, Barbara; Naughton, Corina; Hegarty, Josephine; Savage, Eileen; Grehan, Jennifer; Kavanagh, Eoin; Moughty, Adrian; Drennan, Jonathan

2016-06-01

A new initiative was introduced in Ireland following legislative changes that allowed nurses with special training to prescribe ionising radiation (X-ray) for the first time. A small number of studies on nurse prescribing of ionising radiation in other contexts have found it to be broadly as safe as ionising radiation prescribing by physicians. Sociological literature on perceptions of safety indicates that these tend to be shaped by the ideological position of the professional rather than based on objective evidence. To describe, compare and analyse perceptions of the safety of a nurse prescribing of ionising radiation initiative across three occupational groups: nursing, radiography and medicine. A cross-sectional survey design. Participants were drawn from a range of clinical settings in Ireland. Respondents were 167 health professionals comprised of 49 nurses, 91 radiographers, and 27 physicians out of a total of 300 who were invited to participate. Non-probability sampling was employed and the survey was targeted specifically at health professionals with a specific interest in, or involvement with, the development of the nurse prescribing of ionising radiation initiative in Ireland. Comparisons of perspectives on the safety of nurse prescribing of ionising radiation across the three occupational groups captured by questionnaire were analysed using the Kruskal-Wallis H test. Pairwise post hoc tests were conducted using the Mann-Whitney U test. While the majority of respondents from all three groups perceived nurse prescribing of ionising radiation to be safe, the extent to which this view was held varied. A higher proportion of nurses was found to display confidence in the safety of nurse prescribing of ionising radiation compared to physicians and radiographers with differences between nurses' perceptions and those of the other two groups being statistically significant. That an occupational patterning emerged suggests that perceptions about safety and risk of

Role of Experience, Leadership and Individual Protection in the Cath Lab--A Multicenter Questionnaire and Workshop on Radiation Safety.

PubMed

Kuon, E; Weitmann, K; Hoffmann, W; Dörr, M; Hummel, A; Busch, M C; Felix, S B; Empen, K

2015-10-01

Radiation exposure in invasive cardiology remains considerable. We evaluated the acceptance of radiation protective devices and the role of operator experience, team leadership, and technical equipment in radiation safety efforts in the clinical routine. Cardiologists (115 from 27 centers) answered a questionnaire and documented radiation parameters for 10 coronary angiographies (CA), before and 3.1 months after a 90-min. mini-course in radiation-reducing techniques. Mini-course participants achieved significant median decreases in patient dose area products (DAP: from 26.6 to 13.0 Gy × cm(2)), number of radiographic frames (-29%) and runs (-8%), radiographic DAP/frame (-2%), fluoroscopic DAP/s (-39%), and fluoroscopy time (-16%). Multilevel analysis revealed lower DAPs with decreasing body mass index (-1.4 Gy × cm(2) per kg/m(2)), age (-1.2 Gy × cm(2)/decade), female sex (-5.9 Gy × cm(2)), participation of the team leader (-9.4 Gy × cm(2)), the mini-course itself (-16.1 Gy × cm(2)), experience (-0.7 Gy × cm(2)/1000 CAs throughout the interventionalist's professional life), and use of older catheterization systems (-6.6 Gy × cm(2)). Lead protection included apron (100%), glass sheet (95%), lengthwise (94%) and crosswise (69%) undercouch sheet, collar (89%), glasses (28%), cover around the patients' thighs (19%), foot switch shield (7%), gloves (3%), and cap (1%). Radiation-protection devices are employed less than optimally in the clinical routine. Cardiologists with a great variety of interventional experience profited from our radiation safety workshop - to an even greater extent if the interventional team leader also participated. Radiation protection devices are employed less than optimally in invasive cardiology. The presented radiation-safety mini-course was highly efficient. Cardiologists at all levels of experience profited from the mini-course - considerably more so if the team leader also took part. Interventional experience was less relevant for

The Environmental Health/Home Safety Education Project: a successful and practical U.S.-Mexico border initiative.

PubMed

Forster-Cox, Susan C; Mangadu, Thenral; Jacquez, Benjamín; Fullerton, Lynne

2010-05-01

The Environmental Health/Home Safety Education Project (Proyecto de Salud Ambiental y Seguridad en el Hogar) has been developed in response to a wide array of severe and often preventable environmental health issues occurring in and around homes on the U.S.-Mexico border. Utilizing well-trained community members, called promotoras , homes are visited and assessed for potential environmental hazards, including home fire and food safety issues. Data analyzed from project years 2002 to 2005 shows a significant impact in knowledge levels and initial behavior change among targeted participants as it relates to fire and food safety issues. Since the initiation of the project in 1999, hundreds of participants have improved their quality of life by making their homes safer. The project has proven to be sustainable, replicable, flexible, and attractive to funders.

Influence of radiation absorption by environmental water vapor on radiation transfer in wildland fires

Treesearch

David Frankman; Brent W. Webb; Bret W. Butler

2007-01-01

Thermal radiation emission from a simulated black flame surface to a fuel bed is analyzed by a ray-tracing technique, tracking emission from points along the flame to locations along the fuel bed while accounting for absorption by environmental water vapor in the intervening medium. The Spectral Line Weighted-sum-of-gray-gases approach was adopted for treating the...

ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF ENVIRONMENTAL RADIATION ON TOTAL HEALTH

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Henshaw, P.S.

1958-09-01

Ionizing radiation is but one of various agents that affect the stamina and well-being of population groups within species through induction of mutations in both the somatoplasm and the germplasm. A preliminary effort has been made to identify and examine central and pacesetting determinants of the life process, moving thereby toward a better understanding of the role and significance of radiation. On the basis of accumulated information and deductions that follow logically, questions have been raised regarding the part natural radiation may have had in shaping the character of life processes through time, possibly influencing both the course and ratemore » of evolution and the average life-span of species, the matter of whether radiation, though injurious to cells, may not under certain circumstances have a beneficial effect in complex multicellular organisms, radiation as an agent acting to reduce the fltness reserve in organisms, and the limits of exposure so far as individual and group survival are concenned. A formulation has been developed which aids in visualizing the total health process and how this is affected positively and negatively by various factors, including radiation. By means of the formulation some impression is gained of the stability of the life process, on the one hand, and, on the other, of its extreme vulnerability if an environmental factor such as radiation is altered significantly. (auth)« less

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Environmental Report 2014

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jones, H. E.; Bertoldo, N. A.; Blake, R. G.

The purposes of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Environmental Report 2014 are to record Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s (LLNL’s) compliance with environmental standards and requirements, describe LLNL’s environmental protection and remediation programs, and present the results of environmental monitoring at the two LLNL sites—the Livermore Site and Site 300. The report is prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) by LLNL’s Environmental Functional Area. Submittal of the report satisfies requirements under DOE Order 231.1B, “Environment, Safety and Health Reporting,” and DOE Order 458.1, “Radiation Protection of the Public and Environment.”

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Environmental Report 2015

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rosene, C. A.; Jones, H. E.

The purposes of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Environmental Report 2015 are to record Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s (LLNL’s) compliance with environmental standards and requirements, describe LLNL’s environmental protection and remediation programs, and present the results of environmental monitoring at the two LLNL sites—the Livermore Site and Site 300. The report is prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) by LLNL’s Environmental Functional Area. Submittal of the report satisfies requirements under DOE Order 231.1B, “Environment, Safety and Health Reporting,” and DOE Order 458.1, “Radiation Protection of the Public and Environment.”

Evaluating the effectiveness of a radiation safety training intervention for oncology nurses: a pretest – intervention – posttest study

PubMed Central

Dauer, Lawrence T; Kelvin, Joanne F; Horan, Christopher L; St Germain, Jean

2006-01-01

Background Radiation, for either diagnosis or treatment, is used extensively in the field of oncology. An understanding of oncology radiation safety principles and how to apply them in practice is critical for nursing practice. Misconceptions about radiation are common, resulting in undue fears and concerns that may negatively impact patient care. Effectively educating nurses to help overcome these misconceptions is a challenge. Historically, radiation safety training programs for oncology nurses have been compliance-based and behavioral in philosophy. Methods A new radiation safety training initiative was developed for Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) adapting elements of current adult education theories to address common misconceptions and to enhance knowledge. A research design for evaluating the revised training program was also developed to assess whether the revised training program resulted in a measurable and/or statistically significant change in the knowledge or attitudes of nurses toward working with radiation. An evaluation research design based on a conceptual framework for measuring knowledge and attitude was developed and implemented using a pretest-intervention-posttest approach for 15% of the study population of 750 inpatient registered oncology nurses. Results As a result of the intervention program, there was a significant difference in nurse's cognitive knowledge as measured with the test instrument from pretest (58.9%) to posttest (71.6%). The evaluation also demonstrated that while positive nursing attitudes increased, the increase was significant for only 5 out of 9 of the areas evaluated. Conclusion The training intervention was effective for increasing cognitive knowledge, but was less effective at improving overall attitudes. This evaluation provided insights into the effectiveness of training interventions on the radiation safety knowledge and attitude of oncology nurses. PMID:16762060

Environmental, health and safety assessment of photovoltaics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rose, E. C.

1983-01-01

The environmental, health, and safety (E, H and S) concerns associated with the fabrication, deployment, and decommissioning of photovoltaic (PV) systems in terrestial applications are identified and assessed. Discussion is limited to crystalline silicon technologies. The primary E, H, and S concerns that arise during collector fabrication are associated with occupational exposure to materials of undetermined toxicity or to materials that are known to be hazardous, but for which process control technology may be inadequate. Stricter exposure standards are anticipated for some materials and may indicate a need for further control technology development. Minimizing electric shock hazards is a significant concern during system construction, operation and maintenance, and decommissioning.

Environmental supports for walking/biking and traffic safety: income and ethnicity disparities.

PubMed

Yu, Chia-Yuan

2014-10-01

The present study investigates the influence of income, ethnicity, and built environmental characteristics on the percentages of workers who walk/bike as well as on pedestrian/cyclist crash rates. Furthermore, income and ethnicity disparities are also explored. This study chose 162 census tracts in Austin as the unit of analysis. To explore income and ethnicity differences in built environments, this study examined the associations of the poverty rate, the percentage of white population, and the percentage of Hispanic population to each built environmental variable. Path models were applied to examine environmental supports of walking/biking and pedestrian/cyclist safety. Areas with high poverty rates had more biking trips and experienced more cyclist crashes, while areas with a high percentage of white population generated more walking trips and fewer pedestrian crashes. Sidewalk completeness and mixed land uses promoted walking to work but increased the crash risk for pedestrians as well. In terms of biking behaviors, road density and transit stop density both increased biking trips and cyclist crashes. Environmental designs that both encourage walking/biking trips and generate more safety threats should attract more attention from policy makers. Policies should also be more devoted to enhancing the mobility and health for areas with high poverty rates. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Biophysics, environmental stochasticity, and the evolution of thermal safety margins in intertidal limpets.

PubMed

Denny, M W; Dowd, W W

2012-03-15

As the air temperature of the Earth rises, ecological relationships within a community might shift, in part due to differences in the thermal physiology of species. Prediction of these shifts - an urgent task for ecologists - will be complicated if thermal tolerance itself can rapidly evolve. Here, we employ a mechanistic approach to predict the potential for rapid evolution of thermal tolerance in the intertidal limpet Lottia gigantea. Using biophysical principles to predict body temperature as a function of the state of the environment, and an environmental bootstrap procedure to predict how the environment fluctuates through time, we create hypothetical time-series of limpet body temperatures, which are in turn used as a test platform for a mechanistic evolutionary model of thermal tolerance. Our simulations suggest that environmentally driven stochastic variation of L. gigantea body temperature results in rapid evolution of a substantial 'safety margin': the average lethal limit is 5-7°C above the average annual maximum temperature. This predicted safety margin approximately matches that found in nature, and once established is sufficient, in our simulations, to allow some limpet populations to survive a drastic, century-long increase in air temperature. By contrast, in the absence of environmental stochasticity, the safety margin is dramatically reduced. We suggest that the risk of exceeding the safety margin, rather than the absolute value of the safety margin, plays an underappreciated role in the evolution of thermal tolerance. Our predictions are based on a simple, hypothetical, allelic model that connects genetics to thermal physiology. To move beyond this simple model - and thereby potentially to predict differential evolution among populations and among species - will require significant advances in our ability to translate the details of thermal histories into physiological and population-genetic consequences.

The School Assessment for Environmental Typology (SAfETy): An Observational Measure of the School Environment.

PubMed

Bradshaw, Catherine P; Milam, Adam J; Furr-Holden, C Debra M; Johnson, Sarah Lindstrom

2015-12-01

School safety is of great concern for prevention researchers, school officials, parents, and students, yet there are a dearth of assessments that have operationalized school safety from an organizational framework using objective tools and measures. Such a tool would be important for deriving unbiased assessments of the school environment, which in turn could be used as an evaluative tool for school violence prevention efforts. The current paper presents a framework for conceptualizing school safety consistent with Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) model and social disorganization theory, both of which highlight the importance of context as a driver for adolescents' risk for involvement in substance use and violence. This paper describes the development of a novel observational measure, called the School Assessment for Environmental Typology (SAfETy), which applies CPTED and social disorganizational frameworks to schools to measure eight indicators of school physical and social environment (i.e., disorder, trash, graffiti/vandalism, appearance, illumination, surveillance, ownership, and positive behavioral expectations). Drawing upon data from 58 high schools, we provide preliminary data regarding the validity and reliability of the SAfETy and describe patterns of the school safety indicators. Findings demonstrate the reliability and validity of the SAfETy and are discussed with regard to the prevention of violence in schools.

Radiation safety requirements for radioactive waste management in the framework of a quality management system

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Salgado, M.M.; Benitez, J.C.; Pernas, R.

2007-07-01

The Center for Radiation Protection and Hygiene (CPHR) is the institution responsible for the management of radioactive wastes generated from nuclear applications in medicine, industry and research in Cuba. Radioactive Waste Management Service is provided at a national level and it includes the collection and transportation of radioactive wastes to the Centralized Waste Management Facilities, where they are characterized, segregated, treated, conditioned and stored. A Quality Management System, according to the ISO 9001 Standard has been implemented for the RWM Service at CPHR. The Management System includes the radiation safety requirements established for RWM in national regulations and in themore » Licence's conditions. The role of the Regulatory Body and the Radiation Protection Officer in the Quality Management System, the authorization of practices, training and personal qualification, record keeping, inspections of the Regulatory Body and internal inspection of the Radiation Protection Officer, among other aspects, are described in this paper. The Quality Management System has shown to be an efficient tool to demonstrate that adequate measures are in place to ensure the safety in radioactive waste management activities and their continual improvement. (authors)« less

Environmental, health, and safety issues for the petroleum geologist

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mathis, R.E.

1993-09-01

As the oil and gas industry moves toward the twenty-first century, professional within the industry must adjust to changes placed upon them from within and without. The role of the geologist is changing, as is the focal point of attention. Environmental issues require scrutiny of those zones once passed by with little or no interest while exploring for oil and gas reservoirs at deeper and deeper horizons; shallow zones of fresh or usable water are now often the main focus of attention. Has my training prepared me for being the company [open quotes]hydrologist[close quotes] or [open quotes]environmental expert[close quotes] Whatmore » does this new role mean for me Am I to be the [open quotes]Designated Jailee[close quotes] What should I know Environmental Assessment, site characterization, permissible exposure limit, time weighted average, and like terms are new to the ears of most petroleum geologists. These and other environmental health and safety terms impact the profession. What geologists may be expected to do in regard to them are issues of major concern. This paper will try to answer these questions and more.« less

Laser spectroscopy applied to environmental, ecological, food safety, and biomedical research.

PubMed

Svanberg, Sune; Zhao, Guangyu; Zhang, Hao; Huang, Jing; Lian, Ming; Li, Tianqi; Zhu, Shiming; Li, Yiyun; Duan, Zheng; Lin, Huiying; Svanberg, Katarina

2016-03-21

Laser spectroscopy provides many possibilities for multi-disciplinary applications in environmental monitoring, in the ecological field, for food safety investigations, and in biomedicine. The paper gives several examples of the power of multi-disciplinary applications of laser spectroscopy as pursued in our research group. The studies utilize mostly similar and widely applicable spectroscopic approaches. Air pollution and vegetation monitoring by lidar techniques, as well as agricultural pest insect monitoring and classification by elastic scattering and fluorescence spectroscopy are described. Biomedical aspects include food safety applications and medical diagnostics of sinusitis and otitis, with strong connection to the abatement of antibiotics resistance development.

Radiation safety analysis of the ISS bone densitometer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Todd, Paul; Vellinger, John C.; Barton, Kenneth; Faget, Paul

A Bone Densitometer (BD) has been developed for installation on the International Space Station (ISS) with delivery by the Space-X Dragon spacecraft planned for mid 2014. After initial tests on orbit the BD will be used in longitudinal measurements of bone mineral density in experimental mice as a means of evaluating countermeasures to bone loss. The BD determines bone mineral density (and other radiographic parameters) by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA). In a single mouse DEXA “scan” its 80 kV x-ray tube is operated for 15 seconds at 35 kV and 3 seconds at 80 kV in four repetitions, giving the subject a total dose of 2.5 mSv. The BD is a modification of a commercial mouse DEXA product known as PIXImus(TM). Before qualifying the BD for utilization on ISS it was necessary to evaluate its radiation safety features and any level of risk to ISS crew members. The BD design reorients the PIXImus so that it fits in an EXPRESS locker on ISS with the x-ray beam directed into the crew aisle. ISS regulation SSP 51700 considers the production of ionizing radiation to be a catastrophic-level hazard. Accidental exposure is prevented by three independent levels of on-off control as required for a catastrophic hazard. The ALARA (As Low as Reasonably Achievable) principle was applied to the BD hazard just as would be done on the ground, so deliberate exposure is limited by lead shielding according to ALARA. Hot spots around the BD were identified by environmental dosimetry using a Ludlum 9DP pressurized ionization chamber survey meter. Various thicknesses of lead were applied to the BD housing in areas where highest dose-per-scan readings were made. It was concluded that 0.4 mm of lead shielding at strategic locations, adding only a few kg of mass to the payload, would accomplish ALARA. With shielding in place the BD now exposes a crew member floating 40 cm away to less than 0.08 microSv per mouse scan. There is an upper limit of 20 scans per day, or 1.6 microSv per day

A risk-based, product-level approach for assuring aquatic environmental safety of cleaning products in the context of sustainability: The Environmental Safety Check (ESC) scheme of the A.I.S.E. Charter for Sustainable Cleaning.

PubMed

Pickup, John Alexander; Dewaele, Joost; Furmanski, Nicola L; Kowalczyk, Agnieszka; Luijkx, Gerard Ca; Mathieu, Sophie; Stelter, Norbert

2017-01-01

Cleaning products have long been a focus of efforts to improve sustainability and assure safety for the aquatic environment when disposed of after use. The latter is addressed at ingredient level through environmental risk assessment, including in formal frameworks such as REACH. Nevertheless, in the context of programs to improve overall sustainability, stakeholders demand both environmental safety assurance and progress at product level. Current product-level approaches for aquatic toxicity (e.g., USEtox™, Critical Dilution Volume) can be seen as predominantly hazard-based. The more logical approach would be risk-based, because ecotoxicity is generally threshold-dependent and hazard-based assessment produces conflicts with risk-based learnings. The development of a risk-based approach to assess formulated products is described: the International Association for Soaps, Detergents and Maintenance Products (A.I.S.E.) Charter Environmental Safety Check (ESC), which is consistent with the scientific principles underlying REACH. This is implemented through a simple spreadsheet tool and internal database of ingredient parameters including predicted no-effect concentration (PNEC) and removal rate. A novel feature is applying market volume information for both product types and ingredients to permit a risk-based calculation. To pass the ESC check, the projected environmental safety ratio (PESR) for each ingredient as formulated and dosed (unless cleared by a published risk assessment or exempted as inherently low risk) must be less than 1. The advantages of a risk-based approach are discussed. The strengths and limitations of various possible approaches to standard-setting, product-ranking and driving continuous improvement in respect of potential ecotoxic impacts on the aquatic environment are considered. It is proposed that as ecotoxicity is generally accepted to be threshold-dependent, with no effect below the threshold, the most constructive approach to continuous

Health and safety plan for the Environmental Restoration Program at Oak Ridge National Laboratory

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Clark, C. Jr.; Burman, S.N.; Cipriano, D.J. Jr.

1994-08-01

This Programmatic Health and Safety plan (PHASP) is prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) Environmental Restoration (ER) Program. This plan follows the format recommended by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for remedial investigations and feasibility studies and that recommended by the EM40 Health and Safety Plan (HASP) Guidelines (DOE February 1994). This plan complies with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requirements found in 29 CFR 1910.120 and EM-40 guidelines for any activities dealing with hazardous waste operations and emergency response efforts and with OSHA requirements found in 29 CFR 1926.65.more » The policies and procedures in this plan apply to all Environmental Restoration sites and activities including employees of Energy Systems, subcontractors, and prime contractors performing work for the DOE ORNL ER Program. The provisions of this plan are to be carried out whenever activities are initiated that could be a threat to human health or the environment. This plan implements a policy and establishes criteria for the development of procedures for day-to-day operations to prevent or minimize any adverse impact to the environment and personnel safety and health and to meet standards that define acceptable management of hazardous and radioactive materials and wastes. The plan is written to utilize past experience and best management practices to minimize hazards to human health and safety and to the environment from event such as fires, explosions, falls, mechanical hazards, or any unplanned release of hazardous or radioactive materials to air, soil, or surface water.« less

Implementation of a "No Fly" safety culture in a multicenter radiation medicine department.

PubMed

Potters, Louis; Kapur, Ajay

2012-01-01

The safe delivery of radiation therapy requires multiple disciplines and interactions to perform flawlessly for each patient. Because treatment is individualized and every aspect of the patient's care is unique, it is difficult to regiment a delivery process that works flawlessly. The purpose of this study is to describe one safety-directed component of our quality program called the "No Fly Policy" (NFP). Our quality assurance program for radiation therapy reviewed the entire process of care prior, during, and after a patient's treatment course. Each component of care was broken down and rebuilt within a matrix of multidisciplinary safety quality checklists (QCL). The QCL process map was subsequently streamlined with revised task due dates and stopping rules. The NFP was introduced to place a holding pattern on treatment initiation pending reconciliation of associated stopping events. The NFP was introduced in a pilot phase using a Six-Sigma process improvement approach. Quantitative analysis on the performance of the new QCLs was performed using crystal reports in the Oncology Information Systems. Root cause analysis was conducted. Notable improvements in QCL performance were observed. The variances among staff in completing tasks reduced by a factor of at least 3, suggesting better process control. Steady improvements over time indicated an increasingly compliant and controlled adoption of the new safety-oriented process map. Stopping events led to rescheduling treatments with average and maximum delays of 2 and 4 days, respectively, with no reported adverse effects. The majority of stopping events were due to incomplete plan approvals stemming from treatment planning delays. Whereas these may have previously solicited last-minute interventions, including intensity modulated radiation therapy quality assurance, the NFP enabled nonpunitive, reasonable schedule adjustments to mitigate compromises in safe delivery. Implementation of the NFP has helped to mitigate

Consensus statement: patient safety, healthcare-associated infections and hospital environmental surfaces.

PubMed

Roques, Christine; Al Mousa, Haifaa; Duse, Adriano; Gallagher, Rose; Koburger, Torsten; Lingaas, Egil; Petrosillo, Nicola; Škrlin, Jasenka

2015-01-01

Healthcare-associated infections have serious implications for both patients and hospitals. Environmental surface contamination is the key to transmission of nosocomial pathogens. Routine manual cleaning and disinfection eliminates visible soil and reduces environmental bioburden and risk of transmission, but may not address some surface contamination. Automated area decontamination technologies achieve more consistent and pervasive disinfection than manual methods, but it is challenging to demonstrate their efficacy within a randomized trial of the multiple interventions required to reduce healthcare-associated infection rates. Until data from multicenter observational studies are available, automated area decontamination technologies should be an adjunct to manual cleaning and disinfection within a total, multi-layered system and risk-based approach designed to control environmental pathogens and promote patient safety.

76 FR 64431 - Reorganization of Title 30: Bureaus of Safety and Environmental Enforcement and Ocean Energy...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-10-18

...This rule contains regulations that will be under the authority of two newly formed Bureaus, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), both within the Department of the Interior. On May 19, 2010, the Secretary of the Interior announced the separation of the responsibilities performed by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) (formerly the Minerals Management Service) into three new separate organizations: Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR), Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), and Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE). Those regulations that will apply to the authority of BSEE organization will remain in 30 CFR chapter II, but be retitled ``Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement.'' This rule removes from chapter II those regulations that will apply to the authority of BOEM and recodifies them into a new 30 CFR chapter V entitled ``Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.''

Radiation protection and safety in medical use of ionising radiation in Republic of Bulgaria--harmonization of the national legislation with Euratom directives.

PubMed

Ingilizova, K; Vassileva, J; Rupova, I; Pavlova, A

2005-01-01

From February 2002 to November 2003 the National Centre of Radiobiology and Radiation Protection conducted a PHARE twinning project 'Radiation Protection and Safety at Medical Use of Ionising Radiation'. The main purposes of the project were the harmonization of Bulgarian legislation in the field of radiation protection with EC Directives 96/29 and 97/43 Euratom, and the establishment of appropriate institutional infrastructure and administrative framework for their implementation. This paper presents the main results of the project: elaboration of Ordinance for Protection of Individuals from Medical Exposure; performance of a national survey of distribution of patient doses in diagnostic radiology and of administered activities in nuclear medicine and establishment of national reference levels for the most common diagnostic procedures.

Advances in Atmospheric Radiation Measurements and Modeling Needed to Improve Air Safety

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tobiska, W. Kent; Atwell, William; Beck, Peter; Benton, Eric; Copeland, Kyle; Dyer, Clive; Gersey, Brad; Getley, Ian; Hands, Alex; Holland, Michael; Hong, Sunhak; Hwang, Junga; Jones, Bryn; Malone, Kathleen; Meier, Matthias M.; Mertens, Chris; Phillips, Tony; Ryden, Keith; Schwadron, Nathan; Wender, Stephen A.; Wilkins, Richard; Xapsos, Michael A.

2015-04-01

Air safety is tied to the phenomenon of ionizing radiation from space weather, primarily from galactic cosmic rays but also from solar energetic particles. A global framework for addressing radiation issues in this environment has been constructed, but more must be done at international and national levels. Health consequences from atmospheric radiation exposure are likely to exist. In addition, severe solar radiation events may cause economic consequences in the international aviation community due to exposure limits being reached by some crew members. Impacts from a radiation environment upon avionics from high-energy particles and low-energy, thermalized neutrons are now recognized as an area of active interest. A broad community recognizes that there are a number of mitigation paths that can be taken relative to the human tissue and avionics exposure risks. These include developing active monitoring and measurement programs as well as improving scientific modeling capabilities that can eventually be turned into operations. A number of roadblocks to risk mitigation still exist, such as effective pilot training programs as well as monitoring, measuring, and regulatory measures. An active international effort toward observing the weather of atmospheric radiation must occur to make progress in mitigating radiation exposure risks. Stakeholders in this process include standard-making bodies, scientific organizations, regulatory organizations, air traffic management systems, aircraft owners and operators, pilots and crew, and even the public.

Advanced reactors and associated fuel cycle facilities: safety and environmental impacts.

PubMed

Hill, R N; Nutt, W M; Laidler, J J

2011-01-01

The safety and environmental impacts of new technology and fuel cycle approaches being considered in current U.S. nuclear research programs are contrasted to conventional technology options in this paper. Two advanced reactor technologies, the sodium-cooled fast reactor (SFR) and the very high temperature gas-cooled reactor (VHTR), are being developed. In general, the new reactor technologies exploit inherent features for enhanced safety performance. A key distinction of advanced fuel cycles is spent fuel recycle facilities and new waste forms. In this paper, the performance of existing fuel cycle facilities and applicable regulatory limits are reviewed. Technology options to improve recycle efficiency, restrict emissions, and/or improve safety are identified. For a closed fuel cycle, potential benefits in waste management are significant, and key waste form technology alternatives are described. Copyright © 2010 Health Physics Society

Environmental Health and Safety Hazards Experienced by Home Health Care Providers

PubMed Central

Polivka, Barbara J.; Wills, Celia E.; Darragh, Amy; Lavender, Steven; Sommerich, Carolyn; Stredney, Donald

2015-01-01

The number of personnel providing in-home health care services is increasing substantially. The unique configuration of environmental hazards in individual client homes has a significant impact on the safety and health of home health care providers (HHPs). This mixed-methods study used data from a standardized questionnaire, focus groups, and individual interviews to explore environmental health and safety hazards encountered by HHPs in client homes. The participant sample (N = 68) included nurses, aides, therapists, and owners/managers from a variety of geographic locations. The most often-reported hazards were trip/slip/lift hazards, biohazards, and hazards from poor air quality, allergens, pests and rodents, and fire and burns. Frequency of identified key hazards varied by room, that is, kitchen (e.g., throw rugs, water on floor), bathroom (e.g., tight spaces for client handling), bedroom (e.g., bed too low), living room (e.g., animal waste), and hallway (e.g., clutter). Findings indicate the need for broader training to enable HHPs to identify and address hazards they encounter in client homes. PMID:26268486

Integrating environmental management into food safety and food packaging in Malaysia: review of the food regulation 1985

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nordin, N. H.; Hara, H.; Kaida, N.

2017-05-01

Food safety is an important issue that is related to public safety to prevent the toxicity threats of the food. Management through legal approach has been used in Malaysia as one of the predominant approaches to manage the environment. In this regard, the Food Regulation 1985 has been one of the mechanisms of environmental management through legal approach in controlling the safety of packaged food in food packaging industry in Malaysia. The present study aims to analyse and to explain the implementation of the Food Regulation 1985 in controlling the safety of packaged food in Malaysia and to integrate the concept of environmental management into the food safety issue. Qualitative analysis on the regulation document revealed that there are two main themes, general and specific, while their seven sub themes are included harmful packages, safety packages, reuse packages, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), alcoholic bottle, toys, money and others and iron powder. The implementation of the Food Regulation 1985 in controlling the safety of packaged food should not be regarded solely for regulation purposes but should be further developed for a broader sense of food safety from overcoming the food poisoning.

Site Environmental Report for 2006. Volume I, Environment, Health, and Safety Division

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

2007-09-30

Each year, Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory prepares an integrated report on its environmental programs to satisfy the requirements of United States Department of Energy Order 231.1A, Environment, Safety, and Health Reporting.1 The Site Environmental Report for 2006 summarizes Berkeley Lab’s environmental management performance, presents environmental monitoring results, and describes significant programs for calendar year 2006. (Throughout this report, Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory is referred to as “Berkeley Lab,” “the Laboratory,” “Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,” and “LBNL.”) The report is separated into two volumes. Volume I is organized into an executive summary followed by six chapters thatmore » contain an overview of the Laboratory, a discussion of the Laboratory’s environmental management system, the status of environmental programs, and summarized results from surveillance and monitoring activities. Volume II contains individual data results from surveillance and monitoring activities.« less

Manipulating Sensory and Phytochemical Profiles of Greenhouse Tomatoes Using Environmentally Relevant Doses of Ultraviolet Radiation.

PubMed

Dzakovich, Michael P; Ferruzzi, Mario G; Mitchell, Cary A

2016-09-14

Fruits harvested from off-season, greenhouse-grown tomato plants have a poor reputation compared to their in-season, garden-grown counterparts. Presently, there is a gap in knowledge with regard to the role of UV-B radiation (280-315 nm) in determining greenhouse tomato quality. Knowing that UV-B is a powerful elicitor of secondary metabolism and not transmitted through greenhouse glass and some greenhouse plastics, we tested the hypothesis that supplemental UV-B radiation in the greenhouse will impart quality attributes typically associated with garden-grown tomatoes. Environmentally relevant doses of supplemental UV-B radiation did not strongly affect antioxidant compounds of fruits, although the flavonol quercetin-3-O-rutinoside (rutin) significantly increased in response to UV-B. Physicochemical metrics of fruit quality attributes and consumer sensory panels were used to determine if any such differences altered consumer perception of tomato quality. Supplemental UV-A radiation (315-400 nm) pre-harvest treatments enhanced sensory perception of aroma, acidity, and overall approval, suggesting a compelling opportunity to environmentally enhance the flavor of greenhouse-grown tomatoes. The expression of the genes COP1 and HY5 were indicative of adaptation to UV radiation, which explains the lack of marked effects reported in these studies. To our knowledge, these studies represent the first reported use of environmentally relevant doses of UV radiation throughout the reproductive portion of the tomato plant life cycle to positively enhance the sensory and chemical properties of fruits.

Ensuring the Environmental and Industrial Safety in Solid Mineral Deposit Surface Mining

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Trubetskoy, Kliment; Rylnikova, Marina; Esina, Ekaterina

2017-11-01

The growing environmental pressure of mineral deposit surface mining and severization of industrial safety requirements dictate the necessity of refining the regulatory framework governing safe and efficient development of underground resources. The applicable regulatory documentation governing the procedure of ore open-pit wall and bench stability design for the stage of pit reaching its final boundary was issued several decades ago. Over recent decades, mining and geomechanical conditions have changed significantly in surface mining operations, numerous new software packages and computer developments have appeared, opportunities of experimental methods of source data collection and processing, grounding of the permissible parameters of open pit walls have changed dramatically, and, thus, methods of risk assessment have been perfected [10-13]. IPKON RAS, with the support of the Federal Service for Environmental Supervision, assumed the role of the initiator of the project for the development of Federal norms and regulations of industrial safety "Rules for ensuring the stability of walls and benches of open pits, open-cast mines and spoil banks", which contribute to the improvement of economic efficiency and safety of mineral deposit surface mining and enhancement of the competitiveness of Russian mines at the international level that is very important in the current situation.

Environmental Evaluation of Soil Salinity with Various Watering Technologies Assessment.

PubMed

Seitkaziev, Adeubay; Shilibek, Kenzhegali; Fakhrudenova, Idiya; Salybayev, Satybaldy; Zhaparova, Sayagul; Duisenbayeva, Saule; Bayazitova, Zulfia; Aliya, Maimakova; Seitkazieva, Karlygash; Aubakirov, Hamit

2018-01-01

  The purpose of this study is to develop mathematical tools for evaluating the level of environmental safety of various watering technologies. A set of indicators, was developed with regard to the natural factors, the nature of the man-induced load, degradation type, and characteristics of the disruption of humification conditions. Thermal and physical characteristics of the soil, the state of its surface, and meteorological factors, including air temperature, relative humidity, precipitation, wind speed, solar radiation, etc. were studied with a view to determining the heat and air exchange in the soil. An environmental evaluation of the methods for saline land development was conducted with regard to the heat and moisture supply. This tool can be used to determine the level of environmental safety of soil salinization during the environmental evaluation of the investigation of soil salinity with various watering technologies.

Environmental, health, and safety issues of sodium-sulfur batteries for electric and hybrid vehicles. Volume 1, Cell and battery safety

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ohi, J M

1992-09-01

This report is the first of four volumes that identify and assess the environmental, health, and safety issues involved in using sodium-sulfur (Na/S) battery technology as the energy source in electric and hybrid vehicles that may affect the commercialization of Na/S batteries. This and the other reports on recycling, shipping, and vehicle safety are intended to help the Electric and Hybrid Propulsion Division of the Office of Transportation Technologies in the US Department of Energy (DOE/EHP) determine the direction of its research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) program for Na/S battery technology. The reports review the status of Na/S battery RD&Dmore » and identify potential hazards and risks that may require additional research or that may affect the design and use of Na/S batteries. This volume covers cell design and engineering as the basis of safety for Na/S batteries and describes and assesses the potential chemical, electrical, and thermal hazards and risks of Na/S cells and batteries as well as the RD&D performed, under way, or to address these hazards and risks. The report is based on a review of the literature and on discussions with experts at DOE, national laboratories and agencies, universities, and private industry. Subsequent volumes will address environmental, health, and safety issues involved in shipping cells and batteries, using batteries to propel electric vehicles, and recycling and disposing of spent batteries. The remainder of this volume is divided into two major sections on safety at the cell and battery levels. The section on Na/S cells describes major component and potential failure modes, design, life testing and failure testing, thermal cycling, and the safety status of Na/S cells. The section on batteries describes battery design, testing, and safety status. Additional EH&S information on Na/S batteries is provided in the appendices.« less

Contributions to nuclear safety and radiation technologies in Ukraine by the Science and Technology Center in Ukraine (STCU)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taranenko, L.; Janouch, F.; Owsiacki, L.

2001-06-01

This paper presents Science and Technology Center in Ukraine (STCU) activities devoted to furthering nuclear and radiation safety, which is a prioritized STCU area. The STCU, an intergovernmental organization with the principle objective of non-proliferation, administers financial support from the USA, Canada, and the EU to Ukrainian projects in various scientific and technological areas; coordinates projects; and promotes the integration of Ukrainian scientists into the international scientific community, including involving western collaborators. The paper focuses on STCU's largest project to date "Program Supporting Y2K Readiness at Ukrainian NPPs" initiated in April 1999 and designed to address possible Y2K readiness problems at 14 Ukrainian nuclear reactors. Other presented projects demonstrate a wide diversity of supported directions in the fields of nuclear and radiation safety, including reactor material improvement ("Improved Zirconium-Based Elements for Nuclear Reactors"), information technologies for nuclear industries ("Ukrainian Nuclear Data Bank in Slavutich"), and radiation health science ("Diagnostics and Treatment of Radiation-Induced Injuries of Human Biopolymers").

Influence of absorption by environmental water vapor on radiation transfer in wildland fires

Treesearch

D. Frankman; B. W. Webb; B. W. Butler

2008-01-01

The attenuation of radiation transfer from wildland flames to fuel by environmental water vapor is investigated. Emission is tracked from points on an idealized flame to locations along the fuel bed while accounting for absorption by environmental water vapor in the intervening medium. The Spectral Line Weighted-sum-of-gray-gases approach was employed for treating the...

The Influence Paths of Emotion on the Occupational Safety of Rescuers Involved in Environmental Emergencies- Systematic Review Article.

PubMed

Lu, Jintao; Yang, Naiding; Ye, Jinfu; Wu, Haoran

2014-11-01

A detailed study and analysis of previous research has been carried out to illustrate the relationships between a range of environmental emergencies, and their effects on the emotional state of the rescuers involved in responding to them, by employing Pub Med, Science Direct, Web of Science, Google Scholar, CNKI and Scopus for required information with the several keywords "emergency rescue", "occupational safety", "natural disaster", "emotional management". The effect of the rescuers' emotion on their occupational safety and immediate and long-term emotional behavior is then considered. From these considerations, we suggested four research propositions related to the emotional effects at both individual and group levels, and to the responsibilities of emergency response agencies in respect of ensuring the psychological and physical occupational safety of rescuers during and after environmental emergencies. An analysis framework is proposed which could be used to study the influence paths of these different aspects of emotional impact on a range of occupational safety issues for rescue workers. The authors believe that the conclusions drawn in this paper can provide a useful theoretical reference for decision-making related to the management and protection of the occupational safety of rescuers responding to natural disasters and environmental emergencies.

OFFSITE ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING REPORT: RADIATION MONITORING AROUND UNITED STATES NUCLEAR TEST AREAS, CALENDAR YEAR 1980

EPA Science Inventory

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Environmental Monitoring Systems Laboratory in Las Vegas continued its Offsite Radiological Safety Program for the Nevada Test Site (NTS) and other sites of past underground nuclear tests. For each test, the Laboratory provided airborne ...

Radiation Safety Considerations Near Collimators

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Stevens, A. J.

1997-04-15

The primary collimators are clearly a concern as regards radiation safety since they are intended to be the place where "lost" beam particles interact. These collimators and the beam dumps, therefore, are expected to be the "hot spots" in the machine. Unfortunately, the amount of beam which will end up on the collimators is not really known. For the purposes of this note, the assumption will be made that, averaged over a year, 20% of the beam in each ring will interact in the limiting aperture collimator for that ring, and at most 10% of stored beam in in amore » single hour. Faults will also be considered, but the annual assumed beam loss will be shown to be the limiting factor. The annual beam per ring from the Beam Loss Scenario (BLS) is the equivalent of 5.5 x 10 14 au ions at 100 GeV/u. It should be noted that this number assumes operation at 4 times the design intensity for 38 weeks a year at 100% efficiency. The 20% loss assumption is somewhat higher than given by Ref. [1] because the internal dump aperture is larger than was assumed when the BLS was written and will therefore "catch" less lost particles than assumed at that time. For the purposes of the estimates made here, therefore, the loss assumption per primary collimator in normal operation are assumed to be 1.1 x 10 14 Au ions per year and 2.85 x 10 10 Au ions per hour. The last number is 10% of the maximum beam per ring per hour in the BLS which corresponds to 1.25 fill per hour. The assumption will also be made that both primary collimators are located downstream of the crossing point at 8 o'clock. In subsequent sections of this note the following potential problems are considered: (1) prompt radiation occupied regions nearest to the collimators, (2) skyshine, and (3) soil activation. Section VII recommends actions to address these problems.« less

Thermal decomposition of nano-enabled thermoplastics: Possible environmental health and safety implications

PubMed Central

Sotiriou, Georgios A.; Singh, Dilpreet; Zhang, Fang; Chalbot, Marie-Cecile G.; Spielman-Sun, Eleanor; Hoering, Lutz; Kavouras, Ilias G.; Lowry, Gregory V.; Wohlleben, Wendel; Demokritou, Philip

2015-01-01

Nano-enabled products (NEPs) are currently part of our life prompting for detailed investigation of potential nano-release across their life-cycle. Particularly interesting is their end-of-life thermal decomposition scenario. Here, we examine the thermal decomposition of a widely used NEP, namely thermoplastic nanocomposites, and assess the properties of the byproducts (released aerosol and residual ash) and possible environmental health and safety implications. We focus on establishing a fundamental understanding on the effect of thermal decomposition parameters, such as polymer matrix, nanofiller properties, decomposition temperature, on the properties of byproducts using a recently-developed lab-based experimental integrated platform. Our results indicate that thermoplastic polymer matrix strongly influences size and morphology of released aerosol, while there was minimal but detectable nano-release, especially when inorganic nanofillers were used. The chemical composition of the released aerosol was found not to be strongly influenced by the presence of nanofiller at least for the low, industry-relevant loadings assessed here. Furthermore, the morphology and composition of residual ash was found to be strongly influenced by the presence of nanofiller. The findings presented here on thermal decomposition/incineration of NEPs raise important questions and concerns regarding the potential fate and transport of released engineered nanomaterials in environmental media and potential environmental health and safety implications. PMID:26642449

Radiation Oncology Quality and Safety Considerations in Low-Resource Settings: A Medical Physics Perspective.

PubMed

Van Dyk, Jacob; Meghzifene, Ahmed

2017-04-01

The past few years have seen a significant growth of interest in the global radiation therapy (RT) crisis. Various organizations have quantified the need and are providing aid in support of addressing the shortfalls existing in many low-to-middle income countries. With the tremendous demand for new facilities, equipment, and personnel, it is very important to recognize the quality and safety challenges and to address them directly. An examination of publications on quality and safety in RT indicates a consistency in a number of the recommendations; however, these authoritative reports were generally based on input from high-resourced contexts. Here, we review these recommendations with a special emphasis on issues that are significant in low-to-middle income countries. Although multidimensional, training, and staffing are top priorities, any support provided to lower-resourced settings must address the numerous facets associated with quality and safety indicators. Strong partnerships between high income and other countries will enhance the development of safe and resource-appropriate strategies for advancing the radiation treatment process. The real challenge is the engagement of a strong spirit of cooperation, collaboration, and communication among the multiple organizations in support of reducing the cancer divide and improving the provision of safe and effective RT. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Radiation protection and environmental management at the relativistic heavy ion collider.

PubMed

Musolino, S V; Briggs, S L; Stevens, A J

2001-01-01

The Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) is a high energy hadron accelerator built to study basic nuclear physics. It consists of two counter-rotating beams of fully stripped gold ions that are accelerated in two rings to an energy of 100 GeV/nucleon or protons at 250 GeV/c. The beams can be stored for a period of five to ten hours and brought into collision for experiments during that time. The first major physics objective is to recreate a state of matter, the quark-gluon plasma, that has been predicted to have existed at a short time after the creation of the universe. Because there are only a few other high energy particle accelerators like RHIC in the world, the rules promulgated in the US Code of Federal Regulations under the Atomic Energy Act, State regulations, or international guidance documents do not cover prompt radiation from accelerators to govern directly the design and operation of a superconducting collider. Special design criteria for prompt radiation were developed to provide guidance tor the design of radiation shielding. Environmental Management at RHIC is accomplished through the ISO 14001 Environmental Management System. The applicability, benefits, and implementation of ISO 14001 within the framework of a large research accelerator complex are discussed in the paper.

Site Environmental Report for 2004. Volume 1, Environment, Health, and Safety Division

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

2005-09-30

Each year, Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory prepares an integrated report on its environmental programs to satisfy the requirements of United States Department of Energy Order 231.1A, Environment, Safety, and Health Reporting.1 The Site Environmental Report for 2004 summarizes Berkeley Lab’s environmental management performance, presents environmental monitoring results, and describes significant programs for calendar year 2004. (Throughout this report, Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory is referred to as “Berkeley Lab,” “the Laboratory,” “Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,” and “LBNL.”) The report is separated into two volumes. Volume I contains an overview of the Laboratory, the status of environmental programs,more » and summarized results from surveillance and monitoring activities. Volume II contains individual data results from these activities. This year, the Site Environmental Report was distributed by releasing it on the Web from the Berkeley Lab Environmental Services Group (ESG) home page, which is located at http://www.lbl.gov/ehs/esg/. Many of the documents cited in this report also are accessible from the ESG Web page. CD and printed copies of this Site Environmental Report are available upon request.« less

A Systems Approach to Evaluating Ionizing Radiation: Six Focus Areas to Improve Quality, Efficiency, and Patient Safety

PubMed Central

Mower, Laura; Bushe, Chris

2015-01-01

Abstract: Ionizing radiation is an essential component of the care process. However, providers and patients may not be fully aware of the risks involved, the level of ionizing radiation delivered with various procedures, or the potential for harm through incidental overexposure or cumulative dose. Recent high-profile incidents demonstrating the devastating short-term consequences of radiation overexposure have drawn attention to these risks, but applicable solutions are lacking. Although various recommendations and guidelines have been proposed, organizational variability challenges providers to identify their own practical solutions. To identify potential failure modes and develop solutions to preserve patient safety within a large, national healthcare system, we assembled a multidisciplinary team to conduct a comprehensive analysis of practices surrounding the delivery of ionizing radiation. Workgroups were developed to analyze existing culture, processes, and technology to identify deficiencies and propose solutions. Six focus areas were identified: competency and certification; equipment; monitoring and auditing; education; clinical pathways; and communication and marketing. This manuscript summarizes this comprehensive, multidisciplinary, and systemic analysis of risk and provides examples to illustrate how these focus areas can be used to improve the use of ionizing radiation. The proposed solutions, once fully implemented, may advance patient safety and care. PMID:26042626

A Novel Multi-Sensor Environmental Perception Method Using Low-Rank Representation and a Particle Filter for Vehicle Reversing Safety

PubMed Central

Zhang, Zutao; Li, Yanjun; Wang, Fubing; Meng, Guanjun; Salman, Waleed; Saleem, Layth; Zhang, Xiaoliang; Wang, Chunbai; Hu, Guangdi; Liu, Yugang

2016-01-01

Environmental perception and information processing are two key steps of active safety for vehicle reversing. Single-sensor environmental perception cannot meet the need for vehicle reversing safety due to its low reliability. In this paper, we present a novel multi-sensor environmental perception method using low-rank representation and a particle filter for vehicle reversing safety. The proposed system consists of four main steps, namely multi-sensor environmental perception, information fusion, target recognition and tracking using low-rank representation and a particle filter, and vehicle reversing speed control modules. First of all, the multi-sensor environmental perception module, based on a binocular-camera system and ultrasonic range finders, obtains the distance data for obstacles behind the vehicle when the vehicle is reversing. Secondly, the information fusion algorithm using an adaptive Kalman filter is used to process the data obtained with the multi-sensor environmental perception module, which greatly improves the robustness of the sensors. Then the framework of a particle filter and low-rank representation is used to track the main obstacles. The low-rank representation is used to optimize an objective particle template that has the smallest L-1 norm. Finally, the electronic throttle opening and automatic braking is under control of the proposed vehicle reversing control strategy prior to any potential collisions, making the reversing control safer and more reliable. The final system simulation and practical testing results demonstrate the validity of the proposed multi-sensor environmental perception method using low-rank representation and a particle filter for vehicle reversing safety. PMID:27294931

A Novel Multi-Sensor Environmental Perception Method Using Low-Rank Representation and a Particle Filter for Vehicle Reversing Safety.

PubMed

Zhang, Zutao; Li, Yanjun; Wang, Fubing; Meng, Guanjun; Salman, Waleed; Saleem, Layth; Zhang, Xiaoliang; Wang, Chunbai; Hu, Guangdi; Liu, Yugang

2016-06-09

Environmental perception and information processing are two key steps of active safety for vehicle reversing. Single-sensor environmental perception cannot meet the need for vehicle reversing safety due to its low reliability. In this paper, we present a novel multi-sensor environmental perception method using low-rank representation and a particle filter for vehicle reversing safety. The proposed system consists of four main steps, namely multi-sensor environmental perception, information fusion, target recognition and tracking using low-rank representation and a particle filter, and vehicle reversing speed control modules. First of all, the multi-sensor environmental perception module, based on a binocular-camera system and ultrasonic range finders, obtains the distance data for obstacles behind the vehicle when the vehicle is reversing. Secondly, the information fusion algorithm using an adaptive Kalman filter is used to process the data obtained with the multi-sensor environmental perception module, which greatly improves the robustness of the sensors. Then the framework of a particle filter and low-rank representation is used to track the main obstacles. The low-rank representation is used to optimize an objective particle template that has the smallest L-1 norm. Finally, the electronic throttle opening and automatic braking is under control of the proposed vehicle reversing control strategy prior to any potential collisions, making the reversing control safer and more reliable. The final system simulation and practical testing results demonstrate the validity of the proposed multi-sensor environmental perception method using low-rank representation and a particle filter for vehicle reversing safety.

Below-Background Ionizing Radiation as an Environmental Cue for Bacteria

DOE PAGES

Castillo, Hugo; Smith, Geoffrey B.

2017-02-14

All organisms on earth grow under the influence of a natural and relatively constant dose of ionizing radiation referred to as background radiation, and so cells have different mechanisms to prevent the accumulation of damage caused by its different components. However, current knowledge of the deleterious effects of radiation on cells is based on the exposure to acute and high or to chronic, above background doses of radiation and therefore is not appropriate to explain the cellular and biochemical mechanisms that cells employ to sense and respond to chronic below-background levels. Studies at below-background radiation doses can provide insight intomore » the biological role of radiation, as suggested by several examples of what appears to be a stress response in cells grown at doses that range from 10 to 79 times lower than background. Here, we discuss some of the technical constraints to shield cells from radiation to below-background levels, as well as different approaches used to detect and measure responses to such unusual environmental conditions. Then, we present data from Shewanella oneidensis and Deinococcus radiodurans experiments that show how two taxonomically distant bacterial species sense and respond to unnaturally low levels of radiation. Finally, in brief, we grew S. oneidensis and D. radiodurans in liquid culture at dose rates of 72.05 (control) and 0.91 (treatment) nGy hr -1 (including radon) for up to 72 h and measured cell density and the expression of stress-related genes. Our results suggest that a stress response is triggered in the absence of normal levels of radiation.« less

Below-Background Ionizing Radiation as an Environmental Cue for Bacteria

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Castillo, Hugo; Smith, Geoffrey B.

All organisms on earth grow under the influence of a natural and relatively constant dose of ionizing radiation referred to as background radiation, and so cells have different mechanisms to prevent the accumulation of damage caused by its different components. However, current knowledge of the deleterious effects of radiation on cells is based on the exposure to acute and high or to chronic, above background doses of radiation and therefore is not appropriate to explain the cellular and biochemical mechanisms that cells employ to sense and respond to chronic below-background levels. Studies at below-background radiation doses can provide insight intomore » the biological role of radiation, as suggested by several examples of what appears to be a stress response in cells grown at doses that range from 10 to 79 times lower than background. Here, we discuss some of the technical constraints to shield cells from radiation to below-background levels, as well as different approaches used to detect and measure responses to such unusual environmental conditions. Then, we present data from Shewanella oneidensis and Deinococcus radiodurans experiments that show how two taxonomically distant bacterial species sense and respond to unnaturally low levels of radiation. Finally, in brief, we grew S. oneidensis and D. radiodurans in liquid culture at dose rates of 72.05 (control) and 0.91 (treatment) nGy hr -1 (including radon) for up to 72 h and measured cell density and the expression of stress-related genes. Our results suggest that a stress response is triggered in the absence of normal levels of radiation.« less

Product sterilization. Why industry uses radiation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sparks, B.J.

1984-09-01

Industry uses gamma radiation sterilization because of its superior reliability, safety, and cost savings over the EO fumigation method. EO has many processing variables and is toxic and expensive. The Environmental Protection Agency has recently declared EO to be both mutagenic and carcinogenic. The residual EO in hospital products has been reported to adversely affect hospital workers. Unlike EO fumigation, radiation sterilization imparts no toxic residuals. The coloration and embrittlement problems experienced earlier with some products sterilized by gamma radiation are being overcome with the introduction of new manufacturing materials and lower radiation dosages. Other benefits of radiation sterilization includemore » the option of sterilizing some materials that could not otherwise be sterilized and using new types of packaging to better protect the products and increase shelf-life. The emphasis now being placed on cost containment for health care products will be another significant part of the answer to why industry uses gamma radiation sterilization.« less

Safety and environmental constraints on space applications of fusion energy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Roth, J. Reece

1990-01-01

Some of the constraints are examined on fusion reactions, plasma confinement systems, and fusion reactors that are intended for such space related missions as manned or unmanned operations in near earth orbit, interplanetary missions, or requirements of the SDI program. Of the many constraints on space power and propulsion systems, those arising from safety and environmental considerations are emphasized since these considerations place severe constraints on some fusion systems and have not been adequately treated in previous studies.

10 CFR 50.49 - Environmental qualification of electric equipment important to safety for nuclear power plants.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... standard may be obtained from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc., 345 East 47th... 10 Energy 1 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Environmental qualification of electric equipment... Regulatory Approvals § 50.49 Environmental qualification of electric equipment important to safety for...

Environmental Impact Analysis Process Environmental Assessment Armed Forces Radio and Television Service - Broadcast Center

DTIC Science & Technology

1995-02-01

FCC ) environmental and safety guidelines for RF radiation hazards. Each antenna will require standard 3,000 psi concrete foundations be poured to...Air Force. The standard for worker exposure under ?????? is 10 mW/cm2 for this antenna. The FCC standard is 5 mW/cm2. Relocation of the facility will...DoD field activity under the direction of the Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs. The AFRTS mission is to provide radio and

Safety and otoprotection of metformin in radiation-induced sensorineural hearing loss in the guinea pig.

PubMed

Mujica-Mota, Mario A; Salehi, Pezhman; Devic, Slobodan; Daniel, Sam J

2014-05-01

There is currently no treatment available to prevent radiation-induced sensorineural hearing loss. Metformin has antineoplastic effects and is able to regulate the mitochondrial production of reactive oxygen species after cellular stress, which is one of the mechanisms involved in apoptosis after radiation damage. The objective of this study was to determine the safety and radioprotective properties of metformin against radiation-induced cochlear damage both in vitro and in vivo. In vitro and prospective animal study. Animal Care Facilities of the Montreal Children's Hospital Research Institute. Cultured auditory hair cells (HEI-OC1) were exposed to different concentrations of metformin to determine its safety. Cells were incubated with different metformin concentrations and subjected to radiation. Cell viability after experiments was determined with the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium (MTS) assay. Sixteen guinea pigs were divided in 2 groups: drinking tap water (n = 8) and drinking water containing metformin (n = 8). The animals were unilaterally irradiated for 20 days (total dose 70 Gy), and the ears were divided in 4 groups: control (n = 8), irradiated (n = 8), metformin (n = 8), and experimental (n = 8). Auditory brainstem responses were assessed before and 1, 6, and 16 weeks after completion of radiotherapy. Metformin was not cytotoxic or radioprotective in cultured auditory hair cells. Experimental ears had less hearing loss than radiated ones; however, differences were not statistically significant (P > .05). Metformin is not ototoxic or radioprotective in vitro or in vivo. Ears solely subjected to metformin had better hearing thresholds than the rest of the groups.

10 CFR 35.57 - Training for experienced Radiation Safety Officer, teletherapy or medical physicist, authorized...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

..., teletherapy or medical physicist, authorized medical physicist, authorized user, nuclear pharmacist, and authorized nuclear pharmacist. 35.57 Section 35.57 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION MEDICAL USE OF... pharmacist, and authorized nuclear pharmacist. (a)(1) An individual identified as a Radiation Safety Officer...

10 CFR 35.57 - Training for experienced Radiation Safety Officer, teletherapy or medical physicist, authorized...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

..., teletherapy or medical physicist, authorized medical physicist, authorized user, nuclear pharmacist, and authorized nuclear pharmacist. 35.57 Section 35.57 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION MEDICAL USE OF... pharmacist, and authorized nuclear pharmacist. (a)(1) An individual identified as a Radiation Safety Officer...

10 CFR 35.57 - Training for experienced Radiation Safety Officer, teletherapy or medical physicist, authorized...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

..., teletherapy or medical physicist, authorized medical physicist, authorized user, nuclear pharmacist, and authorized nuclear pharmacist. 35.57 Section 35.57 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION MEDICAL USE OF... pharmacist, and authorized nuclear pharmacist. (a)(1) An individual identified as a Radiation Safety Officer...

10 CFR 35.57 - Training for experienced Radiation Safety Officer, teletherapy or medical physicist, authorized...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

..., teletherapy or medical physicist, authorized medical physicist, authorized user, nuclear pharmacist, and authorized nuclear pharmacist. 35.57 Section 35.57 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION MEDICAL USE OF... pharmacist, and authorized nuclear pharmacist. (a)(1) An individual identified as a Radiation Safety Officer...

10 CFR 35.57 - Training for experienced Radiation Safety Officer, teletherapy or medical physicist, authorized...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

..., teletherapy or medical physicist, authorized medical physicist, authorized user, nuclear pharmacist, and authorized nuclear pharmacist. 35.57 Section 35.57 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION MEDICAL USE OF... pharmacist, and authorized nuclear pharmacist. (a)(1) An individual identified as a Radiation Safety Officer...

Pacific Northwest Laboratory annual report for 1980 to the DOE Assistant Secretary for Environment. Part 5. Environmental assessment, control, health and safety

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Baalman, R.W.; Hays, I.D.

1981-02-01

Pacific Northwest Laboratory's (PNL) 1980 annual report to the DOE Assistant Secretary for Environment describes research in environment, health, and safety conducted during fiscal year 1980. Part 5 includes technology assessments for natural gas, enhanced oil recovery, oil shale, uranium mining, magnetic fusion energy, solar energy, uranium enrichment and industrial energy utilization; regional analysis studies of environmental transport and community impacts; environmental and safety engineering for LNG, oil spills, LPG, shale oil waste waters, geothermal liquid waste disposal, compressed air energy storage, and nuclear/fusion fuel cycles; operational and environmental safety studies of decommissioning, environmental monitoring, personnel dosimetry, and analysis ofmore » criticality safety; health physics studies; and epidemiological studies. Also included are an author index, organization of PNL charts and distribution lists of the annual report, along with lists of presentations and publications. (DLS)« less

Dust control products at Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge, Texas: environmental safety and performance

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kunz, Bethany K.; Little, Edward E.

2015-01-01

Controlling fugitive dust while protecting natural resources is a challenge faced by all managers of unpaved roads. Unfortunately, road managers choosing between dust control products often have little objective environmental information to aid their decisions. To address this information gap, the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service collaborated on a field test of three dust control products with the objectives of (a) evaluating product performance under real-world conditions, (b) verifying the environmental safety of products identified as practically nontoxic in laboratory tests, and (c) testing the feasibility of several environmental monitoring techniques for use in dust control tests. In cooperation with refuge staff and product vendors, three products (one magnesium chloride plus binder, one cellulose, and one synthetic fluid plus binder) were applied in July 2012 to replicated road sections at the Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge in Texas. These sections were monitored periodically for 12 months after application. Product performance was assessed by mobile-mounted particulate-matter meters measuring production of fugitive dust and by observations of road conditions. Environmental safety was evaluated through on-site biological observations and leaching tests with samples of treated aggregate. All products reduced dust and improved surface condition during those 12 months. Planned environmental measurements were not always compatible with day-to-day refuge management actions; this incompatibility highlighted the need for flexible biological monitoring plans. As one of the first field tests of dust suppressants that explicitly incorporated biological endpoints, this effort provides valuable information for improving field tests and for developing laboratory or semifield alternatives.

Who was concerned about radiation, food safety, and natural disasters after the great East Japan earthquake and Fukushima catastrophe? A nationwide cross-sectional survey in 2012.

PubMed

Sugimoto, Takashi; Shinozaki, Tomohiro; Naruse, Takashi; Miyamoto, Yuki

2014-01-01

Disaster-related concerns by sub-populations have not been clarified after the great East Japan earthquake and the Fukushima nuclear power plant incidents. This paper assesses who was concerned about radiation, food safety, and natural disasters among the general population in order to buffer such concerns effectively. The hypothesis that women, parents, and family caregivers were most concerned about radiation, food safety, and natural disaster was tested using a varying-intercept multivariable logistic regression with 5809 responses from a nationwide cross-sectional survey random-sampled in March 2012. Many people were at least occasionally concerned about radiation (53.5%), food safety (47.3%), and about natural disaster (69.5%). Women were more concerned than men about radiation (OR = 1.67; 95% CI = 1.35-2.06), food safety (1.70; 1.38-2.10), and natural disasters (1.74; 1.39-2.19). Parents and family care needs were not significant. Married couples were more concerned about radiation (1.53; 1.33-1.77), food safety (1.38; 1.20-1.59), and natural disasters (1.30; 1.12-1.52). Age, child-cohabitation, college-completion, retirement status, homemaker status, and the house-damage certificate of the last disaster were also associated with at least one concern. Participants from the Kanto region were more concerned about radiation (2.08; 1.58-2.74) and food safety (1.30; 1.07-1.59), which demonstrate similar positive associations to participants from Tohoku where a disaster relief act was invoked (3.36; 2.25-5.01 about radiation, 1.49; 1.08-2.06 about food safety). Sectioning the populations by gender and other demographics will clarify prospective targets for interventions, allow for a better understanding of post-disaster concerns, and help communicate relevant information effectively.

Radiation dose predictions for SPE events during solar cycle 23 from NASA's Nowcast of Atmospheric Ionizing Radiation for Aviation Safety (NAIRAS) model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mertens, Christopher; Blattnig, Steve; Slaba, Tony; Kress, Brian; Wiltberger, Michael; Solomon, Stan

NASA's High Charge and Energy Transport (HZETRN) code is a deterministic model for rapid and accurate calculations of the particle radiation fields in the space environment. HZETRN is used to calculate dosimetric quantities on the International Space Station (ISS) and assess astronaut risk to space radiations, including realistic spacecraft and human geometry for final exposure evaluation. HZETRN is used as an engineering design tool for materials research for radiation shielding protection. Moreover, it is used to calculate HZE propagation through the Earth and Martian atmospheres, and to evaluate radiation exposures for epidemiological studies. A new research project has begun that will use HZETRN as the transport engine for the development of a nowcast prediction of air-crew radiation exposure for both background galactic cosmic ray (GCR) exposure and radiation exposure during solar particle events (SPE) that may accompany solar storms. The new air-crew radiation exposure model is called the Nowcast of Atmospheric Ionizing Radiation for Aviation Safety (NAIRAS) model, which utilizes real-time observations from ground-based, atmospheric, and satellite measurements. In this paper, we compute the global distribution of atmospheric radiation dose for several SPE events during solar cycle 23, with particular emphasis on the high-latitude and polar region. We also characterize the suppression of the geomagnetic cutoff rigidity during these storm periods and their subsequent influence on atmospheric radiation exposure.

Safety and environmental health handbook

USGS Publications Warehouse

,

1989-01-01

This Safety Handbook (445-1-H.) supplements the Geological Survey Safety Management Program objectives set forth in Survey Manual 445.1. Specifically, it provides a compact source of basic information to assist management and employees in preventing motor vehicle accidents, personal injuries, occupational diseases, fire, and other property damage or loss. All work situations incidental to the Geological Survey cannot be discussed in a handbook, and such complete coverage is not intended in this document. However, a wide range of subjects are covered in which a "common sense" approach to safety has been expressed. These subjects have been organized such that Chapters 1-5 address administrative issues, Chapters 6-12 address activities usually conducted within a facility, and Chapters 13-20 address field activities. No information contained in the Handbook is intended to alter any provision of any Federal law or executive order, Department of the Interior or Survey directive, or collective bargaining agreement. Questions or suggestions regarding the content of the Safety Handbook may be directed to the Survey Safety Manager, Administrative Division, Office of Facilities and Management Services, National Center, Reston, Virginia, Mail Stop 246. The previous edition of the Safety Handbook is superseded.

Environmental cues to UV radiation and personal sun protection in outdoor winter recreation.

PubMed

Andersen, Peter A; Buller, David B; Walkosz, Barbara J; Scott, Michael D; Maloy, Julie A; Cutter, Gary R; Dignan, Mark D

2010-11-01

To predict the prevalence of UV radiation (hereinafter, UV) at North American ski resorts using temporal, seasonal, altitudinal, and meteorological factors and associate UV with a set of adult sun protection behaviors. Ultraviolet radiation observations and cross-sectional survey of adults on sun protection were collected. Data were collected at 32 high-altitude ski areas located in western North America from 2001 through 2003. The sample consisted of 3937 adult skiers or snowboarders. Measurements of direct, reflected, and diffuse UV were performed at 487 measurement points using handheld meters and combined with self-reported and observed sun protection assessed for adults interviewed on chairlifts. The strongest predictors of UV were temporal proximity to noon, deviation from winter solstice, and clear skies. By contrast, altitude and latitude had more modest associations with UV and temperature had a small positive relationship with UV. Guest sun safety was inconsistently associated with UV: UV was positively related to adults wearing more sunscreen, reapplying it after 2 hours, and wearing protective eyewear, but fewer adults exhibited many of the other sun protection behaviors, such as wearing hats and protective clothing or using lip balm, on days when UV was elevated. Guests took more sun safety precautions on clear-sky days but took steps to maintain body warmth on inclement days. In future sun safety promotions, adults should be encouraged to wear sunscreen on cloudy days because UV is still high and conditions can change rapidly. They need reminders to rely more on season and time of day when judging UV and the need for sun safety.

SU-F-P-08: Medical Physics Perspective On Radiation Therapy Quality and Safety Considerations in Low Income Settings

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Van Dyk, J; Meghzifene, A

Purpose: The last few years have seen a significant growth of interest in the global radiation therapy crisis. Various organizations are quantifying the need and providing aid in support of addressing the shortfall existing in many low-to-middle income countries (LMICs). The Lancet Oncology Commission report (Lancet Oncol. Sep;16(10):1153-86, 2015) projects a need of 22,000 new medical physicists in LMICs by 2035 if there is to be equal access globally. With the tremendous demand for new facilities, equipment and personnel, it is very important to recognize quality and safety considerations and to address them directly. Methods: A detailed examination of qualitymore » and safety publications was undertaken. A paper by Dunscombe (Front. Oncol. 2: 129, 2012) reviewed the recommendations of 7 authoritative reports on safety in radiation therapy and found the 12 most cited recommendations, summarized in order of most to least cited: training, staffing, documentation/standard operating procedures, incident learning, communication/questioning, check lists, QC/PM, dosimetric audit, accreditation, minimizing interruptions, prospective risk assessment, and safety culture. However, these authoritative reports were generally based on input from high income contexts. In this work, the recommendations were analyzed with a special emphasis on issues that are significant in LMICs. Results: The review indicated that there are significant challenges in LMICs with training and staffing ranking at the top in terms quality and safety. Conclusion: With the recognized need for expanding global access to radiation therapy, especially in LMICs, and the backing by multiple support organizations, quality and safety considerations must be overtly addressed. While multidimensional, training and staffing are top priorities. The use of outdated systems with poor interconnectivity, coupled with a lack of systematic QA in high patient load settings are additional concerns. Any support provided

Incident Learning and Failure-Mode-and-Effects-Analysis Guided Safety Initiatives in Radiation Medicine

PubMed Central

Kapur, Ajay; Goode, Gina; Riehl, Catherine; Zuvic, Petrina; Joseph, Sherin; Adair, Nilda; Interrante, Michael; Bloom, Beatrice; Lee, Lucille; Sharma, Rajiv; Sharma, Anurag; Antone, Jeffrey; Riegel, Adam; Vijeh, Lili; Zhang, Honglai; Cao, Yijian; Morgenstern, Carol; Montchal, Elaine; Cox, Brett; Potters, Louis

2013-01-01

By combining incident learning and process failure-mode-and-effects-analysis (FMEA) in a structure-process-outcome framework we have created a risk profile for our radiation medicine practice and implemented evidence-based risk-mitigation initiatives focused on patient safety. Based on reactive reviews of incidents reported in our departmental incident-reporting system and proactive FMEA, high safety-risk procedures in our paperless radiation medicine process and latent risk factors were identified. Six initiatives aimed at the mitigation of associated severity, likelihood-of-occurrence, and detectability risks were implemented. These were the standardization of care pathways and toxicity grading, pre-treatment-planning peer review, a policy to thwart delay-rushed processes, an electronic whiteboard to enhance coordination, and the use of six sigma metrics to monitor operational efficiencies. The effectiveness of these initiatives over a 3-years period was assessed using process and outcome specific metrics within the framework of the department structure. There has been a 47% increase in incident-reporting, with no increase in adverse events. Care pathways have been used with greater than 97% clinical compliance rate. The implementation of peer review prior to treatment-planning and use of the whiteboard have provided opportunities for proactive detection and correction of errors. There has been a twofold drop in the occurrence of high-risk procedural delays. Patient treatment start delays are routinely enforced on cases that would have historically been rushed. Z-scores for high-risk procedures have steadily improved from 1.78 to 2.35. The initiatives resulted in sustained reductions of failure-mode risks as measured by a set of evidence-based metrics over a 3-years period. These augment or incorporate many of the published recommendations for patient safety in radiation medicine by translating them to clinical practice. PMID:24380074

Evaluation of experimental methods for assessing safety for ultrasound radiation force elastography.

PubMed

Skurczynski, M J; Duck, F A; Shipley, J A; Bamber, J C; Melodelima, D

2009-08-01

Standard test tools have been evaluated for the assessment of safety associated with a prototype transducer intended for a novel radiation force elastographic imaging system. In particular, safety has been evaluated by direct measurement of temperature rise, using a standard thermal test object, and detection of inertial cavitation from acoustic emission. These direct measurements have been compared with values of the thermal index and mechanical index, calculated from acoustic measurements in water using standard formulae. It is concluded that measurements using a thermal test object can be an effective alternative to the calculation of thermal index for evaluating thermal hazard. Measurement of the threshold for cavitation was subject to considerable variability, and it is concluded that the mechanical index still remains the preferred standard means for assessing cavitation hazard.

Survey of instrumentation for environmental monitoring: major update. Volume 3. Radiation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1979-09-01

This is the third volume of a four-volume (seven-part) series, the culmination of a comprehensive survey of instrumentation for environmental monitoring. Consideration is given to instruments and techniques presently in use and to those developed for other purposes but having possible applications to radiation monitoring. The results of the survey are given as descriptions of the physical and operating characteristics of available instruments, critical comparisons among instrumentation methods, and recommendations of promising methodology and development of new instrumentation. Information is also given regarding the pollutants to be monitored, their characteristics and forms, their sources and pathways, their effects on themore » ecosystem, and the means of controlling them through process and regulatory controls. The discussion is presented under sections entitled radiation sources; instrumentation: by type of radiation or instrument type; and, instrumentation for specific radionuclides. (JGB)« less

Radiological protection, safety and security issues in the industrial and medical applications of radiation sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vaz, Pedro

2015-11-01

The use of radiation sources, namely radioactive sealed or unsealed sources and particle accelerators and beams is ubiquitous in the industrial and medical applications of ionizing radiation. Besides radiological protection of the workers, members of the public and patients in routine situations, the use of radiation sources involves several aspects associated to the mitigation of radiological or nuclear accidents and associated emergency situations. On the other hand, during the last decade security issues became burning issues due to the potential malevolent uses of radioactive sources for the perpetration of terrorist acts using RDD (Radiological Dispersal Devices), RED (Radiation Exposure Devices) or IND (Improvised Nuclear Devices). A stringent set of international legally and non-legally binding instruments, regulations, conventions and treaties regulate nowadays the use of radioactive sources. In this paper, a review of the radiological protection issues associated to the use of radiation sources in the industrial and medical applications of ionizing radiation is performed. The associated radiation safety issues and the prevention and mitigation of incidents and accidents are discussed. A comprehensive discussion of the security issues associated to the global use of radiation sources for the aforementioned applications and the inherent radiation detection requirements will be presented. Scientific, technical, legal, ethical, socio-economic issues are put forward and discussed.

Radiation safety in the cardiac catheterization lab: A time series quality improvement initiative.

PubMed

Abuzeid, Wael; Abunassar, Joseph; Leis, Jerome A; Tang, Vicky; Wong, Brian; Ko, Dennis T; Wijeysundera, Harindra C

Interventional cardiologists have one of the highest annual radiation exposures yet systems of care that promote radiation safety in cardiac catheterization labs are lacking. This study sought to reduce the frequency of radiation exposure, for PCI procedures, above 1.5Gy in labs utilizing a Phillips system at our local institution by 40%, over a 12-month period. We performed a time series study to assess the impact of different interventions on the frequency of radiation exposure above 1.5Gy. Process measures were percent of procedures where collimation and magnification were used and percent of completion of online educational modules. Balancing measures were the mean number of cases performed and mean fluoroscopy time. Information sessions, online modules, policies and posters were implemented followed by the introduction of a new lab with a novel software (AlluraClarity©) to reduce radiation dose. There was a significant reduction (91%, p<0.05) in the frequency of radiation exposure above 1.5Gy after utilizing a novel software (AlluraClarity©) in a new Phillips lab. Process measures of use of collimation (95.0% to 98.0%), use of magnification (20.0% to 14.0%) and completion of online modules (62%) helped track implementation. The mean number of cases performed and mean fluoroscopy time did not change significantly. While educational strategies had limited impact on reducing radiation exposure, implementing a novel software system provided the most effective means of reducing radiation exposure. Crown Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Improving efficiency and safety in external beam radiation therapy treatment delivery using a Kaizen approach.

PubMed

Kapur, Ajay; Adair, Nilda; O'Brien, Mildred; Naparstek, Nikoleta; Cangelosi, Thomas; Zuvic, Petrina; Joseph, Sherin; Meier, Jason; Bloom, Beatrice; Potters, Louis

Modern external beam radiation therapy treatment delivery processes potentially increase the number of tasks to be performed by therapists and thus opportunities for errors, yet the need to treat a large number of patients daily requires a balanced allocation of time per treatment slot. The goal of this work was to streamline the underlying workflow in such time-interval constrained processes to enhance both execution efficiency and active safety surveillance using a Kaizen approach. A Kaizen project was initiated by mapping the workflow within each treatment slot for 3 Varian TrueBeam linear accelerators. More than 90 steps were identified, and average execution times for each were measured. The time-consuming steps were stratified into a 2 × 2 matrix arranged by potential workflow improvement versus the level of corrective effort required. A work plan was created to launch initiatives with high potential for workflow improvement but modest effort to implement. Time spent on safety surveillance and average durations of treatment slots were used to assess corresponding workflow improvements. Three initiatives were implemented to mitigate unnecessary therapist motion, overprocessing of data, and wait time for data transfer defects, respectively. A fourth initiative was implemented to make the division of labor by treating therapists as well as peer review more explicit. The average duration of treatment slots reduced by 6.7% in the 9 months following implementation of the initiatives (P = .001). A reduction of 21% in duration of treatment slots was observed on 1 of the machines (P < .001). Time spent on safety reviews remained the same (20% of the allocated interval), but the peer review component increased. The Kaizen approach has the potential to improve operational efficiency and safety with quick turnaround in radiation therapy practice by addressing non-value-adding steps characteristic of individual department workflows. Higher effort opportunities are

Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) Characteristics Associated With Violence and Safety in Middle Schools.

PubMed

Vagi, Kevin J; Stevens, Mark R; Simon, Thomas R; Basile, Kathleen C; Carter, Sherry P; Carter, Stanley L

2018-04-01

This study used a new Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) assessment tool to test the associations between physical attributes of schools and violence-related behaviors and perceptions of students. Data were collected from 4717 students from 50 middle schools. Student perceptions of risk and safety, and violence were assessed. Evaluators used the CPTED School Assessment (CSA) to quantify how well the physical elements of each school correspond to ideal CPTED principles. Generalized linear mixed models were used to adjust for school- and student-level characteristics. Higher CSA scores were generally associated with higher perceptions of safety and lower levels of violence perpetration and perceived risk in unadjusted models. Higher CSA scores were also associated with lower odds of missing school because of safety concerns in most adjusted models, with significant adjusted odds ratios (AORs) ranging from 0.32 to 0.63. CSA scores for parking and bus loading areas also remained associated with higher perceived safety (AORs = 1.28 and 1.32, respectively) and lower perceived risk (AORs = 0.73 and 0.66, respectively) in adjusted models. The CSA is useful for assessing school environments that are associated with violence-related behaviors and perceptions. The CSA might help guide school environmental modifications to reduce violence. © 2018, American School Health Association.

Environmental effects of ozone depletion, UV radiation and interactions with climate change: UNEP Environmental Effects Assessment Panel, update 2017

EPA Science Inventory

The Environmental Effects Assessment Panel (EEAP) is one of three Panels of experts that inform the Parties to the Montreal Protocol. The EEAP focuses on the effects of UV radiation on human health, terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, air quality, and materials, as well as on the...

Moving forward with safety culture.

PubMed

Weber, Michael

2012-04-01

Radiation safety and protection of people are shared goals of the Health Physics Society (HPS) and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). A positive safety culture contributes to achieving radiation safety and protection of people, which are important to both the HPS and the NRC. Through unprecedented collaboration and engagement with diverse stakeholders, the NRC and the stakeholders developed a Safety Culture Policy Statement. The policy statement defines safety culture and describes the traits of a positive safety culture. Consideration of both safety and security issues and the interface of safety and security are underlying principles that support the policy. Examination of significant events, both within the nuclear industry and in society at large, illustrates how weaknesses in these traits can contribute to the occurrence and consequences of safety incidents, including serious injury and loss of life. With the policy statement in place, the NRC is moving forward with outreach and education about safety culture. Health physicists and other radiation safety specialists play an essential role in enhancing safety culture.

Workplace Safety: Indoor Environmental Quality

MedlinePlus

... Cleanup Tuberculosis Follow NIOSH Facebook Flickr Pinterest Twitter YouTube NIOSH Homepage NIOSH A-Z Workplace Safety & Health ... Cleanup Tuberculosis Follow NIOSH Facebook Flickr Pinterest Twitter YouTube NIOSH Homepage NIOSH A-Z Workplace Safety & Health ...

Food safety/food security aspects related to the environmental release of pharmaceuticals.

PubMed

Brambilla, Gianfranco; Testa, Cecilia

2014-11-01

The environmental presence of pharmaceuticals in top soil and in water where extensive animal farming occurs may represent an involuntary source of residues in food that might affect both food safety and food security. We modelled the presence of residues in animal matrices from the inventoried environmental concentration of selected drugs in surface waters (range: 0.1-10μgL(-1)) and agriculture soils (range: 1-100μgkg(-1) dry weight), accounting for animal production parameters (i.e., forages, water intake and milk and egg production) and drug pharmacokinetics. The results indicate that the contamination of tetracyclines in top soil may represent a major issue both for the compliance with maximum residue levels in food (100-300ngg(-1)) and for the claim of organic products. via surface water, animals may be vulnerable to the intake of anabolics and growth-promoting agents, such as 17-beta estradiol and clenbuterol, only under a worst-case scenario. Their identification, which is currently achievable at a pgg(-1) level in animal specimens, is considered proof of illegal treatment and can lead to the prosecution of farmers. The Environmental Quality Standards that have been proposed for priority substances in surface waters may also be considered protective in terms of food security/food safety; however, a broad-spectrum characterisation of drugs within the agriculture context could be envisaged to refine the uncertainties in the risk assessment and for combined intakes. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Who Was Concerned about Radiation, Food Safety, and Natural Disasters after the Great East Japan Earthquake and Fukushima Catastrophe? A Nationwide Cross-Sectional Survey in 2012

PubMed Central

Sugimoto, Takashi; Shinozaki, Tomohiro; Naruse, Takashi; Miyamoto, Yuki

2014-01-01

Background Disaster-related concerns by sub-populations have not been clarified after the great East Japan earthquake and the Fukushima nuclear power plant incidents. This paper assesses who was concerned about radiation, food safety, and natural disasters among the general population in order to buffer such concerns effectively. Methods The hypothesis that women, parents, and family caregivers were most concerned about radiation, food safety, and natural disaster was tested using a varying-intercept multivariable logistic regression with 5809 responses from a nationwide cross-sectional survey random-sampled in March 2012. Results Many people were at least occasionally concerned about radiation (53.5%), food safety (47.3%), and about natural disaster (69.5%). Women were more concerned than men about radiation (OR = 1.67; 95% CI = 1.35–2.06), food safety (1.70; 1.38–2.10), and natural disasters (1.74; 1.39–2.19). Parents and family care needs were not significant. Married couples were more concerned about radiation (1.53; 1.33–1.77), food safety (1.38; 1.20–1.59), and natural disasters (1.30; 1.12–1.52). Age, child-cohabitation, college-completion, retirement status, homemaker status, and the house-damage certificate of the last disaster were also associated with at least one concern. Participants from the Kanto region were more concerned about radiation (2.08; 1.58–2.74) and food safety (1.30; 1.07–1.59), which demonstrate similar positive associations to participants from Tohoku where a disaster relief act was invoked (3.36; 2.25–5.01 about radiation, 1.49; 1.08–2.06 about food safety). Conclusions Sectioning the populations by gender and other demographics will clarify prospective targets for interventions, allow for a better understanding of post-disaster concerns, and help communicate relevant information effectively. PMID:25181292

Differences in rates of decrease of environmental radiation dose rates by ground surface property in Fukushima City after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident.

PubMed

Kakamu, Takeyasu; Kanda, Hideyuki; Tsuji, Masayoshi; Kobayashi, Daisuke; Miyake, Masao; Hayakawa, Takehito; Katsuda, Shin-ichiro; Mori, Yayoi; Okouchi, Toshiyasu; Hazama, Akihiro; Fukushima, Tetsuhito

2013-01-01

After the Great East Japan Earthquake on 11 March 2011, the environmental radiation dose in Fukushima City increased. On 11 April, 1 mo after the earthquake, the environmental radiation dose rate at various surfaces in the same area differed greatly by surface property. Environmental radiation measurements continue in order to determine the estimated time to 50% reduction in environmental radiation dose rates by surface property in order to make suggestions for decontamination in Fukushima. The measurements were carried out from 11 April to 11 November 2011. Forty-eight (48) measurement points were selected, including four kinds of ground surface properties: grass (13), soil (5), artificial turf (7), and asphalt (23). Environmental radiation dose rate was measured at heights of 100 cm above the ground surface. Time to 50% reduction of environmental radiation dose rates was estimated for each ground surface property. Radiation dose rates on 11 November had decreased significantly compared with those on 11 April for all surface properties. Artificial turf showed the longest time to 50% reduction (544.32 d, standard error: 96.86), and soil showed the shortest (213.20 d, standard error: 35.88). The authors found the environmental radiation dose rate on artificial materials to have a longer 50% reduction time than that on natural materials. These results contribute to determining an order of priority for decontamination after nuclear disasters.

Flexible Control of Safety Margins for Action Based on Environmental Variability.

PubMed

Hadjiosif, Alkis M; Smith, Maurice A

2015-06-17

To reduce the risk of slip, grip force (GF) control includes a safety margin above the force level ordinarily sufficient for the expected load force (LF) dynamics. The current view is that this safety margin is based on the expected LF dynamics, amounting to a static safety factor like that often used in engineering design. More efficient control could be achieved, however, if the motor system reduces the safety margin when LF variability is low and increases it when this variability is high. Here we show that this is indeed the case by demonstrating that the human motor system sizes the GF safety margin in proportion to an internal estimate of LF variability to maintain a fixed statistical confidence against slip. In contrast to current models of GF control that neglect the variability of LF dynamics, we demonstrate that GF is threefold more sensitive to the SD than the expected value of LF dynamics, in line with the maintenance of a 3-sigma confidence level. We then show that a computational model of GF control that includes a variability-driven safety margin predicts highly asymmetric GF adaptation between increases versus decreases in load. We find clear experimental evidence for this asymmetry and show that it explains previously reported differences in how rapidly GFs and manipulatory forces adapt. This model further predicts bizarre nonmonotonic shapes for GF learning curves, which are faithfully borne out in our experimental data. Our findings establish a new role for environmental variability in the control of action. Copyright © 2015 the authors 0270-6474/15/359106-16$15.00/0.

Enhancing the role of case-oriented peer review to improve quality and safety in radiation oncology: Executive summary

PubMed Central

Marks, Lawrence B.; Adams, Robert D.; Pawlicki, Todd; Blumberg, Albert L.; Hoopes, David; Brundage, Michael D.; Fraass, Benedick A.

2013-01-01

This report is part of a series of white papers commissioned for the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) Board of Directors as part of ASTRO's Target Safely Campaign, focusing on the role of peer review as an important component of a broad safety/quality assurance (QA) program. Peer review is one of the most effective means for assuring the quality of qualitative, and potentially controversial, patient-specific decisions in radiation oncology. This report summarizes many of the areas throughout radiation therapy that may benefit from the application of peer review. Each radiation oncology facility should evaluate the issues raised and develop improved ways to apply the concept of peer review to its individual process and workflow. This might consist of a daily multidisciplinary (eg, physicians, dosimetrists, physicists, therapists) meeting to review patients being considered for, or undergoing planning for, radiation therapy (eg, intention to treat and target delineation), as well as meetings to review patients already under treatment (eg, adequacy of image guidance). This report is intended to clarify and broaden the understanding of radiation oncology professionals regarding the meaning, roles, benefits, and targets for peer review as a routine quality assurance tool. It is hoped that this work will be a catalyst for further investigation, development, and study of the efficacy of peer review techniques and how these efforts can help improve the safety and quality of our treatments. PMID:24175002

Color Functionality Used in Visual Display for Occupational and Environmental Safety and Managing Color Vision Deficiency.

PubMed

Ochiai, Nobuhisa; Kondo, Hiroyuki

2017-01-01

The effects of color perception are utilized in visual displays for the purpose of safety in the workplace and in daily life. These effects, generally known as color functionality, are divided into four classifications: visibility, legibility, conspicuity and discriminability. This article focuses on the relationship between the color functionality of color schemes used in visual displays for occupational and environmental safety and color vision deficiency (particularly congenital red-green color deficiency), a critical issue in ophthalmology, and examines the effects of color functionality on the perception of the color red in individuals with protan defects. Due to abrupt system reforms, current Japanese clinical ophthalmology finds itself in a situation where it is insufficiently prepared to handle congenital red-green color deficiencies. Indeed, occupational problems caused by color vision deficiencies have been almost completely neglected, and are an occupational safety and health concern that will need to be solved in the future. This report will present the guidelines for the color vision testing established by the British Health and Safety Executive (HSE), a pioneering example of a model meant to solve these problems. Issues relating to the creation of guidelines adapted to Japanese clinical ophthalmology will also be examined, and we will discuss ways to utilize color functionality used in visual displays for occupational and environmental safety to help manage color vision deficiency.

Making the invisible visible: a qualitative study of the values, attitudes and norms of radiologists relating to radiation safety.

PubMed

Fridell, Kent; Ekberg, Jessica

2016-06-01

Some shortcomings regarding safety have emerged in inspections by the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority of Swedish radiology departments which perform 5.4 million radiological examinations and 100 000 nuclear scans annually. To ensure safety in the healthcare system and to build a strong environment of radiation protection for patients (and for employees) there must be a strong culture of safety. To understand an organization's behaviour, decisions and actions it is important to study its cultural values. The aims of this study were to discuss how values, attitudes and norms affect radiologists' decisions as well as how they influence the implementation of various radiation protection measures. To investigate this, focus group interviews and in-depth individual interviews were performed in a sample from a number of radiology departments at hospitals in Sweden. The results show that the core value was derived from the patients' perspective with the focus on the knowledge that he or she has come to the healthcare system for a particular reason: to discover disease or, in the best case, to be declared healthy. The majority attitudes were based on experiences associated with aspects that the radiologist could not influence. This often concerns increased pressure on radiology investigations from clinics in the various operational units. Under the concept of norms, the radiologists in the study requested that the development of regulations and guidelines should be connected to issues of justification for various radiological queries.

Environmental Aftermath of the Radiation Accident at Tomsk-7

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Porfiriev, Boris N.; Porfiriev, Boris N.

1996-01-01

An analysis is presented of the environmental effects of the most serious radiation accident recorded after Chernobyl, which occurred in the formerly secret town of Tomsk-7 in Siberia, Russia, on 6, April 1993. Fortunately, it appears not to have become a major industrial crisis or disaster. The causes of the accident are described. It is argued that a mixture of both objective and subjective prerequisites, including specific human, organizational, and technological factors, were responsible for the explosion or directly facilitated it. The Tomsk-7 accident’s ecological, medical, social, and psychological consequences are discussed.

Latency features of SafetyNet ground systems architecture for the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duda, James L.; Mulligan, Joseph; Valenti, James; Wenkel, Michael

2005-01-01

A key feature of the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) is the Northrop Grumman Space Technology patent-pending innovative data routing and retrieval architecture called SafetyNetTM. The SafetyNetTM ground system architecture for the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS), combined with the Interface Data Processing Segment (IDPS), will together provide low data latency and high data availability to its customers. The NPOESS will cut the time between observation and delivery by a factor of four when compared with today's space-based weather systems, the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) and NOAA's Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellites (POES). SafetyNetTM will be a key element of the NPOESS architecture, delivering near real-time data over commercial telecommunications networks. Scattered around the globe, the 15 unmanned ground receptors are linked by fiber-optic systems to four central data processing centers in the U. S. known as Weather Centrals. The National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service; Air Force Weather Agency; Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center, and the Naval Oceanographic Office operate the Centrals. In addition, this ground system architecture will have unused capacity attendant with an infrastructure that can accommodate additional users.

Environmental Report 2008

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gallegos, G; Bertoldo, N A; Campbell, C G

The purposes of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Environmental Report 2008 are to record Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's (LLNL's) compliance with environmental standards and requirements, describe LLNL's environmental protection and remediation programs, and present the results of environmental monitoring at the two LLNL sites - the Livermore site and Site 300. The report is prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) by LLNL's Environmental Protection Department. Submittal of the report satisfies requirements under DOE Order 231.1A, Environmental Safety and Health Reporting, and DOE Order 5400.5, Radiation Protection of the Public and Environment. The report is distributed electronically and ismore » available at https://saer.lln.gov/, the website for the LLNL annual environmental report. Previous LLNL annual environmental reports beginning in 1994 are also on the website. Some references in the electronic report text are underlined, which indicates that they are clickable links. Clicking on one of these links will open the related document, data workbook, or website that it refers to. The report begins with an executive summary, which provides the purpose of the report and an overview of LLNL's compliance and monitoring results. The first three chapters provide background information: Chapter 1 is an overview of the location, meteorology, and hydrogeology of the two LLNL sites; Chapter 2 is a summary of LLNL's compliance with environmental regulations; and Chapter 3 is a description of LLNL's environmental programs with an emphasis on the Environmental Management System including pollution prevention. The majority of the report covers LLNL's environmental monitoring programs and monitoring data for 2008: effluent and ambient air (Chapter 4); waters, including wastewater, storm water runoff, surface water, rain, and groundwater (Chapter 5); and terrestrial, including soil, sediment, vegetation, foodstuff, ambient radiation, and special

Environmental Radiation Measurements on MIR Station

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benton, E. V.; Frank, A. L.; Benton, E. R.

1997-04-01

Environmental radiation levels on the Russian space station Mir are being monitored under differing shielding conditions by a series of six area passive dosimeters (APDs) placed at individual locations inside the Core and Kvant 2 modules, and by an External Dosimeter Array (EDA) to be-deployed on the exterior surface of the Kvant 2 module. Each APD and the EDA contains CR-39 plastic nuclear track detectors (PNTDs) for measurement of LET spectra and TLDs for absorbed dose measurements. Two of the missions, NASA-2/Mir-21 and NASA-3/Mir-22 have been completed and the six APDs from each mission returned to Earth from Mir. This report covers progress to date on the analysis of TLDs and PNTDs from these two missions. For NASA-2/Mir-21, average mission absorbed dose rates varied from 271 to 407 micro-Gy/d at the APDS. For NASA-3/Mir-22, average mission absorbed dose rates varied from 265 to 421 micro-Gy/d.

Radiation Exposure in X-Ray and CT Examinations

MedlinePlus

... disease. See the X-ray, Interventional Radiology and Nuclear Medicine Radiation Safety page for more information. top of page ... and Radiation Safety X-ray, Interventional Radiology and Nuclear Medicine Radiation Safety Videos related to Radiation Dose in X- ...

10 CFR 70.62 - Safety program and integrated safety analysis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

...; (iv) Potential accident sequences caused by process deviations or other events internal to the... of occurrence of each potential accident sequence identified pursuant to paragraph (c)(1)(iv) of this... have experience in nuclear criticality safety, radiation safety, fire safety, and chemical process...

10 CFR 70.62 - Safety program and integrated safety analysis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

...; (iv) Potential accident sequences caused by process deviations or other events internal to the... of occurrence of each potential accident sequence identified pursuant to paragraph (c)(1)(iv) of this... have experience in nuclear criticality safety, radiation safety, fire safety, and chemical process...

10 CFR 70.62 - Safety program and integrated safety analysis.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

...; (iv) Potential accident sequences caused by process deviations or other events internal to the... of occurrence of each potential accident sequence identified pursuant to paragraph (c)(1)(iv) of this... have experience in nuclear criticality safety, radiation safety, fire safety, and chemical process...

Environmental Report 2009

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gallegos, Gretchen M.; Bertoldo, Nicholas A.; Campbell, Christopher G.

The purposes of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Environmental Report 2009 are to record Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s (LLNL’s) compliance with environmental standards and requirements, describe LLNL’s environmental protection and remediation programs, and present the results of environmental monitoring at the two LLNL sites—the Livermore site and Site 300. The report is prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) by LLNL’s Environmental Protection Department. Submittal of the report satisfies requirements under DOE Order 231.1A, Environmental Safety and Health Reporting, and DOE Order 5400.5, Radiation Protection of the Public and Environment. The report is distributed electronically and is available atmore » https://saer.lln.gov/, the website for the LLNL annual environmental report. Previous LLNL annual environmental reports beginning in 1994 are also on the website. Some references in the electronic report text are underlined, which indicates that they are clickable links. Clicking on one of these links will open the related document, data workbook, or website that it refers to. The report begins with an executive summary, which provides the purpose of the report and an overview of LLNL’s compliance and monitoring results. The first three chapters provide background information: Chapter 1 is an overview of the location, meteorology, and hydrogeology of the two LLNL sites; Chapter 2 is a summary of LLNL’s compliance with environmental regulations; and Chapter 3 is a description of LLNL’s environmental programs with an emphasis on the Environmental Management System including pollution prevention. The majority of the report covers LLNL’s environmental monitoring programs and monitoring data for 2009: effluent and ambient air (Chapter 4); waters, including wastewater, storm water runoff, surface water, rain, and groundwater (Chapter 5); and terrestrial, including soil, sediment, vegetation, foodstuff, ambient radiation

Convoy Active Safety Technology - Environmental Understanding and Navigation With Use of Low Cost Sensors

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-08-01

ACTIVE SAFETY TECHNOLOGY – ENVIRONMENTAL UNDERSTANDING AND NAVIGATION WITH USE OF LOW COST SENSORS David Simon Lockheed Martin MFC, Grand Prairie, TX...Understanding and Navigation with use of low cost sensors 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 6. AUTHOR(S) David Simon ; Bernard

Advances in analytical technologies for environmental protection and public safety.

PubMed

Sadik, O A; Wanekaya, A K; Andreescu, S

2004-06-01

Due to the increased threats of chemical and biological agents of injury by terrorist organizations, a significant effort is underway to develop tools that can be used to detect and effectively combat chemical and biochemical toxins. In addition to the right mix of policies and training of medical personnel on how to recognize symptoms of biochemical warfare agents, the major success in combating terrorism still lies in the prevention, early detection and the efficient and timely response using reliable analytical technologies and powerful therapies for minimizing the effects in the event of an attack. The public and regulatory agencies expect reliable methodologies and devices for public security. Today's systems are too bulky or slow to meet the "detect-to-warn" needs for first responders such as soldiers and medical personnel. This paper presents the challenges in monitoring technologies for warfare agents and other toxins. It provides an overview of how advances in environmental analytical methodologies could be adapted to design reliable sensors for public safety and environmental surveillance. The paths to designing sensors that meet the needs of today's measurement challenges are analyzed using examples of novel sensors, autonomous cell-based toxicity monitoring, 'Lab-on-a-Chip' devices and conventional environmental analytical techniques. Finally, in order to ensure that the public and legal authorities are provided with quality data to make informed decisions, guidelines are provided for assessing data quality and quality assurance using the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US-EPA) methodologies.

Interagency Nuclear Safety Review Panel: Biomedical and Environmental Effects Subpanel report for Galileo

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Anspaugh, L.R.; Blanton, J.O.; Bollinger, L.J.

1989-10-01

This report of the Biomedical and Environmental Effects Subpanel (BEES) of the Interagency Nuclear Safety Review Panel (INSRP), for the Galileo space mission addresses the possible radiological consequences of postulated accidents that release radioactivity into the environment. This report presents estimates of the consequences and uncertainties given that the source term is released into the environment. 10 refs., 6 tabs.

Improvement of microbiological safety of sous-vide meals by gamma radiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Farkas, J.; Polyák-Fehér, K.; Andrássy, É.; Mészáros, L.

2002-03-01

Experimental batches of smoked-cured pork in stewed beans sauce were inoculated with spores of psychrotrophic Bacillus cereus, more heat and radiation resistant than spores of non-proteolytic C. botulinum. After vacuum packaging, the meals were treated with combinations of pasteurizing heat treatments and gamma irradiation of 5 kGy. Prior and after treatments, and periodically during storage at 10°C, total aerobic and total anerobic viable cell counts, and selectively, the viable cell counts of B. cereus and sulphite-reducing clostridia have been determined. The effects of the treatment order as well as addition of nisin to enhance the preservative efficiency of the physical treatments were also studied. Heat-sensitization of bacterial spores surviving irradiation occurred. The quality-friendly sous-vide cooking in combination with this medium dose gamma irradiation and/or nisin addition increased considerably the microbiological safety and the keeping quality of the meals studied. However, approx. 40% loss of thiamin content occurred as an effect of combination treatments, and adverse sensorial effects may also limit the feasible radiation doses or the usable concentrations of nisin.

The SunWise School Program Guide: A School Program that Radiates Good Ideas

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

US Environmental Protection Agency, 2003

2003-01-01

To help educators raise sun safety awareness, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has developed the SunWise School Program, a national education program for children in grades K through 8. SunWise Partner Schools sponsor classroom and schoolwide activities that raise children's awareness of stratospheric ozone depletion, UV radiation,…

Using Ionizing Radiation Detectors. Module 11. Vocational Education Training in Environmental Health Sciences.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Consumer Dynamics Inc., Rockville, MD.

This module, one of 25 on vocational education training for careers in environmental health occupations, contains self-instructional materials on using ionizing radiation detectors. Following guidelines for students and instructors and an introduction that explains what the student will learn are three lessons: (1) naming and telling the function…

Six sigma tools for a patient safety-oriented, quality-checklist driven radiation medicine department.

PubMed

Kapur, Ajay; Potters, Louis

2012-01-01

The purpose of this work was to develop and implement six sigma practices toward the enhancement of patient safety in an electronic, quality checklist-driven, multicenter, paperless radiation medicine department. A quality checklist process map (QPM), stratified into consultation through treatment-completion stages was incorporated into an oncology information systems platform. A cross-functional quality management team conducted quality-function-deployment and define-measure-analyze-improve-control (DMAIC) six sigma exercises with a focus on patient safety. QPM procedures were Pareto-sorted in order of decreasing patient safety risk with failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA). Quantitative metrics for a grouped set of highest risk procedures were established. These included procedural delays, associated standard deviations and six sigma Z scores. Baseline performance of the QPM was established over the previous year of usage. Data-driven analysis led to simplification, standardization, and refinement of the QPM with standard deviation, slip-day reduction, and Z-score enhancement goals. A no-fly policy (NFP) for patient safety was introduced at the improve-control DMAIC phase, with a process map interlock imposed on treatment initiation in the event of FMEA-identified high-risk tasks being delayed or not completed. The NFP was introduced in a pilot phase with specific stopping rules and the same metrics used for performance assessments. A custom root-cause analysis database was deployed to monitor patient safety events. Relative to the baseline period, average slip days and standard deviations for the risk-enhanced QPM procedures improved by over threefold factors in the NFP period. The Z scores improved by approximately 20%. A trend for proactive delays instead of reactive hard stops was observed with no adverse effects of the NFP. The number of computed potential no-fly delays per month dropped from 60 to 20 over a total of 520 cases. The fraction of computed

Safety Strategies in an Academic Radiation Oncology Department and Recommendations for Action

PubMed Central

Terezakis, Stephanie A.; Pronovost, Peter; Harris, Kendra; DeWeese, Theodore; Ford, Eric

2013-01-01

Background Safety initiatives in the United States continue to work on providing guidance as to how the average practitioner might make patients safer in the face of the complex process by which radiation therapy (RT), an essential treatment used in the management of many patients with cancer, is prepared and delivered. Quality control measures can uncover certain specific errors such as machine dose mis-calibration or misalignments of the patient in the radiation treatment beam. However, they are less effective at uncovering less common errors that can occur anywhere along the treatment planning and delivery process, and even when the process is functioning as intended, errors still occur. Prioritizing Risks and Implementing Risk-Reduction Strategies Activities undertaken at the radiation oncology department at the Johns Hopkins Hospital (Baltimore) include Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA), risk-reduction interventions, and voluntary error and near-miss reporting systems. A visual process map portrayed 269 RT steps occurring among four subprocesses—including consult, simulation, treatment planning, and treatment delivery. Two FMEAs revealed 127 and 159 possible failure modes, respectively. Risk-reduction interventions for 15 “top-ranked” failure modes were implemented. Since the error and near-miss reporting system’s implementation in the department in 2007, 253 events have been logged. However, the system may be insufficient for radiation oncology, for which a greater level of practice-specific information is required to fully understand each event. Conclusions The “basic science” of radiation treatment has received considerable support and attention in developing novel therapies to benefit patients. The time has come to apply the same focus and resources to ensuring that patients safely receive the maximal benefits possible. PMID:21819027

The advantages of creating a positive radiation safety culture in the higher education and research sectors.

PubMed

Coldwell, T; Cole, P; Edwards, C; Makepeace, J; Murdock, C; Odams, H; Whitcher, R; Willis, S; Yates, L

2015-12-01

The safety culture of any organisation plays a critical role in setting the tone for both effective delivery of service and high standards of performance. By embedding safety at a cultural level, organisations are able to influence the attitudes and behaviours of stakeholders. To achieve this requires the ongoing commitment of heads of organisations and also individuals to prioritise safety no less than other competing goals (e.g. in universities, recruitment and retention are key) to ensure the protection of both people and the environment. The concept of culture is the same whatever the sector, e.g. medical, nuclear, industry, education, and research, but the higher education and research sectors within the UK are a unique challenge in developing a strong safety culture. This report provides an overview of the challenges presented by the sector, the current status of radiation protection culture, case studies to demonstrate good and bad practice in the sector and the practical methods to influence change.

Portable Bio/Chemosensoristic Devices: Innovative Systems for Environmental Health and Food Safety Diagnostics.

PubMed

Dragone, Roberto; Grasso, Gerardo; Muccini, Michele; Toffanin, Stefano

2017-01-01

This mini-review covers the newly developed biosensoristic and chemosensoristic devices described in recent literature for detection of contaminants in both environmental and food real matrices. Current needs in environmental and food surveillance of contaminants require new simplified, sensitive systems, which are portable and allow for rapid and on-site monitoring and diagnostics. Here, we focus on optical and electrochemical bio/chemosensoristic devices as promising tools with interesting analytical features that can be potentially exploited for innovative on-site and real-time applications for diagnostics and monitoring of environmental and food matrices (e.g., agricultural waters and milk). In near future, suitably developed and implemented bio/chemosensoristic devices will be a new and modern technological solution for the identification of new quality and safety marker indexes as well as for a more proper and complete characterization of abovementioned environmental and food matrices. Integrated bio/chemosensoristic devices can also allow an "holistic approach" that may prove to be more suitable for diagnostics of environmental and food real matrices, where the copresence of more bioactive substances is frequent. Therefore, this approach can be focused on the determination of net effect (mixture effect) of bioactive substances present in real matrices.

Provisional standards of radiation safety during flights

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1977-01-01

Radiation effects during space flights are discussed in the context of the sources and dangers of such radiation and the radiobiological prerequisites for establishing safe levels of radiation dosage. Standard safe levels of radiation during space flight are established.

Collaboration and Commitment to Sealed Source Safety, Security, and Disposition - 13627

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jennison, Meaghan; Martin, David W.

2013-07-01

EnergySolutions, the Division of Radiation Control at the Utah Department of Environmental Quality (UDEQ), the Conference of Radiation Control Program Directors (CRCPD), and the Department of Energy's Global Threat Reduction Initiative (GTRI) are collaborating on a truly innovative effort to expand opportunities for cost-effective sealed source disposal. These entities have developed a first-of-its-kind initiative to dispose of certain sealed sources at the EnergySolutions disposal facility near Clive, Utah, which normally cannot accept sealed sources of any type. This creative and collaborative effort to improve radiation health, safety, and security exemplifies the spirit and commitment represented by the Richard S. Hodes,more » M.D. Honor Lecture Award, which is presented annually at the Waste Management Symposia by the Southeast Compact Commission to encourage environmental professionals and political leaders to develop innovative approaches to waste management in the United States. The participants in the collaborative initiative are honored to receive special recognition for their efforts thus far. They also recognize that the hard work remains to be done. (authors)« less

The influence of environmental conditions on safety management in hospitals: a qualitative study.

PubMed

Alingh, Carien W; van Wijngaarden, Jeroen D H; Huijsman, Robbert; Paauwe, Jaap

2018-05-02

Hospitals are confronted with increasing safety demands from a diverse set of stakeholders, including governmental organisations, professional associations, health insurance companies, patient associations and the media. However, little is known about the effects of these institutional and competitive pressures on hospital safety management. Previous research has shown that organisations generally shape their safety management approach along the lines of control- or commitment-based management. Using a heuristic framework, based on the contextually-based human resource theory, we analysed how environmental pressures affect the safety management approach used by hospitals. A qualitative study was conducted into hospital care in the Netherlands. Five hospitals were selected for participation, based on organisational characteristics as well as variation in their reputation for patient safety. We interviewed hospital managers and staff with a central role in safety management. A total of 43 semi-structured interviews were conducted with 48 respondents. The heuristic framework was used as an initial model for analysing the data, though new codes emerged from the data as well. In order to ensure safe care delivery, institutional and competitive stakeholders often impose detailed safety requirements, strong forces for compliance and growing demands for accountability. As a consequence, hospitals experience a decrease in the room to manoeuvre. Hence, organisations increasingly choose a control-based management approach to make sure that safety demands are met. In contrast, in case of more abstract safety demands and an organisational culture which favours patient safety, hospitals generally experience more leeway. This often results in a stronger focus on commitment-based management. Institutional and competitive conditions as well as strategic choices that hospitals make have resulted in various combinations of control- and commitment-based safety management. A balanced

Pediatric 131I-MIBG Therapy for Neuroblastoma: Whole-Body 131I-MIBG Clearance, Radiation Doses to Patients, Family Caregivers, Medical Staff, and Radiation Safety Measures.

PubMed

Willegaignon, José; Crema, Karin Paola; Oliveira, Nathaliê Canhameiro; Pelissoni, Rogério Alexandre; Coura-Filho, George Barberio; Sapienza, Marcelo Tatit; Buchpiguel, Carlos Alberto

2018-06-19

I-metaiodobenzylguanidine (I-MIBG) has been used in the diagnosis and therapy of neuroblastoma in adult and pediatric patients for many years. In this study, we evaluated whole-body I-MIBG clearance and radiation doses received by patients, family caregivers, and medical staff to establish appropriate radiation safety measures to be used in therapy applications. Research was focused on 23 children and adolescents with metastatic neuroblastoma, with ages ranging from 1.8 to 13 years, being treated with I-MIBG. Based on measured external dose rates from patients, dosimetric data to patients, family members, and others were calculated. The mean ± SD I-MIBG activity administered was 8.55 ± 1.69 GBq. Percent whole-body retention rates of I-MIBG at 24, 48, and 72 hours after administration were 48% ± 7%, 23% ± 7%, and 12% ± 6%, with a whole-body I-MIBG effective half-life of 23 ± 5 hours for all patients. The mean doses for patients were 0.234 ± 0.096 mGy·MBq to red-marrow and 0.251 ± 0.101 mGy·MBq to whole body. The maximum potential radiation doses transmitted by patients to others at 1.0 m was estimated to be 11.9 ± 3.4 mSv, with 97% of this dose occurring over 120 hours after therapy administration. Measured mean dose received by the 22 family caregivers was 1.88 ± 1.85 mSv, and that received by the 19 pediatric physicians was 43 ± 51 μSv. In this study, we evaluated the whole-body clearance of I-MIBG in 23 pediatric patients, and the radiation doses received by family caregivers and medical staff during these therapy procedures, thus facilitating the establishment of radiation safety measures to be applied in pediatric therapy.

Radiation Impact on Pharmaceutical Stability: Retrospective Data Review

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Daniels, V. R.; Bayuse, T. M.; McGuire, K. M.; Antonsen, E. L.; Putcha, L.

2017-01-01

Historical studies performed by the JSC Pharmacotherapeutics Discipline suggest that exposure to spaceflight conditions may compromise the safety and efficacy of some medications. Follow-on studies have revealed that affected medications demonstrate reductions in active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) concentrations and altered release characteristics. It was hypothesized that the changes in API potency and release were from the medication's exposure to the harsh environmental conditions of spaceflight. Subsequent review of the spaceflight environmental control records from the time of these studies indicated that temperature and humidity levels aboard all spacecraft remained within United States Pharmacopeia (USP) recommended ranges to maintain optimal pharmaceutical stability. Therefore, space radiation was presumed to be the source of observed drug degradation. The Pharmacotherapeutics Discipline conducted a ground analog radiation experiment in 2006 at the NASA Space Radiation Laboratory (NSRL) at Brookhaven to validate this theory and to characterize the effects of high-energy radioactive particles on pharmaceutical stability. These data were never published. Recently, the Exploration Medical Capability (ExMC) Element finalized a research plan (RP) aimed at providing a safe and effective medication formulary for exploration spaceflight. As ExMC begins to design new flight and ground analog radiation studies, further analysis of the 2006 NSRL study data is essential for the characterization of the impact of radiation on medication potency and efficacy in the exploration spaceflight environment.

Clean Air Program : summary assessment of the safety, health, environmental and system risks of alternative fuel

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1995-08-01

This is a handbook of safety, health, and the environmental issues of the production, bulk transport, and bult storage of alternative fuels with emphasis on transport and storage. Fuels included are: 1) compressed natural gas, 2) liquefied natural ga...

The 1997 JANNAF Propellant Development and Characterization Subcommittee and Safety and Environmental Protection Subcommittee Joint Meeting

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cocchiaro, James E. (Editor); Filliben, Jeff D. (Editor); Watson, Anne H. (Editor)

1997-01-01

In the Propellant Development and Characterization Subcommittee (PDCS) meeting, topics included: the analysis, characterization, and processing of propellants and propellant ingredients; chemical reactivity; liquid propellants; test methods; rheology; surveillance and aging; and process engineering. In the Safety and Environmental Protection Subcommittee (S&EPS) meeting, topics covered included: hydrazine propellant vapor detection methods; toxicity of propellants and propellants; explosives safety; atmospheric modeling and risk assessment of toxic releases; reclamation, disposal, and demilitarization methods; and remediation of explosives or propellant contaminated sites.

How technology megatrends are shaping the future of safety, health, and environmental monitoring.

PubMed

Brauch, Rob

2015-05-01

The Safety, Health and Environmental professional will soon be able to choose from a wider number of solutions that incorporate the latest developments in electronics, cellular and wireless communication, sensors, and software, all of which are driven by and are essential components of three "megatrends"--IoT, Big Data, and Social Networking. This will fundamentally alter the way in which we go about collecting information for risk assessment, exposure assessment, and thus how we implement better and more cost-effective solutions for protecting workers' lives and well-being. The more we become aware of these trends and developments, the better we will be able to integrate them into our sampling strategies and analysis methods, which creates greater value from our daily work as safety and health professionals.

Assessment of Environmental Radiation Impacts Related to Granites, Dikes and Stream Sediments of Sharm El-Sheikh Area, South Sinai, Egypt

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heikal, M.; Ghoneim, M.; El Galy, M.; El Dousky, B.; Sherif, M.

2012-04-01

Sharm El Sheikh area represents one of the most touristic resort allover the world. This area is surrounded by such exposures of Precambrian granites and dike swarms as well as Miocene-Pliocene sedimentary rocks that imply more or less radionuclides U, Th, Ra and K. The radioactivity imposed within the Precambrian rocks has carefully focalized on both field and lab using up-to-date equipments and instruments. In order to evaluate the radiological hazard of the natural radioactivity, the radium equivalent activity (Raeq), gamma activity concentration index (Iγ), external hazard index (Hex) internal hazard index (Hin) and annual effective dose rate (AEDR) have been calculated and compared with the internationally approved values. The permissible values for each index revealed that all exposures of granite and mafic dikes have values below safety limits of radiation. The stream sediments within the major wadis are also safe and available for the population and agricultural purposes and/or as construction materials. On the other hand, the felsic dikes that occur far from Sharm El Sheikh town exceed the permissible radiation limits indicating their environmental hazards impacts. It was recommended to restrict land use in a buffer zone adjacent to the felsic dikes of very limited distributions. A planned major town extension of Sharm El Sheikh area has to be stopped around and within these dikes sites, but alternative future residential areas could be delineated to the northwest of the town. An intensive coordination with the Ministry of Environmental Affairs of Egypt, the town planners and other affected authorities guarantees must take into considerations the outstanding integration of the recommendations of our study into future town and regional land use planning.

Training and qualification of health and safety technicians at a national laboratory

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Egbert, W.F.; Trinoskey, P.A.

1994-10-01

Over the last 30 years, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) has successfully implemented the concept of a multi-disciplined technician. LLNL Health and Safety Technicians have responsibilities in industrial hygiene, industrial safety, health physics, as well as fire, explosive, and criticality safety. One of the major benefits to this approach is the cost-effective use of workers who display an ownership of health and safety issues which is sometimes lacking when responsibilities are divided. Although LLNL has always promoted the concept of a multi-discipline technician, this concept is gaining interest within the Department of Energy (DOE) community. In November 1992, individuals frommore » Oak Ridge Institute of Science and Education (ORISE) and RUST Geotech, joined by LLNL established a committee to address the issues of Health and Safety Technicians. In 1993, the DOE Office of Environmental, Safety and Health, in response to the Defense Nuclear Facility Safety Board Recommendation 91-6, stated DOE projects, particularly environmental restoration, typically present hazards other than radiation such as chemicals, explosives, complex construction activities, etc., which require additional expertise by Radiological Control Technicians. They followed with a commitment that a training guide would be issued. The trend in the last two decades has been toward greater specialization in the areas of health and safety. In contrast, the LLNL has moved toward a generalist approach integrating the once separate functions of the industrial hygiene and health physics technician into one function.« less

Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) Characteristics Associated with Violence and Safety in Middle Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vagi, Kevin J.; Stevens, Mark R.; Simon, Thomas R.; Basile, Kathleen C.; Carter, Sherry P.; Carter, Stanley L.

2018-01-01

Background: This study used a new Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) assessment tool to test the associations between physical attributes of schools and violence-related behaviors and perceptions of students. Methods: Data were collected from 4717 students from 50 middle schools. Student perceptions of risk and safety, and…

Method for detecting and distinguishing between specific types of environmental radiation using a high pressure ionization chamber with pulse-mode readout

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Degtiarenko, Pavel V.

An environmental radiation detector for detecting and distinguishing between all types of environmental radiation, including photons, charged particles, and neutrons. A large volume high pressure ionization chamber (HPIC) includes BF.sub.3 gas at a specific concentration to render the radiation detector sensitive to the reactions of neutron capture in Boron-10 isotope. A pulse-mode readout is connected to the ionization chamber capable of measuring both the height and the width of the pulse. The heavy charged products of the neutron capture reaction deposit significant characteristic energy of the reaction in the immediate vicinity of the reaction in the gas, producing a signalmore » with a pulse height proportional to the reaction energy, and a narrow pulse width corresponding to the essentially pointlike energy deposition in the gas. Readout of the pulse height and the pulse width parameters of the signals enables distinguishing between the different types of environmental radiation, such as gamma (x-rays), cosmic muons, and neutrons.« less

Monitoring Space Radiation Hazards with the Responsive Environmental Assessment Commercially Hosted (REACH) Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mazur, J. E.; Guild, T. B.; Crain, W.; Crain, S.; Holker, D.; Quintana, S.; O'Brien, T. P., III; Kelly, M. A.; Barnes, R. J.; Sotirelis, T.

2017-12-01

The Responsive Environmental Assessment Commercial Hosting (REACH) project uses radiation dosimeters on a commercial satellite constellation in low Earth orbit to provide unprecedented spatial and time sampling of space weather radiation hazards. The spatial and time scales of natural space radiation environments coupled with constraints for the hosting accommodation drove the instrumentation requirements and the plan for the final orbital constellation. The project has delivered a total of thirty two radiation dosimeter instruments for launch with each instrument containing two dosimeters with different passive shielding and electronic thresholds to address proton-induced single-event effects, vehicle charging, and total ionizing dose. There are two REACH instruments currently operating with four more planned for launch by the time of the 2017 meeting. Our aim is to field a long-lived system of highly-capable radiation detectors to monitor the hazards of single-event effects, total ionizing dose, and spacecraft charging with maximized spatial coverage and with minimal time latency. We combined a robust detection technology with a commercial satellite hosting to produce a new demonstration for satellite situational awareness and for other engineering and science applications.

Long-Term Marine Traffic Monitoring for Environmental Safety in the Aegean Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giannakopoulos, T.; Gyftakis, S.; Charou, E.; Perantonis, S.; Nivolianitou, Z.; Koromila, I.; Makrygiorgos, A.

2015-04-01

The Aegean Sea is characterized by an extremely high marine safety risk, mainly due to the significant increase of the traffic of tankers from and to the Black Sea that pass through narrow straits formed by the 1600 Greek islands. Reducing the risk of a ship accident is therefore vital to all socio-economic and environmental sectors. This paper presents an online long-term marine traffic monitoring work-flow that focuses on extracting aggregated vessel risks using spatiotemporal analysis of multilayer information: vessel trajectories, vessel data, meteorological data, bathymetric / hydrographic data as well as information regarding environmentally important areas (e.g. protected high-risk areas, etc.). A web interface that enables user-friendly spatiotemporal queries is implemented at the frontend, while a series of data mining functionalities extracts aggregated statistics regarding: (a) marine risks and accident probabilities for particular areas (b) trajectories clustering information (c) general marine statistics (cargo types, etc.) and (d) correlation between spatial environmental importance and marine traffic risk. Towards this end, a set of data clustering and probabilistic graphical modelling techniques has been adopted.

Environmental safety review of methoprene and bacterially-derived pesticides commonly used for sustained mosquito control.

PubMed

Lawler, Sharon P

2017-05-01

Some pesticides are applied directly to aquatic systems to reduce numbers of mosquito larvae (larvicides) and thereby reduce transmission of pathogens that mosquitoes vector to humans and wildlife. Sustained, environmentally-safe control of larval mosquitoes is particularly needed for highly productive waters (e.g., catchment basins, water treatment facilities, septic systems), but also for other habitats to maintain control and reduce inspection costs. Common biorational pesticides include the insect juvenile hormone mimic methoprene and pesticides derived from the bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis, Lysinibacillus sphaericus and Saccharopolyspora spinosa (spinosad). Health agencies, the public and environmental groups have especially debated the use of methoprene because some studies have shown toxic effects on non-target organisms. However, many studies have demonstrated its apparent environmental safety. This review critically evaluates studies pertinent to the environmental safety of using methoprene to control mosquito larvae, and provides concise assessments of the bacterial larvicides that provide sustained control of mosquitoes. The review first outlines the ecological and health effects of mosquitoes, and distinguishes between laboratory toxicity and environmental effects. The article then interprets non-target toxicity findings in light of measured environmental concentrations of methoprene (as used in mosquito control) and field studies of its non-target effects. The final section evaluates information on newer formulations of bacterially-derived pesticides for sustained mosquito control. Results show that realized environmental concentrations of methoprene were usually 2-5µg/kg (range 2-45µg/kg) and that its motility is limited. These levels were not toxic to the vast majority of vertebrates and invertebrates tested in laboratories, except for a few species of zooplankton, larval stages of some other crustaceans, and small Diptera. Studies

Materials-related issues in the safety and licensing of nuclear fusion facilities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taylor, N.; Merrill, B.; Cadwallader, L.; Di Pace, L.; El-Guebaly, L.; Humrickhouse, P.; Panayotov, D.; Pinna, T.; Porfiri, M.-T.; Reyes, S.; Shimada, M.; Willms, S.

2017-09-01

Fusion power holds the promise of electricity production with a high degree of safety and low environmental impact. Favourable characteristics of fusion as an energy source provide the potential for this very good safety and environmental performance. But to fully realize the potential, attention must be paid in the design of a demonstration fusion power plant (DEMO) or a commercial power plant to minimize the radiological hazards. These hazards arise principally from the inventory of tritium and from materials that become activated by neutrons from the plasma. The confinement of these radioactive substances, and prevention of radiation exposure, are the primary goals of the safety approach for fusion, in order to minimize the potential for harm to personnel, the public, and the environment. The safety functions that are implemented in the design to achieve these goals are dependent on the performance of a range of materials. Degradation of the properties of materials can lead to challenges to key safety functions such as confinement. In this paper the principal types of material that have some role in safety are recalled. These either represent a potential source of hazard or contribute to the amelioration of hazards; in each case the related issues are reviewed. The resolution of these issues lead, in some instances, to requirements on materials specifications or to limits on their performance.

Tracking Human Adenovirus Inactivation by Gamma Radiation under Different Environmental Conditions

PubMed Central

Pimenta, Andreia I.; Guerreiro, Duarte; Madureira, Joana; Margaça, Fernanda M. A.

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT Adenovirus is the most prevalent enteric virus in waters worldwide due to its environmental stability, which leads to public health concerns. Mitigation strategies are therefore required. The aim of this study was to assess the inactivation of human adenovirus type 5 (HAdV-5) by gamma radiation in aqueous environments. Various substrates with different organic loads, including domestic wastewater, were inoculated with HAdV-5 either individually or in a viral pool (with murine norovirus type 1 [MNV-1]) and were irradiated in a Cobalt-60 irradiator at several gamma radiation doses (0.9 to 10.8 kGy). The infectivity of viral particles, before and after irradiation, was tested by plaque assay using A549 cells. D10 values (dose required to inactivate 90% of a population or the dose of irradiation needed to produce a 1 log10 reduction in the population) were estimated for each substrate based on virus infectivity inactivation exponential kinetics. The capability of two detection methods, nested PCR and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), to track inactivated viral particles was also assessed. After irradiation at 3.5 kGy, a reduction of the HAdV-5 titer of 4 log PFU/ml on substrates with lower organic loads was obtained, but in highly organic matrixes, the virus titer reduction was only 1 log PFU/ml. The D10 values of HAdV-5 in high organic substrates were significantly higher than in water suspensions. The obtained results point out some discrepancies between nested PCR, ELISA, and plaque assay on the assessments of HAdV-5 inactivation. These results suggest that the inactivation of HAdV-5 by gamma radiation, in aqueous environments, is significantly affected by substrate composition. This study highlights the virucidal potential of gamma radiation that may be used as a disinfection treatment for sustainable water supplies. IMPORTANCE Human adenovirus (HAdV) is the most prevalent of the enteric viruses in environmental waters worldwide. The purposes of

Complying with Executive Order 13148 using the Enterprise Environmental Safety And Occupational Health Management Information System.

PubMed

McFarland, Michael J; Nelson, Tim M; Rasmussen, Steve L; Palmer, Glenn R; Olivas, Arthur C

2005-03-01

All U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) facilities are required under Executive Order (EO) 13148, "Greening the Government through Leadership in Environmental Management," to establish quality-based environmental management systems (EMSs) that support environmental decision-making and verification of continuous environmental improvement by December 31, 2005. Compliance with EO 13148 as well as other federal, state, and local environmental regulations places a significant information management burden on DoD facilities. Cost-effective management of environmental data compels DoD facilities to establish robust database systems that not only address the complex and multifaceted environmental monitoring, record-keeping, and reporting requirements demanded by these rules but enable environmental management decision-makers to gauge improvements in environmental performance. The Enterprise Environmental Safety and Occupational Health Management Information System (EESOH-MIS) is a new electronic database developed by the U.S. Air Force to manage both the data needs associated with regulatory compliance programs across its facilities as well as the non-regulatory environmental information that supports installation business practices. The U.S. Air Force, which has adopted the Plan-Do-Check-Act methodology as the EMS standard that it will employ to address EO 13148 requirements.

Microbial Activity Response to Solar Radiation across Contrasting Environmental Conditions in Salar de Huasco, Northern Chilean Altiplano.

PubMed

Hernández, Klaudia L; Yannicelli, Beatriz; Olsen, Lasse M; Dorador, Cristina; Menschel, Eduardo J; Molina, Verónica; Remonsellez, Francisco; Hengst, Martha B; Jeffrey, Wade H

2016-01-01

In high altitude environments, extreme levels of solar radiation and important differences of ionic concentrations over narrow spatial scales may modulate microbial activity. In Salar de Huasco, a high-altitude wetland in the Andean mountains, the high diversity of microbial communities has been characterized and associated with strong environmental variability. Communities that differed in light history and environmental conditions, such as nutrient concentrations and salinity from different spatial locations, were assessed for bacterial secondary production (BSP, 3 H-leucine incorporation) response from short-term exposures to solar radiation. We sampled during austral spring seven stations categorized as: (a) source stations, with recently emerged groundwater (no-previous solar exposure); (b) stream running water stations; (c) stations connected to source waters but far downstream from source points; and (d) isolated ponds disconnected from ground sources or streams with a longer isolation and solar exposure history. Very high values of 0.25 μE m -2 s -1 , 72 W m -2 and 12 W m -2 were measured for PAR, UVA, and UVB incident solar radiation, respectively. The environmental factors measured formed two groups of stations reflected by principal component analyses (near to groundwater sources and isolated systems) where isolated ponds had the highest BSP and microbial abundance (35 microalgae taxa, picoeukaryotes, nanoflagellates, and bacteria) plus higher salinities and PO 4 3- concentrations. BSP short-term response (4 h) to solar radiation was measured by 3 H-leucine incorporation under four different solar conditions: full sun, no UVB, PAR, and dark. Microbial communities established in waters with the longest surface exposure (e.g., isolated ponds) had the lowest BSP response to solar radiation treatments, and thus were likely best adapted to solar radiation exposure contrary to ground source waters. These results support our light history (solar exposure

Microbial Activity Response to Solar Radiation across Contrasting Environmental Conditions in Salar de Huasco, Northern Chilean Altiplano

PubMed Central

Hernández, Klaudia L.; Yannicelli, Beatriz; Olsen, Lasse M.; Dorador, Cristina; Menschel, Eduardo J.; Molina, Verónica; Remonsellez, Francisco; Hengst, Martha B.; Jeffrey, Wade H.

2016-01-01

In high altitude environments, extreme levels of solar radiation and important differences of ionic concentrations over narrow spatial scales may modulate microbial activity. In Salar de Huasco, a high-altitude wetland in the Andean mountains, the high diversity of microbial communities has been characterized and associated with strong environmental variability. Communities that differed in light history and environmental conditions, such as nutrient concentrations and salinity from different spatial locations, were assessed for bacterial secondary production (BSP, 3H-leucine incorporation) response from short-term exposures to solar radiation. We sampled during austral spring seven stations categorized as: (a) source stations, with recently emerged groundwater (no-previous solar exposure); (b) stream running water stations; (c) stations connected to source waters but far downstream from source points; and (d) isolated ponds disconnected from ground sources or streams with a longer isolation and solar exposure history. Very high values of 0.25 μE m-2 s-1, 72 W m-2 and 12 W m-2 were measured for PAR, UVA, and UVB incident solar radiation, respectively. The environmental factors measured formed two groups of stations reflected by principal component analyses (near to groundwater sources and isolated systems) where isolated ponds had the highest BSP and microbial abundance (35 microalgae taxa, picoeukaryotes, nanoflagellates, and bacteria) plus higher salinities and PO43- concentrations. BSP short-term response (4 h) to solar radiation was measured by 3H-leucine incorporation under four different solar conditions: full sun, no UVB, PAR, and dark. Microbial communities established in waters with the longest surface exposure (e.g., isolated ponds) had the lowest BSP response to solar radiation treatments, and thus were likely best adapted to solar radiation exposure contrary to ground source waters. These results support our light history (solar exposure) hypothesis

New technologies in radiation therapy: ensuring patient safety, radiation safety and regulatory issues in radiation oncology.

PubMed

Amols, Howard I

2008-11-01

New technologies such as intensity modulated and image guided radiation therapy, computer controlled linear accelerators, record and verify systems, electronic charts, and digital imaging have revolutionized radiation therapy over the past 10-15 y. Quality assurance (QA) as historically practiced and as recommended in reports such as American Association of Physicists in Medicine Task Groups 40 and 53 needs to be updated to address the increasing complexity and computerization of radiotherapy equipment, and the increased quantity of data defining a treatment plan and treatment delivery. While new technology has reduced the probability of many types of medical events, seeing new types of errors caused by improper use of new technology, communication failures between computers, corrupted or erroneous computer data files, and "software bugs" are now being seen. The increased use of computed tomography, magnetic resonance, and positron emission tomography imaging has become routine for many types of radiotherapy treatment planning, and QA for imaging modalities is beyond the expertise of most radiotherapy physicists. Errors in radiotherapy rarely result solely from hardware failures. More commonly they are a combination of computer and human errors. The increased use of radiosurgery, hypofractionation, more complex intensity modulated treatment plans, image guided radiation therapy, and increasing financial pressures to treat more patients in less time will continue to fuel this reliance on high technology and complex computer software. Clinical practitioners and regulatory agencies are beginning to realize that QA for new technologies is a major challenge and poses dangers different in nature than what are historically familiar.

Assessment of research and development (R and D) needs in LPG safety and environmental control

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

DeSteese, J.G.

1982-05-01

The report characterizes the LPG industry covering all operations from production to end use, reviews current knowledge of LPG release phenomenology, summarizes the status of current LPG release prevention and control methodology, and identifies any remaining safety and environmental problems and recommends R and D strategies that may mitigate these problems. (ACR)

Portable Bio/Chemosensoristic Devices: Innovative Systems for Environmental Health and Food Safety Diagnostics

PubMed Central

Dragone, Roberto; Grasso, Gerardo; Muccini, Michele; Toffanin, Stefano

2017-01-01

This mini-review covers the newly developed biosensoristic and chemosensoristic devices described in recent literature for detection of contaminants in both environmental and food real matrices. Current needs in environmental and food surveillance of contaminants require new simplified, sensitive systems, which are portable and allow for rapid and on-site monitoring and diagnostics. Here, we focus on optical and electrochemical bio/chemosensoristic devices as promising tools with interesting analytical features that can be potentially exploited for innovative on-site and real-time applications for diagnostics and monitoring of environmental and food matrices (e.g., agricultural waters and milk). In near future, suitably developed and implemented bio/chemosensoristic devices will be a new and modern technological solution for the identification of new quality and safety marker indexes as well as for a more proper and complete characterization of abovementioned environmental and food matrices. Integrated bio/chemosensoristic devices can also allow an “holistic approach” that may prove to be more suitable for diagnostics of environmental and food real matrices, where the copresence of more bioactive substances is frequent. Therefore, this approach can be focused on the determination of net effect (mixture effect) of bioactive substances present in real matrices. PMID:28529937

An improved maximum permissible exposure meter for safety assessments of laser radiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Corder, D. A.; Evans, D. R.; Tyrer, J. R.

1997-12-01

Current interest in laser radiation safety requires demonstration that a laser system has been designed to prevent exposure to levels of laser radiation exceeding the Maximum Permissible Exposure. In some simple systems it is possible to prove this by calculation, but in most cases it is preferable to confirm calculated results with a measurement. This measurement may be made with commercially available equipment, but there are limitations with this approach. A custom designed instrument is presented in which the full range of measurement issues have been addressed. Important features of the instrument are the design and optimisation of detector heads for the measurement task, and consideration of user interface requirements. Three designs for detector head are presented, these cover the majority of common laser types. Detector heads are designed to optimise the performance of relatively low cost detector elements for this measurement task. The three detector head designs are suitable for interfacing to photodiodes, low power thermopiles and pyroelectric detectors. Design of the user interface was an important aspect of the work. A user interface which is designed for the specific application minimises the risk of user error or misinterpretation of the measurement results. A palmtop computer was used to provide an advanced user interface. User requirements were considered in order that the final implement was well matched to the task of laser radiation hazard audits.

Analysis of radiation safety for Small Modular Reactor (SMR) on PWR-100 MWe type

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Udiyani, P. M.; Husnayani, I.; Deswandri; Sunaryo, G. R.

2018-02-01

Indonesia as an archipelago country, including big, medium and small islands is suitable to construction of Small Medium/Modular reactors. Preliminary technology assessment on various SMR has been started, indeed the SMR is grouped into Light Water Reactor, Gas Cooled Reactor, and Solid Cooled Reactor and from its site it is group into Land Based reactor and Water Based Reactor. Fukushima accident made people doubt about the safety of Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), which impact on the public perception of the safety of nuclear power plants. The paper will describe the assessment of safety and radiation consequences on site for normal operation and Design Basis Accident postulation of SMR based on PWR-100 MWe in Bangka Island. Consequences of radiation for normal operation simulated for 3 units SMR. The source term was generated from an inventory by using ORIGEN-2 software and the consequence of routine calculated by PC-Cream and accident by PC Cosyma. The adopted methodology used was based on site-specific meteorological and spatial data. According to calculation by PC-CREAM 08 computer code, the highest individual dose in site area for adults is 5.34E-02 mSv/y in ESE direction within 1 km distance from stack. The result of calculation is that doses on public for normal operation below 1mSv/y. The calculation result from PC Cosyma, the highest individual dose is 1.92.E+00 mSv in ESE direction within 1km distance from stack. The total collective dose (all pathway) is 3.39E-01 manSv, with dominant supporting from cloud pathway. Results show that there are no evacuation countermeasure will be taken based on the regulation of emergency.

OFFSITE ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING REPORT. RADIATION MONITORING AROUND UNITED STATES NUCLEAR TEST AREAS, CALENDAR YEAR 1983

EPA Science Inventory

This report covers the routine radiation monitoring activities conducted by the Environmental Monitoring Systems Laboratory-Las Vegas in areas which may be affected by nuclear testing programs of the Department of Energy. This monitoring is conducted to document compliance with s...

ENVIRONMENTAL RADIATION MONITORING IN THE CHERNOBYL EXCLUSION ZONE - HISTORY AND RESULTS 25 YEARS AFTER

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Farfan, E.; Jannik, T.

2011-10-01

This article describes results of the radiation environmental monitoring performed in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone (ChEZ) during the period following the 1986 Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant accident. This article presents a brief overview of five comprehensive reports generated under Contract No. DE-AC09-96SR18500 (Washington Savannah River Company LLC, Subcontract No. AC55559N, SOW No. ON8778) and summarizes characteristics of the ChEZ and its post-accident status and the history of development of the radiation monitoring research in the ChEZ is described. This article addresses characteristics of the radiation monitoring in the ChEZ, its major goals and objectives, and changes of these goals andmore » objectives in the course of time, depending on the tasks associated with the phase of mitigation of the ChNPP accident consequences. The results of the radiation monitoring in the ChEZ during the last 25 years are also provided.« less

Architecting the Safety Assessment of Large-scale Systems Integration

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-12-01

Electromagnetic Radiation to Ordnance ( HERO )  Hazards of Electromagnetic Radiation to Fuel (HERF) The main reason that this particular safety study... radiation , high voltage electric shocks and explosives safety. 1. Radiation Hazards (RADHAZ) RADHAZ describes the hazards of electromagnetic radiation ...OP3565/NAVAIR 16-1-529 [19 and 20], these hazards are segregated as follows:  Hazards of Electromagnetic

Safety and Efficacy of Stereotactic Ablative Radiation Therapy for Renal Cell Carcinoma Extracranial Metastases

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, Chiachien Jake; Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas; Christie, Alana

Purpose: Renal cell carcinoma is refractory to conventional radiation therapy but responds to higher doses per fraction. However, the dosimetric data and clinical factors affecting local control (LC) are largely unknown. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of stereotactic ablative radiation therapy (SAbR) for extracranial renal cell carcinoma metastases. Methods and Materials: We reviewed 175 metastatic lesions from 84 patients treated with SAbR between 2005 and 2015. LC and toxicity after SAbR were assessed with Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) version 1.1 and Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) version 4.0. Predictors of local failure weremore » analyzed with χ{sup 2}, Kaplan-Meier, and log-rank tests. Results: In most cases (74%), SAbR was delivered with total doses of 40 to 60 Gy, 30 to 54 Gy, and 20 to 40 Gy in 5 fractions, 3 fractions, and a single fraction, respectively. The median biologically effective dose (BED) using the universal survival model was 134.5 Gy. The 1-year LC rate after SAbR was 91.2% (95% confidence interval, 84.9%-95.0%; median follow-up, 16.7 months). Local failures were associated with prior radiation therapy (hazard ratio [HR], 10.49; P<.0001), palliative-intent radiation therapy (HR, 4.63; P=.0189), spinal location (HR, 5.36; P=.0041), previous systemic therapy status (0-1 vs >1; HR, 3.52; P=.0217), and BED <115 Gy (HR, 3.45; P=.0254). Dose received by 99% of the target volume was the strongest dosimetric predictor for LC. Upon multivariate analysis, dose received by 99% of the target volume greater than BED of 98.7 Gy and systemic therapy status remained significant (HR, 0.12 and 3.64, with P=.0014 and P=.0472, respectively). Acute and late grade 3 toxicities attributed to SAbR were observed in 3 patients (1.7%) and 5 patients (2.9%), respectively. Conclusions: SAbR demonstrated excellent LC of metastatic renal cell carcinoma with a favorable safety profile when an adequate

78 FR 49735 - Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Dam Safety Study, Lake Lewisville...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-15

... determine appropriate permanent methods for correcting potential problems, interim risk reduction measures... Environmental Impact Statement for Dam Safety Study, Lake Lewisville Dam, Elm Fork Trinity River, Denton County... primary purposes of the project are flood risk management, [[Page 49736

Oak Ridge Reservation Annual Site Environmental Report, 2003

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hughes, JF

2004-08-24

This document is prepared annually to summarize environmental activities, primarily environmental-monitoring activities, on the ORR and within the ORR surroundings. The document fulfills the requirement of U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Order 231.1, ''Environment, Safety and Health Reporting,'' for an annual summary of environmental data to characterize environmental performance. The environmental monitoring criteria are described in DOE Order 450.1, ''Environmental Protection Program''. The results summarized in this report are based on data collected prior to and through 2003. This report is not intended to provide the results of all sampling on the ORR. Additional data collected for other site andmore » regulatory purposes, such as environmental restoration remedial investigation reports, waste management characterization sampling data, and environmental permit compliance data, are presented in other documents that have been prepared in accordance with applicable DOE guidance and/or laws. Corrections to the report for the previous year are found in Appendix A. Environmental monitoring on the ORR consists primarily of two major activities: effluent monitoring and environmental surveillance. Effluent monitoring involves the collection and analysis of samples or measurements of liquid and gaseous effluents at the point of release to the environment; these measurements allow the quantification and official reporting of contaminants, assessment of radiation and chemical exposures to the public, and demonstration of compliance with applicable standards and permit requirements. Environmental surveillance consists of the collection and analysis of environmental samples from the site and its environs; these activities provide direct measurement of contaminants in air, water, groundwater, soil, foods, biota, and other media subsequent to effluent release into the environment. Environmental surveillance data provide information regarding conformity with applicable DOE

Radiation Exposure Effects and Shielding Analysis of Carbon Nanotube Materials

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilkins, Richard; Armendariz, Lupita (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

Carbon nanotube materials promise to be the basis for a variety of emerging technologies with aerospace applications. Potential applications to human space flight include spacecraft shielding, hydrogen storage, structures and fixtures and nano-electronics. Appropriate risk analysis on the properties of nanotube materials is essential for future mission safety. Along with other environmental hazards, materials used in space flight encounter a hostile radiation environment for all mission profiles, from low earth orbit to interplanetary space.

Program Environmental Assurance: Shuttle Environmental Assurance and the Future

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Glover, Steve E.

2008-01-01

Material availability continues to be impacted by domestic and international environmental health and safety (EH&S) regulations, industrial pollution prevention goals and related vendor economics. SEA is an integrated team that works to identify, communicate and address safety and environmentally driven materials obsolescence issues and pollution prevention opportunities.

Prospective study of direct radiation exposure measurements for family members living with patients with prostate (125)I seed implantation: Evidence of radiation safety.

PubMed

Hanada, Takashi; Yorozu, Atsunori; Shinya, Yukiko; Kuroiwa, Nobuko; Ohashi, Toshio; Saito, Shiro; Shigematsu, Naoyuki

2016-01-01

To broaden the current understanding of radiation exposure and risk and to provide concrete evidence of radiation safety related to (125)I seed implantation. Direct radiation exposure measurements were obtained from dosimeters provided to 25 patients who underwent (125)I seed implantation, along with their family members. The estimated lifetime exposure dose and the precaution time for holding children near the patient's chest were calculated in two study periods. During the first and second study period, the mean estimated lifetime exposure doses were, respectively, 7.61 (range: 0.45, 20.21) mSv and 6.84 (range: 0.41, 19.20) mSv for patients, and 0.19 (range: 0.02, 0.54) mSv and 0.25 (range: 0.04, 1.00) mSv for family members. The mean ratios of first and second period measurements were 1.05 (range: 0.44, 3.18) for patients and 1.82 (range: 0.21, 7.04) for family members. The corresponding absolute differences between first and second period measurements were -0.77 (range: -11.40, 7.63) mSv and 0.06 (range: -0.26, 0.79) mSv, respectively. Assuming a dose limit of 1 mSv, the precaution times for holding a child every day of the first and second periods were 250.9 (range: 71.3, 849.4) min and 275.2 (range: 75.0, 883.4) min, respectively. Assuming a dose limit of 0.5 mSv, the corresponding precaution times were 179.0 (range: 35.6, 811.5) min and 178.9 (range: 37.5, 1131.8) min, respectively. Our study demonstrated low radiation exposures to family members of patients undergoing (125)I prostate implantation. It was clear that (125)I seed implantation did not pose a threat to the safety of family members. Copyright © 2016 American Brachytherapy Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

SU-D-201-07: A Survey of Radiation Oncology Residents’ Training and Preparedness to Lead Patient Safety Programs in Clinics

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Spraker, M; Nyflot, M; Ford, E

Purpose: Safety and quality has garnered increased attention in radiation oncology, and physicians and physicists are ideal leaders of clinical patient safety programs. However, it is not clear whether residency programs incorporate formal patient safety training and adequately equip residents to assume this leadership role. A national survey was conducted to evaluate medical and physics residents’ exposure to safety topics and their confidence with the skills required to lead clinical safety programs. Methods: Radiation oncology residents were identified in collaboration with ARRO and AAPM. The survey was released in February 2016 via email using REDCap. This included questions about exposuremore » to safety topics, confidence leading safety programs, and interest in training opportunities (i.e. workshops). Residents rated their exposure, skills, and confidence on 4 or 5-point scales. Medical and physics residents responses were compared using chi-square tests. Results: Responses were collected from 56 of 248 (22%) physics and 139 of 690 (20%) medical residents. More than two thirds of all residents had no or only informal exposure to incident learning systems (ILS), root cause analysis (RCA), failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA), and the concept of human factors engineering (HFE). Likewise, 63% of residents had not heard of RO-ILS. Response distributions were similar, however more physics residents had formal exposure to FMEA (p<0.0001) and felt they were adequately trained to lead FMEAs in clinic (p<0.001) than medical residents. Only 36% of residents felt their patient safety training was adequate, and 58% felt more training would benefit their education. Conclusion: These results demonstrate that, despite increasing desire for patient safety training, medical and physics residents’ exposure to relevant concepts is low. Physics residents had more exposure to FMEA than medical residents, and were more confident in leading FMEA. This suggests that

TITLE: Environmental, health, and safety issues offuel cells in transportation. Volume 1: Phosphoricacid fuel-cell buses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ring, Shan

1994-12-01

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) chartered the Phosphoric Acid Fuel-Cell (PAFC) Bus Program to demonstrate the feasibility of fuel cells in heavy-duty transportation systems. As part of this program, PAFC- powered buses are being built to meet transit industry design and performance standards. Test-bed bus-1 (TBB-1) was designed in 1993 and integrated in March 1994. TBB-2 and TBB-3 are under construction and should be integrated in early 1995. In 1987 Phase 1 of the program began with the development and testing of two conceptual system designs- liquid- and air-cooled systems. The liquid-cooled PAFC system was chosen to continue, through a competitive award, into Phase H, beginning in 1991. Three hybrid buses, which combine fuel-cell and battery technologies, were designed during Phase 3. After completing Phase 2, DOE plans a comprehensive performance testing program (Phase H1) to verify that the buses meet stringent transit industry requirements. The Phase 3 study will evaluate the PAFC bus and compare it to a conventional diesel bus. This NREL study assesses the environmental, health, and safety (EH&S) issues that may affect the commercialization of the PAFC bus. Because safety is a critical factor for consumer acceptance of new transportation-based technologies the study focuses on these issues. The study examines health and safety together because they are integrally related. In addition, this report briefly discusses two environmental issues that are of concern to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The first issue involves a surge battery used by the PAFC bus that contains hazardous constituents. The second issue concerns the regulated air emissions produced during operation of the PAFC bus.

OFF-SITE ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING REPORT: RADIATION MONITORING AROUND UNITED STATES NUCLEAR TEST AREAS, CALENDAR YEAR 1986

EPA Science Inventory

The principal activity at the NTS is testing of nuclear devices, though other related projects are also conducted. The principal activities of the Off-Site Radiological Safety Program are routine environmental monitoring for radioactive materials in various media and for radiatio...

Radiation: Physical Characterization and Environmental Measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1997-01-01

In this session, Session WP4, the discussion focuses on the following topics: Production of Neutrons from Interactions of GCR-Like Particles; Solar Particle Event Dose Distributions, Parameterization of Dose-Time Profiles; Assessment of Nuclear Events in the Body Produced by Neutrons and High-Energy Charged Particles; Ground-Based Simulations of Cosmic Ray Heavy Ion Interactions in Spacecraft and Planetary Habitat Shielding Materials; Radiation Measurements in Space Missions; Radiation Measurements in Civil Aircraft; Analysis of the Pre-Flight and Post-Flight Calibration Procedures Performed on the Liulin Space Radiation Dosimeter; and Radiation Environment Monitoring for Astronauts.

FACTORS AFFECTING THE USE OF CAF2:MN THERMOLUMINESCENT DOSIMETERS FOR LOW-LEVEL ENVIRONMENTAL RADIATION MONITORING

EPA Science Inventory

An investigation was made of factors affecting the use of commercially-produced CaF2:Mn thermoluminescent dosimeters for low level environmental radiation monitoring. Calibration factors and self-dosing rates were quantified for 150 thermoluminescent dosimeters. Laboratory studie...

Radiation absorption and optimization of solar photocatalytic reactors for environmental applications.

PubMed

Colina-Márquez, Jose; Machuca-Martínez, Fiderman; Li Puma, Gianluca

2010-07-01

This study provides a systematic and quantitative approach to the analysis and optimization of solar photocatalytic reactors utilized in environmental applications such as pollutant remediation and conversion of biomass (waste) to hydrogen. Ray tracing technique was coupled with the six-flux absorption scattering model (SFM) to analyze the complex radiation field in solar compound parabolic collectors (CPC) and tubular photoreactors. The absorption of solar radiation represented by the spatial distribution of the local volumetric rate of photon absorption (LVRPA) depends strongly on catalyst loading and geometry. The total radiation absorbed in the reactors, the volumetric rate of absorption (VRPA), was analyzed as a function of the optical properties (scattering albedo) of the photocatalyst. The VRPA reached maxima at specific catalyst concentrations in close agreement with literature experimental studies. The CPC has on average 70% higher photon absorption efficiency than a tubular reactor and requires 39% less catalyst to operate under optimum conditions. The "apparent optical thickness" is proposed as a new dimensionless parameter for optimization of CPC and tubular reactors. It removes the dependence of the optimum catalyst concentration on tube diameter and photocatalyst scattering albedo. For titanium dioxide (TiO(2)) Degussa P25, maximum photon absorption occurs at apparent optical thicknesses of 7.78 for CPC and 12.97 for tubular reactors.

Environmental Report 2007

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mathews, S; Gallegos, G; Berg, L L

2008-09-24

The purposes of the 'Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Environmental Report 2007' are to record Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's (LLNL's) compliance with environmental standards and requirements, describe LLNL's environmental protection and remediation programs, and present the results of environmental monitoring at the two LLNL sites--the Livermore site and Site 300. The report is prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) by LLNL's Environmental Protection Department. Submittal of the report satisfies requirements under DOE Order 231.1A, Environmental Safety and Health Reporting, and DOE Order 5400.5, Radiation Protection of the Public and Environment. The report is distributed electronically and is available atmore » https://saer.lln.gov/, the website for the LLNL annual environmental report. Previous LLNL annual environmental reports beginning in 1994 are also on the website. Some references in the electronic report text are underlined, which indicates that they are clickable links. Clicking on one of these links will open the related document, data workbook, or website that it refers to. The report begins with an executive summary, which provides the purpose of the report and an overview of LLNL's compliance and monitoring results. The first three chapters provide background information: Chapter 1 is an overview of the location, meteorology, and hydrogeology of the two LLNL sites; Chapter 2 is a summary of LLNL's compliance with environmental regulations; and Chapter 3 is a description of LLNL's environmental programs with an emphasis on the Environmental Management System including pollution prevention. The majority of the report covers LLNL's environmental monitoring programs and monitoring data for 2007: effluent and ambient air (Chapter 4); waters, including wastewater, storm water runoff, surface water, rain, and groundwater (Chapter 5); and terrestrial, including soil, sediment, vegetation, foodstuff, ambient radiation, and special

Knowledge management: Role of the the Radiation Safety Information Computational Center (RSICC)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valentine, Timothy

2017-09-01

The Radiation Safety Information Computational Center (RSICC) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is an information analysis center that collects, archives, evaluates, synthesizes and distributes information, data and codes that are used in various nuclear technology applications. RSICC retains more than 2,000 software packages that have been provided by code developers from various federal and international agencies. RSICC's customers (scientists, engineers, and students from around the world) obtain access to such computing codes (source and/or executable versions) and processed nuclear data files to promote on-going research, to ensure nuclear and radiological safety, and to advance nuclear technology. The role of such information analysis centers is critical for supporting and sustaining nuclear education and training programs both domestically and internationally, as the majority of RSICC's customers are students attending U.S. universities. Additionally, RSICC operates a secure CLOUD computing system to provide access to sensitive export-controlled modeling and simulation (M&S) tools that support both domestic and international activities. This presentation will provide a general review of RSICC's activities, services, and systems that support knowledge management and education and training in the nuclear field.

Environmental safety & health requirements for a federal facility

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Campbell, G.; Wong, J.

1995-09-01

I would like to take this opportunity to discuss the challenges that face an environmental, safety, and health (ES&H) manager at a federal facility situated in California. The challenges are, in many aspects, similar to those facing ES&H professionals all over this country: dwindling resources and increasing regulatory demands. The Laboratory (LLNL) is under closer scrutiny than other R&D facilities located in California because some of its research activities involve nuclear weapon design. Today I would like to talk about two actions we, the ES&H management at LLNL, have taken to decrease the impact of dwindling resources and increasing regulatorymore » demands: (1) Institution of a performance-based contract, which the University of California negotiated with the Department of Energy (DOE) to reduce the impact of special mandates required of federal facilities. Under this contract, ES&H performance is measured by results rather than by process; (2) Redesign of the LLNL Hazards Control Department to a flat organization that incorporates employee empowerment and Self-Managed Work Teams (SMWTs).« less

76 FR 11079 - Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf-Safety and Environmental...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-03-01

... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement 30 CFR Part 250 [Docket ID: BOEM-2010-0076] Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf--Safety and Environmental Management Systems; Public Workshop AGENCY: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management...

41 CFR 102-80.10 - What are the basic safety and environmental management policies for real property?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 41 Public Contracts and Property Management 3 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false What are the basic safety and environmental management policies for real property? 102-80.10 Section 102-80.10 Public Contracts and Property Management Federal Property Management Regulations System (Continued) FEDERAL...

Environmental, Ethical and Safety Issues in Chemistry/Science Curricula in Papua New Guinea Provincial High Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Palmer, W. P.

1986-01-01

Chemistry occupies only a small portion of the Papua New Guinea science curriculum in grades seven to ten. Science itself occupies only a small proportion of the total curriculum. Nevertheless the existing syllabus, and previous and planned future revisions of it, give considerable prominence to environmental, health and safety issues. There is a…

A strategic management model for evaluation of health, safety and environmental performance.

PubMed

Abbaspour, Majid; Toutounchian, Solmaz; Roayaei, Emad; Nassiri, Parvin

2012-05-01

Strategic health, safety, and environmental management system (HSE-MS) involves systematic and cooperative planning in each phase of the lifecycle of a project to ensure that interaction among the industry group, client, contractor, stakeholder, and host community exists with the highest level of health, safety, and environmental standard performances. Therefore, it seems necessary to assess the HSE-MS performance of contractor(s) by a comparative strategic management model with the aim of continuous improvement. The present Strategic Management Model (SMM) has been illustrated by a case study and the results show that the model is a suitable management tool for decision making in a contract environment, especially in oil and gas fields and based on accepted international standards within the framework of management deming cycle. To develop this model, a data bank has been created, which includes the statistical data calculated by converting the HSE performance qualitative data into quantitative values. Based on this fact, the structure of the model has been formed by defining HSE performance indicators according to the HSE-MS model. Therefore, 178 indicators have been selected which have been grouped into four attributes. Model output provides quantitative measures of HSE-MS performance as a percentage of an ideal level with maximum possible score for each attribute. Defining the strengths and weaknesses of the contractor(s) is another capability of this model. On the other hand, this model provides a ranking that could be used as the basis for decision making at the contractors' pre-qualification phase or during the execution of the project.

OFF-SITE ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING REPORT: RADIATION MONITORING AROUND UNITED STATES NUCLEAR TEST AREAS, CALENDAR YEAR 1984

EPA Science Inventory

This report covers the routine radiation monitoring activities conducted by the Environmental Monitoring Systems Laboratory-Las Vegas in areas which may be affected by nuclear testing programs of the Department of Energy. This monitoring is conducted to document compliance with s...

OFF-SITE ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING REPORT: RADIATION MONITORING AROUND UNITED STATES NUCLEAR TEST AREAS, CALENDAR YEAR 1987

EPA Science Inventory

This report covers the routine radiation monitoring activities conducted by the Environmental Monitoring Systems Laboratory-Las Vegas in areas which may be affected by nuclear testing programs of the Department of Energy. This monitoring is conducted to document compliance with s...

Operating a Microwave Radiation Detection Monitor. Module 10. Vocational Education Training in Environmental Health Sciences.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Consumer Dynamics Inc., Rockville, MD.

This module, one of 25 on vocational education training for careers in environmental health occupations, contains self-instructional materials on operating a microwave radiation detection monitor. Following guidelines for students and instructors and an introduction that explains what the student will learn are three lessons: (1) testing the…

Radiation safety and medical education: development and integration of a dedicated educational module into a radiology clerkship, outcomes assessment, and survey of medical students' perceptions.

PubMed

Koontz, Nicholas A; Gunderman, Richard B

2012-04-01

This study assesses the effect on medical student understanding of a new radiobiology and radiation safety module in a fourth-year radiology clerkship. A dedicated radiobiology and radiation safety module was incorporated into the fourth-year medical school radiology clerkship at our institution. Student understanding of the material was assessed via pretest and posttest. Statistical analysis was performed to assess significance of changes in student performance. In addition, we surveyed student perceptions of the importance of this material in medical education and practice. Monthly pretest mean scores ranged from 47.8% to 55.6%, with an average monthly pretest score of 50.3%. Monthly posttest mean scores ranged from 77.3% to 91.2%, with an average monthly posttest score of 83.9%. The improvement in exam scores after the educational intervention was statistically significant (all P < .01). The introduction of a new educational module can significantly improve medical student understanding of radiobiology and radiation safety. Copyright © 2012 AUR. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Health, safety, and environmental management system operation in contracting companies: A case study.

PubMed

Nassiri, Parvin; Yarahmadi, Rasoul; Gholami, Pari Shafaei; Hamidi, Abdolamir; Mirkazemi, Roksana

2016-05-03

Systematic and cooperative interactions among parent industry and contractors are necessary for a successful health, safety, and environmental management system (HSE-MS). This study was conducted to evaluate the HSE-MS performance in contracting companies in one of the petrochemical industries in Iran during 2013. Managers of parent and contracting companies participated in this study. The data collection forms included 7 elements of an integrated HSE-MS (leadership and commitment; policy and strategic objectives; organization, resources, and documentation; evaluation and risk management; planning; implementation and monitoring; auditing and reviewing). The results showed that mean percentage of the total scores in seven elements of HSE-MS was 85.7% and 87.0% based on self-report and report of parent company, respectively. In conclusion, this study showed that HSE-MS was desirably functioning; however, improvement to ensure health and safety of workers is still required.

Hanford Site Environmental Safety and Health Fiscal Year 2001 Budget-Risk management summary

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

REEP, I.E.

1999-05-12

The Hanford Site Environment, Safety and Health (ES&H) Budget-Risk Management Summary report is prepared to support the annual request to sites in the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Complex by DOE, Headquarters. The request requires sites to provide supplementary crosscutting information related to ES&H activities and the ES&H resources that support these activities. The report includes the following: (1) A summary status of fiscal year (FY) 1999 ES&H performance and ES&H execution commitments; (2)Status and plans of Hanford Site Office of Environmental Management (EM) cleanup activities; (3) Safety and health (S&H) risk management issues and compliance vulnerabilities of FY 2001more » Target Case and Below Target Case funding of EM cleanup activities; (4) S&H resource planning and crosscutting information for FY 1999 to 2001; and (5) Description of indirect-funded S&H activities.« less

Radiation grafted adsorbents for newly emerging environmental applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mahmoud Nasef, Mohamed; Ting, T. M.; Abbasi, Ali; Layeghi-moghaddam, Alireza; Sara Alinezhad, S.; Hashim, Kamaruddin

2016-01-01

Radiation induced grafting (RIG) is acquired to prepare a number of adsorbents for newly emerging environmental applications using a single route involving RIG of glycidymethacrylate (GMA) onto polyethylene-polypropylene (PE-PP) non-woven fabric. The grafted fabric was subjected to one of three functionalization reactions to impart desired ionic characters. This included treatment with (1) N-dimethyl-D-glucamine, (2) triethylamine and (3) triethylamine and alkalisation with KOH. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) were used to study the changes in chemical and physical structures of the obtained fibrous adsorbents. The potential applications of the three adsorbents for removal of boron from solutions, capturing CO2 from CO2/N2 mixtures and catalysing transesterification of triacetin/methanol to methyl acetate (biodiesel) were explored. The obtained fibrous adsorbents provide potential alternatives to granular resins for the investigated applications and require further development.

Oak Ridge Reservation: Annual Site Environmental Report for 2015

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rochelle, James; Rogers, Ben; Roche, Paula R.

The Oak Ridge Reservation Annual Site Environmental Report is prepared annually and presents summary environmental data to (1) characterize environmental performance, (2) summarize environmental occurrences reported during the year, (3) confirm compliance with environmental standards and requirements, and (4) highlight significant program activities. The report fulfills the requirement contained in DOE Order 231.1A, Environment, Safety and Health Reporting (DOE 2004) that an integrated annual site environmental report be prepared. The results summarized in this report are based on data collected prior to and through 2015. This report is not intended to nor does it present the results of all environmentalmore » monitoring associated with the ORR. Data collected for other site and regulatory purposes, such as environmental restoration/remedial investigation reports, waste management characterization sampling data, and environmental permit compliance data, are presented in other documents that have been prepared in accordance with applicable DOE guidance and/or laws and are referenced herein as appropriate. Environmental monitoring on the ORR consists primarily of two major activities: effluent monitoring and environmental surveillance. Effluent monitoring involves the collection and analysis of samples or measurements of liquid and gaseous effluents at the points of release to the environment; these measurements allow the quantification and official reporting of contaminant levels, assessment of radiation and chemical exposures to the public, and demonstration of compliance with applicable standards and permit requirements. Environmental surveillance consists of direct measurements and collection and analysis of samples taken from the site and its environs exclusive of effluents; these activities provide information on contaminant concentrations in air, water, groundwater, soil, foods, biota, and other media. Environmental surveillance data support determinations

Oak Ridge Reservation Annual Site Environmental Report for 2006

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

McMahon, Wayne; Hughes, Joan; Coffey, Mike

2007-09-01

This document is prepared annually to summarize environmental activities, primarily environmental-monitoring activities, on the Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR) and within the ORR surroundings. The document fulfills the requirement of Department of Energy (DOE) Order 23l.IA, 'Environment, Safety and Health Reporting,' for an annual summary of environmental data to characterize environmental performance. The environmental-monitoring criteria are described in DOE Order 450.1, 'Environmental Protection Program.' The results summarized in this report are based on data collected prior to and through 2006. This report is not intended to provide the results of all sampling on the ORR. Additional data collected for other sitemore » and regulatory purposes, such as environmental restoration remedial investigation reports, waste management characterization sampling data, and environmental permit compliance data, are presented in other documents that have been prepared in accordance with applicable DOE guidance and/or laws and are referenced herein as appropriate. Corrections to the report for the previous year are found in Appendix A. Environmental monitoring on the ORR consists primarily of two major activities: effluent monitoring and environmental surveillance. Effluent monitoring involves the collection and analysis of samples or measurements of liquid and gaseous effluents at the point of release to the environment; these measurements allow the quantification and official reporting of contaminants, assessment of radiation and chemical exposures to the public, and demonstration of compliance with applicable standards and permit requirements. Environmental surveillance consists of the collection and analysis of environmental samples from the site and its environs; these activities provide direct measurement of contaminant concentrations in air, water, groundwater, soil, foods, biota, and other media. Environmental surveillance data provide information regarding conformity

SU-F-P-10: A Web-Based Radiation Safety Relational Database Module for Regulatory Compliance

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rosen, C; Ramsay, B; Konerth, S

Purpose: Maintaining compliance with Radioactive Materials Licenses is inherently a time-consuming task requiring focus and attention to detail. Staff tasked with these responsibilities, such as the Radiation Safety Officer and associated personnel must retain disparate records for eventual placement into one or more annual reports. Entering results and records in a relational database using a web browser as the interface, and storing that data in a cloud-based storage site, removes procedural barriers. The data becomes more adaptable for mining and sharing. Methods: Web-based code was written utilizing the web framework Django, written in Python. Additionally, the application utilizes JavaScript formore » front-end interaction, SQL, HTML and CSS. Quality assurance code testing is performed in a sequential style, and new code is only added after the successful testing of the previous goals. Separate sections of the module include data entry and analysis for audits, surveys, quality management, and continuous quality improvement. Data elements can be adapted for quarterly and annual reporting, and for immediate notification of user determined alarm settings. Results: Current advances are focusing on user interface issues, and determining the simplest manner by which to teach the user to build query forms. One solution has been to prepare library documents that a user can select or edit in place of creation a new document. Forms are being developed based upon Nuclear Regulatory Commission federal code, and will be expanded to include State Regulations. Conclusion: Establishing a secure website to act as the portal for data entry, storage and manipulation can lead to added efficiencies for a Radiation Safety Program. Access to multiple databases can lead to mining for big data programs, and for determining safety issues before they occur. Overcoming web programming challenges, a category that includes mathematical handling, is providing challenges that are being

An Excel-Based System to Manage Radiation Safety for the Family of Patients Undergoing 131I Therapy.

PubMed

Steward, Palmer G

2017-06-01

The purpose of this study was to develop spreadsheet workbooks that assist in the radiation safety counseling of 131 I therapy patients and their families, providing individualized guidelines that avoid imposing overly conservative restrictions on family members and others. Methods: The mathematic model included biphasic patient radionuclide retention. The extrathyroidal component was a cylindric volume with a diameter corresponding to the patient's size and included patient self-absorption, whereas the thyroidal component was a point source whose transmission was reduced by self-absorption. A separate model in which the thyroid, extrathyroid, and bladder compartments fed serially from one to the next was developed to depict the radionuclide levels within the patient and to estimate the activity entering the environment at each urination. Results: The system was organized into a set of 4 workbooks: the first to be used with ablation patients prepared using thyrogen, the second with ablation patients prepared by deprivation, the third with hyperthyroid patients, and the fourth with the unusual hyperthyroid patient who finds the restrictions to be oppressive and returns 5-10 d after administration for a measurement and reassessment. The workbooks evaluated the radiation field strength external to the patient and indicated restrictions based on selected dose limits. To assist physicians in suggesting contamination precautions, the workbooks also evaluated the radioactivity present within the patient and the estimated discharge into the environment as a function of time. Conclusion: The workbooks that were developed assist the radiation safety counselor in individualizing radiation protection procedures for the family of patients undergoing 131 I therapy. The workbook system avoids overly conservative assumptions while permitting selection of appropriate dose limits for each individual. © 2017 by the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging.

Environmental Health and Safety Hazards Experienced by Home Health Care Providers: A Room-by-Room Analysis.

PubMed

Polivka, Barbara J; Wills, Celia E; Darragh, Amy; Lavender, Steven; Sommerich, Carolyn; Stredney, Donald

2015-11-01

The number of personnel providing in-home health care services is increasing substantially. The unique configuration of environmental hazards in individual client homes has a significant impact on the safety and health of home health care providers (HHPs). This mixed-methods study used data from a standardized questionnaire, focus groups, and individual interviews to explore environmental health and safety hazards encountered by HHPs in client homes. The participant sample (N = 68) included nurses, aides, therapists, and owners/managers from a variety of geographic locations. The most often-reported hazards were trip/slip/lift hazards, biohazards, and hazards from poor air quality, allergens, pests and rodents, and fire and burns. Frequency of identified key hazards varied by room, that is, kitchen (e.g., throw rugs, water on floor), bathroom (e.g., tight spaces for client handling), bedroom (e.g., bed too low), living room (e.g., animal waste), and hallway (e.g., clutter). Findings indicate the need for broader training to enable HHPs to identify and address hazards they encounter in client homes. © 2015 The Author(s).

Health, safety and environmental risk of a gas pipeline in an oil exploring area of Gachsaran.

PubMed

Kalatpoor, Omid; Goshtasp, Kambiz; Khavaji, Solieman

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was assessing health, safety and environmental risk of a gas transfer pipeline in an oily area of Gachsaran. In this method, we used the Kent's pipeline risk assessment method except that to facilitate using the method more practically some changes were exerted into Kent's method. A pipeline with 16 kilometers length was selected considering surrounding nature of the pipeline. It was divided into two sections. Analogous to Kent's method, in this method, parameters included: interested party's injuries, corrosion, design factor, incorrect operation index and consequence scoring. The difference here was that for consequence scoring we used ALOHA 5.6 software instead of Kent's pattern. Results showed that health, safety and environmental risks of section 2 (the next 13 kilometers of outgoing pipeline from gas station after the first 3 kilometers) were greater. It seems the main cause of gaining a bigger risk number was related to more activities of interested parties around section 2. Because all figures gathered from indexes are almost close to gather except third parties activity.

Space Radiation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wu, Honglu

2006-01-01

Astronauts receive the highest occupational radiation exposure. Effective protections are needed to ensure the safety of astronauts on long duration space missions. Increased cancer morbidity or mortality risk in astronauts may be caused by occupational radiation exposure. Acute and late radiation damage to the central nervous system (CNS) may lead to changes in motor function and behavior, or neurological disorders. Radiation exposure may result in degenerative tissue diseases (non-cancer or non-CNS) such as cardiac, circulatory, or digestive diseases, as well as cataracts. Acute radiation syndromes may occur due to occupational radiation exposure.

Radiation Exposure and Pregnancy

MedlinePlus

Fact Sheet Adopted: June 2010 Updated: June 2017 Health Physics Society Specialists in Radiation Safety Radiation Exposure and ... radiation and pregnancy can be found on the Health Physics Society " Ask the Experts" Web site. she should ...

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Environmental Report 2016

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rosene, Crystal

The purposes of the Environmental Report 2016 are to record LLNL’s compliance with environmental standards and requirements, describe LLNL’s environmental protection and remediation programs, and present the results of environmental monitoring. Specifically, the report discusses LLNL’s EMS; describes significant accomplishments in pollution prevention; presents the results of air, water, vegetation, and foodstuff monitoring; reports radiological doses from LLNL operations; summarizes LLNL’s activities involving special status wildlife, plants, and habitats; and describes the progress LLNL has made in remediating groundwater contamination. Environmental monitoring at LLNL, including analysis of samples and data, is conducted according to documented standard operating procedures. Duplicate samplesmore » are collected and analytical results are reviewed and compared to internal acceptance standards. This report is prepared for DOE by LLNL’s Environmental Functional Area (EFA). Submittal of the report satisfies requirements under DOE Order 231.1B, “Environment, Safety and Health Reporting,” and DOE Order 458.1, “Radiation Protection of the Public and Environment.” The report is distributed in electronic form and is available to the public at https://saer.llnl.gov/, the website for the LLNL annual environmental report. Previous LLNL annual environmental reports beginning with 1994 are also on the website.« less

Historical patterns in the types of procedures performed and radiation safety practices used in nuclear medicine from 1945–2009

PubMed Central

Van Dyke, Miriam E.; Drozdovitch, Vladimir; Doody, Michele M.; Lim, Hyeyeun; Bolus, Norman E.; Simon, Steven L.; Alexander, Bruce H.; Kitahara, Cari M.

2016-01-01

We evaluated historical patterns in the types of procedures performed in diagnostic and therapeutic nuclear medicine and the associated radiation safety practices used from 1945–2009 in a sample of U.S. radiologic technologists. In 2013–2014, 4,406 participants from the U.S. Radiologic Technologists (USRT) Study who previously reported working with medical radionuclides completed a detailed survey inquiring about the performance of 23 diagnostic and therapeutic radionuclide procedures and the use of radiation safety practices when performing radionuclide procedure-related tasks during five time periods: 1945–1964, 1965–1979, 1980–1989, 1990–1999, and 2000–2009. We observed an overall increase in the proportion of technologists who performed specific diagnostic or therapeutic procedures across the five time periods. Between 1945–1964 and 2000–2009, the median frequency of diagnostic procedures performed substantially increased (5 per week to 30 per week), attributable mainly to an increasing frequency of cardiac and non-brain PET scans, while the median frequency of therapeutic procedures performed modestly decreased (from 4 per month to 3 per month). We also observed a notable increase in the use of most radiation safety practices from 1945–1964 to 2000–2009 (e.g., use of lead-shielded vials during diagnostic radiopharmaceutical preparation increased from 56 to 96%), although lead apron use dramatically decreased (e.g., during diagnostic imaging procedures, from 81 to 7%). These data describe historical practices in nuclear medicine and can be used to support studies of health risks in nuclear medicine technologists. PMID:27218293

An assessment of nursing staffs' knowledge of radiation protection and practice.

PubMed

Badawy, Mohamed Khaldoun; Mong, Kam Shan; Paul Lykhun, U; Deb, Pradip

2016-03-01

Although the exposure to nursing staff is generally lower than the allowable radiation worker dose limits, awareness and overcoming fears of radiation exposure is essential in order to perform routine activities in certain departments. Furthermore, the nursing staff, whether they are defined as radiation workers or not, must be able to respond to any radiological emergencies and provide care to any patient affected by radiation. This study aims to gauge the awareness of radiation safety among the nursing staff at a major hospital in different departments and recommend if further radiation safety training is required. A prospective multiple choice questionnaire was distributed to 200 nurses in 9 different departments. The questionnaire tested knowledge that would be taught at a basic radiation safety course. 147 nurses (74%) completed the survey with the average score of 40%. Furthermore, 85% of nurses surveyed felt there was a need for radiation safety training in their respective departments to assist with day to day work in the department. An increase in radiation safety materials that are specific to each department is recommended to assist with daily work involving radiation. Moreover, nursing staff that interact with radiation on a regular basis should undertake radiation safety courses before beginning employment and regular refresher courses should be made available thereafter.

ERLN Radiation Focus Area

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

As part of the Environmental Response Laboratory Network, the National Air and Radiation Environmental Laboratory (NAREL) here provides your laboratory with access to radiation-specific laboratory guidance documents and training courses.

THREE MILE ISLAND NUCLEAR REACTOR ACCIDENT OF MARCH 1979. ENVIRONMENTAL RADIATION DATA: UPDATE 2, VOLUME I

EPA Science Inventory

The original report contains a listing of environmental radiation monitoring data collected in the vicinity of Three Mile Island (TMI) following the March 28, 1979 accident. These data were collected by the EPA, NRC, DOE, HHS, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, or the Bethlehem St...

THREE MILE ISLAND NUCLEAR REACTOR ACCIDENT OF MARCH 1979. ENVIRONMENTAL RADIATION DATA: UPDATE 2, VOLUME III

EPA Science Inventory

The original report contains a listing of environmental radiation monitoring data collected in the vicinity of Three Mile Island (TMI) following the March 28, 1979 accident. These data were collected by the EPA, NRC, DOE, HHS, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, or the Bethlehem St...

THREE MILE ISLAND NUCLEAR REACTOR ACCIDENT OF MARCH 1979. ENVIRONMENTAL RADIATION DATA: UPDATE 2, VOLUME II

EPA Science Inventory

The original report contains a listing of environmental radiation monitoring data collected in the vicinity of Three Mile Island (TMI) following the March 28, 1979 accident. These data were collected by the EPA, NRC, DOE, HHS, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, or the Bethlehem St...

Designing Radiation Resistance in Materials for Fusion Energy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zinkle, S. J.; Snead, L. L.

2014-07-01

Proposed fusion and advanced (Generation IV) fission energy systems require high-performance materials capable of satisfactory operation up to neutron damage levels approaching 200 atomic displacements per atom with large amounts of transmutant hydrogen and helium isotopes. After a brief overview of fusion reactor concepts and radiation effects phenomena in structural and functional (nonstructural) materials, three fundamental options for designing radiation resistance are outlined: Utilize matrix phases with inherent radiation tolerance, select materials in which vacancies are immobile at the design operating temperatures, or engineer materials with high sink densities for point defect recombination. Environmental and safety considerations impose several additional restrictions on potential materials systems, but reduced-activation ferritic/martensitic steels (including thermomechanically treated and oxide dispersion-strengthened options) and silicon carbide ceramic composites emerge as robust structural materials options. Materials modeling (including computational thermodynamics) and advanced manufacturing methods are poised to exert a major impact in the next ten years.

Radiological Safety Handbook.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Army Ordnance Center and School, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD.

Written to be used concurrently with the U.S. Army's Radiological Safety Course, this publication discusses the causes, sources, and detection of nuclear radiation. In addition, the transportation and disposal of radioactive materials are covered. The report also deals with the safety precautions to be observed when working with lasers, microwave…

CHEMISTRY FOR THE SAFETY MAN. SAFETY IN INDUSTRY--ENVIRONMENTAL AND CHEMICAL HAZARDS SERVICES.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

CESTRONE, PATRICK F.

THIS BULLETIN, ONE OF A SERIES ON SAFETY IN INDUSTRY, IS INTENDED TO PROVIDE THE BACKGROUND WHICH WILL ENABLE THE SAFETY MAN TO UNDERSTAND SOME OF THE PRINCIPLES APPLIED IN CONTROLLING CHEMICAL HAZARDS. IT WAS PREPARED IN THE OFFICE OF OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY, DIVISION OF PROGRAMING AND RESEARCH, BUREAU OF LABOR STANDARDS. TOPICS INCLUDE (1) WHAT IS…

Safety climate in the federal fire management community: Influences of organizational, environmental, group, and individual characteristics (Abstract)

Treesearch

Brooke Baldauf McBride; Anne E. Black

2012-01-01

This study examined the effects of organizational, environmental, group and individual characteristics on five components of safety climate in the US federal fire management community (HRO Practices, Leadership, Group Culture, Learning Orientation and Mission Clarity). Multiple analyses of variance revealed that all types of characteristics had a significant effect on...

Health, safety, and environmental risk assessment of steel production complex in central Iran using TOPSIS.

PubMed

Jozi, S A; Majd, N Moradi

2014-10-01

This research was carried out with the aim of presenting an environmental management plan for steel production complex (SPC) in central Iran. Following precise identification of the plant activities as well as the study area, possible sources of environmental pollution and adverse impacts on the air quality, water, soil, biological environment, socioeconomic and cultural environment, and health and safety of the employees were determined considering the work processes of the steel complex. Afterwards, noise, wastewater, and air pollution sources were measured. Subsequently, factors polluting the steel complex were identified by TOPSIS and then prioritized using Excel Software. Based on the obtained results, the operation of the furnaces in hot rolling process with the score 1, effluent derived from hot rolling process with the score 0.565, nonprincipal disposal and dumping of waste at the plant enclosure with the score 0.335, walking beam process with the score 1.483 respectively allocated themselves the highest priority in terms of air, water, soil and noise pollution. In terms of habitats, land cover and socioeconomic and cultural environment, closeness to the forest area and the existence of four groups of wildlife with the score 1.106 and proximity of villages and residential areas to the plant with the score 3.771 respectively enjoyed the highest priorities while impressibility and occupational accidents with the score 2.725 and cutting and welding operations with score 2.134 had the highest priority among health and safety criteria. Finally, strategies for the control of pollution sources were identified and Training, Monitoring and environmental management plan of the SPC was prepared.

Manned space flight nuclear system safety. Volume 1: base nuclear system safety

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1972-01-01

The mission and terrestrial nuclear safety aspects of future long duration manned space missions in low earth orbit are discussed. Nuclear hazards of a typical low earth orbit Space Base mission (from natural sources and on-board nuclear hardware) have been identified and evaluated. Some of the principal nuclear safety design and procedural considerations involved in launch, orbital, and end of mission operations are presented. Areas of investigation include radiation interactions with the crew, subsystems, facilities, experiments, film, interfacing vehicles, nuclear hardware and the terrestrial populace. Results of the analysis indicate: (1) the natural space environment can be the dominant radiation source in a low earth orbit where reactors are effectively shielded, (2) with implementation of safety guidelines the reactor can present a low risk to the crew, support personnel, the terrestrial populace, flight hardware and the mission, (3) ten year missions are feasible without exceeding integrated radiation limits assigned to flight hardware, and (4) crew stay-times up to one year are feasible without storm shelter provisions.

Livestock waste treatment systems of the future: A challenge to environmental quality, food safety, and sustainability. OECD Workshop

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

This Special Issue of Bioresource Technology is dedicated to selected contributions presented at the international Workshop: “Livestock waste treatment systems of the future: A challenge to environmental quality, food safety, and sustainability,” held 2-4 April, 2008, in Florence, South Carolina (US...

Transgenic maize event TC1507: Global status of food, feed, and environmental safety

PubMed Central

Baktavachalam, Gajendra B; Delaney, Bryan; Fisher, Tracey L; Ladics, Gregory S; Layton, Raymond J; Locke, Mary EH; Schmidt, Jean; Anderson, Jennifer A; Weber, Natalie N; Herman, Rod A; Evans, Steven L

2015-01-01

Maize (Zea mays) is a widely cultivated cereal that has been safely consumed by humans and animals for centuries. Transgenic or genetically engineered insect-resistant and herbicide-tolerant maize, are commercially grown on a broad scale. Event TC1507 (OECD unique identifier: DAS-Ø15Ø7–1) or the Herculex®# I trait, an insect-resistant and herbicide-tolerant maize expressing Cry1F and PAT proteins, has been registered for commercial cultivation in the US since 2001. A science-based safety assessment was conducted on TC1507 prior to commercialization. The safety assessment addressed allergenicity; acute oral toxicity; subchronic toxicity; substantial equivalence with conventional comparators, as well as environmental impact. Results from biochemical, physicochemical, and in silico investigations supported the conclusion that Cry1F and PAT proteins are unlikely to be either allergenic or toxic to humans. Also, findings from toxicological and animal feeding studies supported that maize with TC1507 is as safe and nutritious as conventional maize. Maize with TC1507 is not expected to behave differently than conventional maize in terms of its potential for invasiveness, gene flow to wild and weedy relatives, or impact on non-target organisms. These safety conclusions regarding TC1507 were acknowledged by over 20 regulatory agencies including United States Environment Protection Agency (US EPA), US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), and European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) before authorizing cultivation and/or food and feed uses. A comprehensive review of the safety studies on TC1507, as well as some benefits, are presented here to serve as a reference for regulatory agencies and decision makers in other countries where authorization of TC1507 is or will be pursued. PMID:26018138

Transgenic maize event TC1507: Global status of food, feed, and environmental safety.

PubMed

Baktavachalam, Gajendra B; Delaney, Bryan; Fisher, Tracey L; Ladics, Gregory S; Layton, Raymond J; Locke, Mary Eh; Schmidt, Jean; Anderson, Jennifer A; Weber, Natalie N; Herman, Rod A; Evans, Steven L

2015-01-01

Maize (Zea mays) is a widely cultivated cereal that has been safely consumed by humans and animals for centuries. Transgenic or genetically engineered insect-resistant and herbicide-tolerant maize, are commercially grown on a broad scale. Event TC1507 (OECD unique identifier: DAS-Ø15Ø7-1) or the Herculex®(#) I trait, an insect-resistant and herbicide-tolerant maize expressing Cry1F and PAT proteins, has been registered for commercial cultivation in the US since 2001. A science-based safety assessment was conducted on TC1507 prior to commercialization. The safety assessment addressed allergenicity; acute oral toxicity; subchronic toxicity; substantial equivalence with conventional comparators, as well as environmental impact. Results from biochemical, physicochemical, and in silico investigations supported the conclusion that Cry1F and PAT proteins are unlikely to be either allergenic or toxic to humans. Also, findings from toxicological and animal feeding studies supported that maize with TC1507 is as safe and nutritious as conventional maize. Maize with TC1507 is not expected to behave differently than conventional maize in terms of its potential for invasiveness, gene flow to wild and weedy relatives, or impact on non-target organisms. These safety conclusions regarding TC1507 were acknowledged by over 20 regulatory agencies including United States Environment Protection Agency (US EPA), US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), and European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) before authorizing cultivation and/or food and feed uses. A comprehensive review of the safety studies on TC1507, as well as some benefits, are presented here to serve as a reference for regulatory agencies and decision makers in other countries where authorization of TC1507 is or will be pursued.

An Operational Safety and Health Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Uhorchak, Robert E.

1983-01-01

Describes safety/health program activities at Research Triangle Institute (North Carolina). These include: radioisotope/radiation and hazardous chemical/carcinogen use, training, monitoring, disposal; chemical waste management; air monitoring and analysis; medical program; fire safety/training, including emergency planning; Occupational Safety and…

Environmental gamma radiation analysis for Ulsan city with the highest nuclear power plant density in Korea.

PubMed

Lee, UkJae; Bae, Jun Woo; Kim, Hee Reyoung

2017-11-01

This study presents a real-time measurement-based rapid radiation distribution visualization system for radionuclide recognition, which can quickly scan a contaminated environment. The system combines a portable detector with a digital map and a program for quick data treatment. Radiation information at the measurement location is transferred between a detector and a laptop. It includes environmental and artificial components, specific radionuclides, and total radionuclides. After scanning the area, the radiation distributions are comprehensively displayed in 2D and 3D maps corresponding to the measured area, all in a few tens of seconds. The proposed method was verified using the standard 137 Cs and 60 Co sources. The gamma radiation distribution of the areas measured in Ulsan city, which included non-destructive testing and radioisotope treatment facilities, hospitals, transportation spots, and residential and commercial areas, showed that Ulsan city has maintained safe levels of radiation. The system performed well. In addition, it was found that this system could detect unexpected hot spots quickly in affected environments. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Maintaining a Quality Environmental Health & Safety Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Otto, Ann K.; And Others

1994-01-01

The college or university human resources department's responsibilities in assuring a healthy and safe environment are enumerated. First, issues to be considered in school safety are outlined, and then the role of the health and safety officer is discussed. A sample job description and list of duties are included. (MSE)

Toxicity testing of leachate from waste landfills using medaka (Oryzias latipes) for monitoring environmental safety.

PubMed

Osaki, Kae; Kashiwada, Shosaku; Tatarazako, Norihisa; Ono, Yoshiro

2006-06-01

To investigate the environmental safety of waste disposal landfill sites and of land reclaimed from such sites, we evaluated the toxicity of leachate from these sites by a combination of bioassays in the Japanese killifish medaka Oryzias latipes. We tested for lethal toxicity in adult and larval medaka and for hatching inhibition of embryos from eggs. As biochemical evidence of the effects of leachate exposure, CYP1A (EROD activity) and vitellogenin (Vtg) were induced. We also bioassayed water-treated leachate and downstream river water. Leachate solution was lethal to larval and adult medaka. Embryo hatchability was inhibited, and abnormal hatching, spinal deformity and anisophthalmia occurred in embryos exposed to leachate solution. CYP1A was induced by exposure to leachate solution diluted to 1.0%, and EROD activity was significantly higher than in control. Vtg and unknown proteins were induced in the sera of male medaka exposed to the diluted leachate solution. Conventional water treatments worked effectively to remove toxic compounds but did not work well to remove element ions, including heavy metals. Treated leachate produced neither lethal toxicity nor hatching abnormalities during the exposure period. Fish toxicity tests for leachate would be useful for monitoring the environmental safety of landfill sites.

Aspects of Maintenance Radiating Safety of Population of Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug - Ugra

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Migunov, V. I.

2007-05-01

Dialogue with you in the given audience was to be begun with accent on a certain similarity in fields of activity. You are engaged in exotic conditions of kernels. We «экзотичность» consists that similar civil structures in other subjects of the Russian Federation while are not present. It is characteristic both for Department as a whole, and for its concrete structures, for example, such as Management of radiating safety on which work it will be informed hardly later. It speaks, mainly, that our district, as well as Russia as a whole, aspires to be the civilized, advanced community adequating to the world standards.

Nuclear Powerplant Safety: Operations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Department of Energy, Washington, DC. Nuclear Energy Office.

Powerplant systems and procedures that ensure the day-to-day health and safety of people in and around the plant is referred to as operational safety. This safety is the result of careful planning, good engineering and design, strict licensing and regulation, and environmental monitoring. Procedures that assure operational safety at nuclear…

Photodegradation of antibiotics under simulated solar radiation: implications for their environmental fate.

PubMed

Batchu, Sudha Rani; Panditi, Venkata R; O'Shea, Kevin E; Gardinali, Piero R

2014-02-01

Roxithromycin, erythromycin, ciprofloxacin and sulfamethoxazole are frequently detected antibiotics in environmental waters. Direct and indirect photolysis of these problematic antibiotics were investigated in pure and natural waters (fresh and salt water) under irradiation of different light sources. Fundamental photolysis parameters such as molar absorption coefficient, quantum yield and first order rate constants are reported and discussed. The antibiotics are degraded fastest under ultraviolet 254 nm, followed by 350 nm and simulated solar radiation. The composition of the matrix (pH, dissolved organic content, chloride ion concentration) played a significant role in the observed photodegradation. Under simulated solar radiation, ciprofloxacin and sulfamethoxazole degrade relatively quickly with half-lives of 0.5 and 1.5h, respectively. However, roxithromycin and erythromycin, macrolides are persistent (half-life: 2.4-10 days) under solar simulation. The transformation products (15) of the targeted antibiotics produced under irradiation experiments were identified using high resolution mass spectrometry and degradation pathways were proposed. © 2013.

MEMS sensor technologies for human centred applications in healthcare, physical activities, safety and environmental sensing: a review on research activities in Italy.

PubMed

Ciuti, Gastone; Ricotti, Leonardo; Menciassi, Arianna; Dario, Paolo

2015-03-17

Over the past few decades the increased level of public awareness concerning healthcare, physical activities, safety and environmental sensing has created an emerging need for smart sensor technologies and monitoring devices able to sense, classify, and provide feedbacks to users' health status and physical activities, as well as to evaluate environmental and safety conditions in a pervasive, accurate and reliable fashion. Monitoring and precisely quantifying users' physical activity with inertial measurement unit-based devices, for instance, has also proven to be important in health management of patients affected by chronic diseases, e.g., Parkinson's disease, many of which are becoming highly prevalent in Italy and in the Western world. This review paper will focus on MEMS sensor technologies developed in Italy in the last three years describing research achievements for healthcare and physical activity, safety and environmental sensing, in addition to smart systems integration. Innovative and smart integrated solutions for sensing devices, pursued and implemented in Italian research centres, will be highlighted, together with specific applications of such technologies. Finally, the paper will depict the future perspective of sensor technologies and corresponding exploitation opportunities, again with a specific focus on Italy.

MEMS Sensor Technologies for Human Centred Applications in Healthcare, Physical Activities, Safety and Environmental Sensing: A Review on Research Activities in Italy

PubMed Central

Ciuti, Gastone; Ricotti, Leonardo; Menciassi, Arianna; Dario, Paolo

2015-01-01

Over the past few decades the increased level of public awareness concerning healthcare, physical activities, safety and environmental sensing has created an emerging need for smart sensor technologies and monitoring devices able to sense, classify, and provide feedbacks to users’ health status and physical activities, as well as to evaluate environmental and safety conditions in a pervasive, accurate and reliable fashion. Monitoring and precisely quantifying users’ physical activity with inertial measurement unit-based devices, for instance, has also proven to be important in health management of patients affected by chronic diseases, e.g., Parkinson’s disease, many of which are becoming highly prevalent in Italy and in the Western world. This review paper will focus on MEMS sensor technologies developed in Italy in the last three years describing research achievements for healthcare and physical activity, safety and environmental sensing, in addition to smart systems integration. Innovative and smart integrated solutions for sensing devices, pursued and implemented in Italian research centres, will be highlighted, together with specific applications of such technologies. Finally, the paper will depict the future perspective of sensor technologies and corresponding exploitation opportunities, again with a specific focus on Italy. PMID:25808763

Assessment of environmental health and safety issues associated with the commercialization of unconventional gas recovery: methane from coal seams

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ethridge, L.J.; Cowan, C.E.; Riedel, E.F.

1980-07-01

Potential public health and safety problems and the potential environmental impacts from the recovery of gas from coalbeds are identified and examined. The technology of methane recovery is described and economic and legal barriers to production are discussed. (ACR)

Development of an omnidirectional gamma-ray imaging Compton camera for low-radiation-level environmental monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watanabe, Takara; Enomoto, Ryoji; Muraishi, Hiroshi; Katagiri, Hideaki; Kagaya, Mika; Fukushi, Masahiro; Kano, Daisuke; Satoh, Wataru; Takeda, Tohoru; Tanaka, Manobu M.; Tanaka, Souichi; Uchida, Tomohisa; Wada, Kiyoto; Wakamatsu, Ryo

2018-02-01

We have developed an omnidirectional gamma-ray imaging Compton camera for environmental monitoring at low levels of radiation. The camera consisted of only six CsI(Tl) scintillator cubes of 3.5 cm, each of which was readout by super-bialkali photo-multiplier tubes (PMTs). Our camera enables the visualization of the position of gamma-ray sources in all directions (∼4π sr) over a wide energy range between 300 and 1400 keV. The angular resolution (σ) was found to be ∼11°, which was realized using an image-sharpening technique. A high detection efficiency of 18 cps/(µSv/h) for 511 keV (1.6 cps/MBq at 1 m) was achieved, indicating the capability of this camera to visualize hotspots in areas with low-radiation-level contamination from the order of µSv/h to natural background levels. Our proposed technique can be easily used as a low-radiation-level imaging monitor in radiation control areas, such as medical and accelerator facilities.

Safety climate in the US federal wildland fire management community: influences of organizational, environmental, group, and individual characteristics

Treesearch

Anne E. Black; Brooke Baldauf McBride

2013-01-01

This study examined the effects of organisational, environmental, group and individual characteristics on five components of safety climate (High Reliability Organising Practices, Leadership, Group Culture, Learning Orientation and Mission Clarity) in the US federal wildland fire management community. Of particular interest were differences between perceptions based on...

Radiation sensors for medical, industrial and environmental applications: how to engage with schools and the general public

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seitz, B.; Campos Rivera, N.; Gray, R.; Powell, A.; Thomson, F.

2018-01-01

Radiation, radiation detection and radiation protection are topics in physics and its applications which generate a wide interest in the public. This interest is either generated through medical procedures, applications of nuclear energy or nuclear accidents. The technical nature of these topics usually means that they are not well covered in the normal education stream, opening many opportunities to engage with schools and the general public to showcase the latest developments and their applications. The detection of radiation is at the very heart of understanding radiation, its fascination and associated fears. The outreach group of the nuclear physics group at the University of Glasgow demonstrates a number of successful outreach activities centred around radiation detection and described in this paper, focusing on activities delivered to a variety of audiences and related to applied nuclear physics work within our group. These concentrate on the application of novel sensor technologies for nuclear decommissioning, medical imaging modalities and the monitoring of environmental radioactivity. The paper will provide some necessary background material as well as practical instructions for some of the activities developed.

Environmental, health, and safety issues of fuel cells in transportation. Volume 1: Phosphoric acid fuel-cell buses

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ring, S

1994-12-01

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) chartered the Phosphoric Acid Fuel-Cell (PAFC) Bus Program to demonstrate the feasibility of fuel cells in heavy-duty transportation systems. As part of this program, PAFC- powered buses are being built to meet transit industry design and performance standards. Test-bed bus-1 (TBB-1) was designed in 1993 and integrated in March 1994. TBB-2 and TBB-3 are under construction and should be integrated in early 1995. In 1987 Phase I of the program began with the development and testing of two conceptual system designs- liquid- and air-cooled systems. The liquid-cooled PAFC system was chosen to continue, throughmore » a competitive award, into Phase H, beginning in 1991. Three hybrid buses, which combine fuel-cell and battery technologies, were designed during Phase III. After completing Phase II, DOE plans a comprehensive performance testing program (Phase HI) to verify that the buses meet stringent transit industry requirements. The Phase III study will evaluate the PAFC bus and compare it to a conventional diesel bus. This NREL study assesses the environmental, health, and safety (EH&S) issues that may affect the commercialization of the PAFC bus. Because safety is a critical factor for consumer acceptance of new transportation-based technologies the study focuses on these issues. The study examines health and safety together because they are integrally related. In addition, this report briefly discusses two environmental issues that are of concern to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The first issue involves a surge battery used by the PAFC bus that contains hazardous constituents. The second issue concerns the regulated air emissions produced during operation of the PAFC bus.« less

Practical management of chemicals and hazardous wastes: An environmental and safety professional`s guide

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kuhre, W.L.

This book was written to help the environmental and safety student learn about the field and to help the working professional manage hazardous material and waste issues. For example, one issue that will impact virtually all of these people mentioned is the upcoming environmental standardization movement. The International Standards Organization (ISO) is in the process of adding comprehensive environmental and hazardous waste management systems to their future certification requirements. Most industries worldwide will be working hard to achieve this new level of environmental management. This book presents many of the systems needed to receive certification. In order to properly managemore » hazardous waste, it is important to consider the entire life cycle, including when the waste was a useful chemical or hazardous material. Waste minimization is built upon this concept. Understanding the entire life cycle is also important in terms of liability, since many regulations hold generators responsible from cradle to grave. This book takes the life-cycle concept even further, in order to provide additional insight. The discussion starts with the conception of the chemical and traces its evolution into a waste and even past disposal. At this point the story continues into the afterlife, where responsibility still remains.« less

HSE's safety assessment principles for criticality safety.

PubMed

Simister, D N; Finnerty, M D; Warburton, S J; Thomas, E A; Macphail, M R

2008-06-01

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) published its revised Safety Assessment Principles for Nuclear Facilities (SAPs) in December 2006. The SAPs are primarily intended for use by HSE's inspectors when judging the adequacy of safety cases for nuclear facilities. The revised SAPs relate to all aspects of safety in nuclear facilities including the technical discipline of criticality safety. The purpose of this paper is to set out for the benefit of a wider audience some of the thinking behind the final published words and to provide an insight into the development of UK regulatory guidance. The paper notes that it is HSE's intention that the Safety Assessment Principles should be viewed as a reflection of good practice in the context of interpreting primary legislation such as the requirements under site licence conditions for arrangements for producing an adequate safety case and for producing a suitable and sufficient risk assessment under the Ionising Radiations Regulations 1999 (SI1999/3232 www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si1999/uksi_19993232_en.pdf).

Implementation of Information Management System for Radiation Safety of Personnel at the Russian Northwest Center for Radioactive Waste Management 'SevRAO' - 13131

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chizhov, K.; Simakov, A.; Seregin, V.

2013-07-01

The report is an overview of the information-analytical system designed to assure radiation safety of workers. The system was implemented in the Northwest Radioactive Waste Management Center 'SevRAO' (which is a branch of the Federal State Unitary Enterprise 'Radioactive Waste Management Enterprise RosRAO'). The center is located in the Northwest Russia. In respect to 'SevRAO', the Federal Medical-Biological Agency is the regulatory body, which deals with issues of radiation control. The main document to regulate radiation control is 'Reference levels of radiation factors in radioactive wastes management center'. This document contains about 250 parameters. We have developed a software toolmore » to simplify control of these parameters. The software includes: input interface, the database, dose calculating module and analytical block. Input interface is used to enter radiation environment data. Dose calculating module calculates the dose on the route. Analytical block optimizes and analyzes radiation situation maps. Much attention is paid to the GUI and graphical representation of results. The operator can enter the route at the industrial site or watch the fluctuations of the dose rate field on the map. Most of the results are presented in a visual form. Here we present some analytical tasks, such as comparison of the dose rate in some point with control levels at this point, to be solved for the purpose of radiation safety control. The program helps to identify points making the largest contribution to the collective dose of the personnel. The tool can automatically calculate the route with the lowest dose, compare and choose the best route. The program uses several options to visualize the radiation environment at the industrial site. This system will be useful for radiation monitoring services during the operation, planning of works and development of scenarios. The paper presents some applications of this system on real data over three years - from March

The risks of radiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miettenen, Jorma K.

1988-01-01

The risks of radioactivity are a really complicated matter, yet they are much better known than are the risks relating to thousands of chemical poisons that occur in our environment. The greatest mistakes are probably made in the definition of safety margins. Except for the bombs dropped in Japan and one other case in the Marshall Islands, there has always—luckily—been a wide safety margin between fallout radiation and doses dangerous to health; the margin has actually been about 1000-fold. The Chernobyl dose of 0.5 mGy/year that we received is only 1/1000 of the acute dose of 0.5 Gy which would cause a slight and nonpermanent change in the blood picture. There is no such safety margin with respect to many air pollutants. The safety standards for sulfuric or nitric oxides, ozone and so on, have been set only just below the level that already causes a health hazard, and these standards are exceeded once in a while. Otherwise, traffic would have to be forbidden and many industrial plants, especially power stations using coal, would have to stop working whenever a low-temperature inversion occurred. Environmental radioactivity does not represent a likely health risk in Finland unless a nuclear war breaks out. Air pollutants, on the contrary, are a real and almost daily health risk that should be carefully considered when decisions about our energy production are being made. In spite of what happened at Chernobyl, global consumption of nuclear power will double by the year 2000, since there are about 140 nuclear power plants presently under construction. It is not likely that another catastrophe like Chernobyl will happen, yet nuclear plant accidents are of course possible, even if their likelihood is diminished by improving reactor safety and even if any eventual damage could be expected to be smaller. If a reactor is hooded by a containment structure, no significant release of radioactive materials should be possible even in case of an accident. However, we must

Oak Ridge Reservation Annual Site Environmental Report for 2009

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bechtel Jacobs

2010-09-01

The Oak Ridge Reservation Annual Site Environmental Report is prepared animally and presents summary environmental data to (1) characterize environmental performance, (2) summarize environmental occurrences reported during the year, (3) confirm compliance with environmental standards and requirements, and (4) highlight significant program activities. The report fulfills the requirement contained in DOE Order 231.1 A, Environment, Safety and Health Reporting (DOE 2004) that an integrated annual site environmental report be prepared. The results summarized in this report are based on data collected prior to and through 2009. This report is not intended to nor does it present the results of allmore » environmental monitoring associated with the ORR. Data collected for other site and regulatory purposes, such as environmental restoration/remedial investigation reports, waste management characterization sampling data, and environmental permit compliance data, are presented in other documents that have been prepared in accordance with applicable DOE guidance and/or laws and are referenced herein as appropriate. Appendix A to this report identifies corrections to the 2008 report. Appendix B contains a glossary of technical terms that may be useful for understanding the terminology used in this document. Environmental monitoring on the ORR consists primarily of two major activities: effluent monitoring and environmental surveillance. Effluent monitoring involves the collection and analysis of samples or measurements of liquid and gaseous effluents at the points of release to the environment; these measurements allow the quantification and official reporting of contaminant levels, assessment of radiation and chemical exposures to the public, and demonstration of compliance with applicable standards and permit requirements. Environmental surveillance consists of direct measurements and collection and analysis of samples taken from the site and its environs exclusive of

Opportunities for scientists to influence policy: when does radiation metrology matter in development of national policy?

PubMed

Coursey, Bert M

2014-05-01

Accurate measurements of radiation and radioactivity rarely rise to the level of national policy. The things that matter most to ordinary citizens do not normally include questions of science and technology. Citizens are more often concerned with issues close to home relating to commerce, health, safety, security and the environment. When questions of confidence in measurements arise, they are first directed to the ministry that has responsibilities in that area. When the required uncertainty in field measurements challenges the capability of the regulatory authorities, the National Metrology Institute may be asked to develop transfer standards to enhance the capabilities of the ministry with the mission lead. In this paper, we will consider eight instances over the past nine decades in which questions in radiation and radionuclide metrology in the US did rise to the level that they influenced decisions on national policy. These eight examples share some common threads. Radioactivity and ionizing radiation are useful tools in many disciplines, but can often represent potential or perceived threats to health and public safety. When unforeseen applications of radiation arise, or when environmental radioactivity from natural and man-made sources presents a possible health hazard, the radiation metrologists may be called upon to provide the technical underpinning for policy development. © 2013 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

In vitro dosimetry modeling will be a critical step toward efficient assessment of engineered nanomaterials for environmental health and safety

EPA Science Inventory

Presentation Description: The development and application of engineered nanomaterials (ENM) into commercial and consumer products is far outpacing the ability of traditional approaches to evaluate the potential implications for environmental health and safety. This problem recen...

Physical hazard safety awareness among healthcare workers in Tanta university hospitals, Egypt.

PubMed

El-Sallamy, Rania M; Kabbash, Ibrahim Ali; El-Fatah, Sanaa Abd; El-Feky, Asmaa

2017-05-17

Hospital workers are exposed to many occupational hazards that may threaten their health and safety. Physical hazards encountered in hospital working environment include temperature, illumination, noise, electrical injuries, and radiation. To assess the awareness of healthcare workers (HCWs) about physical hazards in Tanta university hospitals, this cross-sectional study included 401 HCWs (physicians, nurses, technicians, and workers) from seven departments (general surgery, orthopedics, radiology, ophthalmology, kitchen, incinerator, and laundry). Data were collected through interview questionnaire to assess six types of physical hazards (noise, electric hazards, temperature, radiation, fire, and lighting,). Most of the physicians (63.7%) were aware of the level of noise. All physicians, nurses, technicians, and majority of workers reported that hearing protective devices were not available, and all HCWs reported that periodic hearing examination was not performed. Most of the nurses (75.2%) and workers (68.5%) did not attended emergency training, and more than two thirds of all HCWs were not briefed about emergency evacuation. Most HCWs were not given appropriate radiation safety training before starting work (88% of workers, 73.7% of nurses, 65.7% of physicians, and 68.3% of technicians). The majority of physicians, nurses, and technicians (70.5, 65.4, and 53.7%) denied regular environmental monitoring for radiation level inside work place. Health education programs on health and safety issues regarding physical hazards should be mandatory to all healthcare workers to improve their awareness and protect them from undue exposures they may face due to lack of adequate awareness and knowledge. There is urgent need of expanding the occupational healthcare services in Egypt to cover all the employees as indicated by the international recommendations and the Egyptian Constitution, legislation, and community necessity.

Environmental and health impacts of February 14, 2014 radiation release from the nation's only deep geologic nuclear waste repository.

PubMed

Thakur, P; Lemons, B G; Ballard, S; Hardy, R

2015-08-01

The environmental impact of the February 14, 2014 radiation release from the nation's only deep geologic nuclear waste repository, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) was assessed using monitoring data from an independent monitoring program conducted by the Carlsbad Environmental Monitoring & Research Center (CEMRC). After almost 15 years of safe and efficient operations, the WIPP had one of its waste drums rupture underground resulting in the release of moderate levels of radioactivity into the underground air. A small amount of radioactivity also escaped to the surface through the ventilation system and was detected above ground. It was the first unambiguous release from the WIPP repository. The dominant radionuclides released were americium and plutonium, in a ratio that matches the content of the breached drum. The accelerated air monitoring campaign, which began following the accident, indicates that releases were low and localized, and no radiation-related health effects among local workers or the public would be expected. The highest activity detected was 115.2 μBq/m(3) for (241)Am and 10.2 μBq/m(3) for (239+240)Pu at a sampling station located 91 m away from the underground air exhaust point and 81.4 μBq/m(3) of (241)Am and 5.8 μBq/m(3) of (239+240)Pu at a monitoring station located approximately one kilometer northwest of the WIPP facility. CEMRC's recent monitoring data show that the concentration levels of these radionuclides have returned to normal background levels and in many instances, are not even detectable, demonstrating no long-term environmental impacts of the recent radiation release event at the WIPP. This article presents an evaluation of almost one year of environmental monitoring data that informed the public that the levels of radiation that got out to the environment were very low and did not, and will not harm anyone or have any long-term environmental consequence. In terms of radiological risk at or in the vicinity of the

Oak Ridge Reservation Annual Site Environmental Report for 2003

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

2004-09-30

This document is prepared annually to summarize environmental activities, primarily environmental-monitoring activities, on the ORR and within the ORR surroundings. The document fulfills the requirement of U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Order 231.1, “Environment, Safety and Health Reporting,” for an annual summary of environmental data to characterize environmental performance. The environmental monitoring criteria are described in DOE Order 450.1, “Environmental Protection Program.” The results summarized in this report are based on data collected prior to and through 2003. This report is not intended to provide the results of all sampling on the ORR. Additional data collected for other site andmore » regulatory purposes, such as environmental restoration remedial investigation reports, waste management characterization sampling data, and environmental permit compliance data, are presented in other documents that have been prepared in accordance with applicable DOE guidance and/or laws. Corrections to the report for the previous year are found in Appendix A. Environmental monitoring on the ORR consists primarily of two major activities: effluent monitoring and environmental surveillance. Effluent monitoring involves the collection and analysis of samples or measurements of liquid and gaseous effluents at the point of release to the environment; these measurements allow the quantification and official reporting of contaminants, assessment of radiation and chemical exposures to the public, and demonstration of compliance with applicable standards and permit requirements. Environmental surveillance consists of the collection and analysis of environmental samples from the site and its environs; these activities provide direct measurement of contaminants in air, water, groundwater, soil, foods, biota, and other media subsequent to effluent release into the environment. Environmental surveillance data provide information regarding conformity with applicable

Oak Ridge Reservation Annual Site Environmental Report for 2010

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Thompson, Sharon D

2011-10-01

The Oak Ridge Reservation Annual Site Environmental Report is prepared annually and presents summary environmental data to (1) characterize environmental performance, (2) summarize environmental occurrences reported during the year, (3) confirm compliance with environmental standards and requirements, and (4) highlight significant program activities. The report fulfills the requirement contained in DOE Order 231.1A, Environment, Safety and Health Reporting (DOE 2004) that an integrated annual site environmental report be prepared. The results summarized in this report are based on data collected prior to and through 2010. This report is not intended to nor does it present the results of all environmentalmore » monitoring associated with the ORR. Data collected for other site and regulatory purposes, such as environmental restoration/remedial investigation reports, waste management characterization sampling data, and environmental permit compliance data, are presented in other documents that have been prepared in accordance with applicable DOE guidance and/or laws and are referenced herein as appropriate. Appendix A to this report identifies corrections to the 2009 report. Appendix B contains a glossary of technical terms that may be useful for understanding the terminology used in this document. Environmental monitoring on the ORR consists primarily of two major activities: effluent monitoring and environmental surveillance. Effluent monitoring involves the collection and analysis of samples or measurements of liquid and gaseous effluents at the points of release to the environment; these measurements allow the quantification and official reporting of contaminant levels, assessment of radiation and chemical exposures to the public, and demonstration of compliance with applicable standards and permit requirements. Environmental surveillance consists of direct measurements and collection and analysis of samples taken from the site and its environs exclusive of

Oak Ridge Reservation Annual Site Environmental Report for 2009

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Thompson, Sharon D; Loffman, Regis S

2010-10-01

The Oak Ridge Reservation Annual Site Environmental Report is prepared annually and presents summary environmental data to (1) characterize environmental performance, (2) summarize environmental occurrences reported during the year, (3) confirm compliance with environmental standards and requirements, and (4) highlight significant program activities. The report fulfills the requirement contained in DOE Order 231.1A, Environment, Safety and Health Reporting (DOE 2004) that an integrated annual site environmental report be prepared. The results summarized in this report are based on data collected prior to and through 2009. This report is not intended to nor does it present the results of all environmentalmore » monitoring associated with the ORR. Data collected for other site and regulatory purposes, such as environmental restoration/remedial investigation reports, waste management characterization sampling data, and environmental permit compliance data, are presented in other documents that have been prepared in accordance with applicable DOE guidance and/or laws and are referenced herein as appropriate. Appendix A to this report identifies corrections for the 2008 report. Appendix B contains a glossary of technical terms that may be useful for understanding the terminology used in this document. Environmental monitoring on the ORR consists primarily of two major activities: effluent monitoring and environmental surveillance. Effluent monitoring involves the collection and analysis of samples or measurements of liquid and gaseous effluents at the points of release to the environment; these measurements allow the quantification and official reporting of contaminant levels, assessment of radiation and chemical exposures to the public, and demonstration of compliance with applicable standards and permit requirements. Environmental surveillance consists of direct measurements and collection and analysis of samples taken from the site and its environs exclusive of

Environmental Cues to Ultraviolet Radiation and Personal Sun Protection In Outdoor Winter Recreation

PubMed Central

Buller, David B.; Walkosz, Barbara J.; Scott, Michael D.; Maloy, Julie A.; Cutter, Gary R.; Dignan, Mark D.

2012-01-01

Objective The prevalence of ultraviolet radiation (UV) at North American ski resorts was predicted using temporal, seasonal, altitudinal, and meteorological factors and associated with a set of adult sun protection behaviors. Design UV observations and cross-sectional survey of adults on sun protection were collected. Setting Data were collected at 32 high-altitude ski areas located in Western North America in 2001–03. Participants The sample consisted of 3,937 adult skier or snowboarders. Main Outcome Measures Measurements of direct, reflected, and diffuse UV were performed at 487 measurement points using handheld meters and combined with self-reported and observed sun protection assessed for adults interviewed on chair lifts. Results The strongest predictors of UV were temporal proximity to noon, deviation from winter solstice, and clear skies. By contrast, altitude and latitude had more modest associations with UV and temperature had a small positive relationship with UV. Guest sun safety was inconsistently associated with UV: UV was positively related to adults wearing more sunscreen, reapplying it after two hours, and wearing protective eyewear but fewer adults exhibited many of the other sun protection behaviors, such as hats, protective clothing or lip balm, on days when UV was elevated. Guests took more sun safety precautions on clear-sky days but took steps to maintain body warmth on inclement days. Conclusions In future sun safety promotions, adults should be encouraged to wear sunscreen on cloudy days because UV is still high and conditions can change rapidly. They need reminders to rely more on season and time of day when judging UV and the need for sun safety. PMID:21079060

Selection of extreme environmental conditions, albedo coefficient and Earth infrared radiation, for polar summer Long Duration Balloon missions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

González-Llana, Arturo; González-Bárcena, David; Pérez-Grande, Isabel; Sanz-Andrés, Ángel

2018-07-01

The selection of the extreme thermal environmental conditions -albedo coefficient and Earth infrared radiation- for the thermal design of stratospheric balloon missions is usually based on the methodologies applied in space missions. However, the particularities of stratospheric balloon missions, such as the much higher residence time of the balloon payload over a determined area, make necessary an approach centered in the actual environment the balloon is going to find, in terms of geographic area and season of flight. In this sense, this work is focussed on stratospheric balloon missions circumnavigating the North Pole during the summer period. Pairs of albedo and Earth infrared radiation satellite data restricted to this area and season of interest have been treated statistically. Furthermore, the environmental conditions leading to the extreme temperatures of the payload depend in turn on the surface finish, and more particularly on the ratio between the solar absorptance and the infrared emissivity α/ε. A simple but representative thermal model of a balloon and its payload has been set up in order to identify the pairs of albedo coefficient and Earth infrared radiation leading to extreme temperatures for each value of α/ε.

Overview of Federal, New York State, and New York City Law Regarding Environmental Health and Safety in Schools.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Advocates for Children of New York, Inc., Long Island City.

This document presents many of the federal, state, and New York City laws that apply to the health, safety, and environmental conditions of schools. The relevant portions of the law have been selected along with the mechanisms of legal enforcement that may exist and contact information where applicable. Legislative categories covered include air…

Effects of gamma radiation on raspberries: safety and quality issues.

PubMed

Verde, S Cabo; Trigo, M J; Sousa, M B; Ferreira, A; Ramos, A C; Nunes, I; Junqueira, C; Melo, R; Santos, P M P; Botelho, M L

2013-01-01

There is an ever-increasing global demand from consumers for high-quality foods with major emphasis placed on quality and safety attributes. One of the main demands that consumers display is for minimally processed, high-nutrition/low-energy natural foods with no or minimal chemical preservatives. The nutritional value of raspberry fruit is widely recognized. In particular, red raspberries are known to demonstrate a strong antioxidant capacity that might prove beneficial to human health by preventing free radical-induced oxidative stress. However, food products that are consumed raw, are increasingly being recognized as important vehicles for transmission of human pathogens. Food irradiation is one of the few technologies that address both food quality and safety by virtue of its ability to control spoilage and foodborne pathogenic microorganisms without significantly affecting sensory or other organoleptic attributes of the food. Food irradiation is well established as a physical, nonthermal treatment (cold pasteurization) that processes foods at or nearly at ambient temperature in the final packaging, reducing the possibility of cross contamination until the food is actually used by the consumer. The aim of this study was to evaluate effects of gamma radiation on raspberries in order to assess consequences of irradiation. Freshly packed raspberries (Rubus idaeus L.) were irradiated in a (60)Co source at several doses (0.5, 1, or 1.5 kGy). Bioburden, total phenolic content, antioxidant activity, physicochemical properties such as texture, color, pH, soluble solids content, and acidity, and sensorial parameters were assessed before and after irradiation and during storage time up to 14 d at 4°C. Characterization of raspberries microbiota showed an average bioburden value of 10(4) colony-forming units (CFU)/g and a diverse microbial population predominantly composed of two morphological types (gram-negative, oxidase-negative rods, 35%, and filamentous fungi, 41

10 CFR 35.415 - Safety precautions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Safety precautions. 35.415 Section 35.415 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION MEDICAL USE OF BYPRODUCT MATERIAL Manual Brachytherapy § 35.415 Safety precautions. (a... following removal of the source applicators. (c) A licensee shall notify the Radiation Safety Officer, or...

Mars Surface Environmental Issues

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Charles, John

2002-01-01

Planetary exploration by astronauts will require extended periods of habitation on a planet's surface, under the influence of environmental factors that are different from those of Earth and the spacecraft that delivered the crew to the planet. Human exploration of Mars, a possible near-term planetary objective, can be considered a challenging scenario. Mission scenarios currently under consideration call for surface habitation periods of from 1 to 18 months on even the earliest expeditions. Methods: Environmental issues associated with Mars exploration have been investigated by NASA and the National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI) as part of the Bioastronautics Critical Path Roadmap Project (see http ://criticalpath.jsc.nasa.gov). Results: Arrival on Mars will immediately expose the crew to gravity only 38% of that at Earth's surface in possibly the first prolonged exposure to gravity other than the 1G of Earth's surface and the zero G of weightless space flight, with yet unknown effects on crew physiology. The radiation at Mars' surface is not well documented, although the planet's bulk and even its thin atmosphere may moderate the influx of galactic cosmic radiation and energetic protons from solar flares. Secondary radiation from activated components of the soil must also be considered. Ultrafine and larger respirable and nonrespirable particles in Martian dust introduced into the habitat after surface excursions may induce pulmonary inflammation exacerbated by the additive reactive and oxidizing nature of the dust. Stringent decontamination cannot eliminate mechanical and corrosive effects of the dust on pressure suits and exposed machinery. The biohazard potential of putative indigenous Martian microorganisms may be assessed by comparison with analog environments on Earth. Even in their absence, human microorganisms, if not properly controlled, can be a threat to the crew's health. Conclusions: Mars' surface offers a substantial challenge to the

33 CFR 165.20 - Safety zones.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 2 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Safety zones. 165.20 Section 165... WATERWAYS SAFETY REGULATED NAVIGATION AREAS AND LIMITED ACCESS AREAS Safety Zones § 165.20 Safety zones. A Safety Zone is a water area, shore area, or water and shore area to which, for safety or environmental...

33 CFR 165.20 - Safety zones.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Safety zones. 165.20 Section 165... WATERWAYS SAFETY REGULATED NAVIGATION AREAS AND LIMITED ACCESS AREAS Safety Zones § 165.20 Safety zones. A Safety Zone is a water area, shore area, or water and shore area to which, for safety or environmental...

Car radiator burns: a prevention issue.

PubMed

Rabbitts, Angela; Alden, Nicole E; Conlin, Tara; Yurt, Roger W

2004-01-01

Scald burns continue to be the major cause of injury to patients admitted to the burn center. Scald burns occurring from car radiator fluid comprise a significant subgroup. Although manufacturer warning labels have been placed on car radiators, these burns continue to occur. This retrospective review looks at all patients admitted to our burn center who suffered scald burns from car radiator fluid to assess the extent of this problem. During the study period, 86 patients were identified as having suffered scald burns as a result of contact with car radiator fluid. Seventy-one percent of the burn injuries occurred in the summer months. The areas most commonly burned were the head and upper extremities. Burn prevention efforts have improved greatly over the years; however, this study demonstrates that scald burns from car radiator fluid continue to cause physical, emotional, and financial devastation. The current radiator warning labels alone are not effective. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has proposed a new federal motor vehicle safety standard to aid in decreasing the number of scald burns from car radiators. The results of this study were submitted to the United States Department of Transportation for inclusion in a docket for federal legislation supporting these safety measures.

24 CFR 51.203 - Safety standards.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Safety standards. 51.203 Section 51... Conventional Fuels or Chemicals of an Explosive or Flammable Nature § 51.203 Safety standards. The following... from a hazard: (a) Thermal Radiation Safety Standard. Projects shall be located so that: (1) The...

10 CFR 35.410 - Safety instruction.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Safety instruction. 35.410 Section 35.410 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION MEDICAL USE OF BYPRODUCT MATERIAL Manual Brachytherapy § 35.410 Safety instruction. In addition to the requirements of § 19.12 of this chapter, (a) The licensee shall provide radiation safety...

10 CFR 35.310 - Safety instruction.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Safety instruction. 35.310 Section 35.310 Energy NUCLEAR... Required § 35.310 Safety instruction. In addition to the requirements of § 19.12 of this chapter, (a) A licensee shall provide radiation safety instruction, initially and at least annually, to personnel caring...

24 CFR 51.203 - Safety standards.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Safety standards. 51.203 Section 51... Conventional Fuels or Chemicals of an Explosive or Flammable Nature § 51.203 Safety standards. The following... from a hazard: (a) Thermal Radiation Safety Standard. Projects shall be located so that: (1) The...

10 CFR 35.310 - Safety instruction.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Safety instruction. 35.310 Section 35.310 Energy NUCLEAR... Required § 35.310 Safety instruction. In addition to the requirements of § 19.12 of this chapter, (a) A licensee shall provide radiation safety instruction, initially and at least annually, to personnel caring...

Application study of Bio-FGD based on environmental safety during the coal combustion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Pin

2018-05-01

Coal combustion produces a large amount of acidic gas, which is the main cause of acid rain and other natural disasters. Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) is a necessary requirement for clean coal combustion. Compared with the traditional chemical desulfurization technology, biological desulfurization has the advantages of low operating cost, without secondary pollution, low carbon emission and the additional economic benefits. The process and structure of BioDeSOx which as one of Bio-FGD technology is introduced. The major factors that influent BioDeSOx Bio- FGD system is the pH, oxidation reduction potential (-300 MV to -400MV), electrical conductivity, the adding amount of nutrient and temperature (30°C-40°C). Taking the Bio- FGD project of Yixing xielian thermal power plant as an example, the BioDeSOx technology was applied in this project. The environmental and economic benefits of the project were greater than the traditional desulfurization technology. With the continuous improvement of environmental safety standards, Bio- FGD technology will have broad application prospects.

Management of radioactive material safety programs at medical facilities. Final report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Camper, L.W.; Schlueter, J.; Woods, S.

A Task Force, comprising eight US Nuclear Regulatory Commission and two Agreement State program staff members, developed the guidance contained in this report. This report describes a systematic approach for effectively managing radiation safety programs at medical facilities. This is accomplished by defining and emphasizing the roles of an institution`s executive management, radiation safety committee, and radiation safety officer. Various aspects of program management are discussed and guidance is offered on selecting the radiation safety officer, determining adequate resources for the program, using such contractual services as consultants and service companies, conducting audits, and establishing the roles of authorized usersmore » and supervised individuals; NRC`s reporting and notification requirements are discussed, and a general description is given of how NRC`s licensing, inspection and enforcement programs work.« less

Radiation Exposure from Medical Exams and Procedures

MedlinePlus

Fact Sheet Adopted: January 2010 Health Physics Society Specialists in Radiation Safety Radiation Exposure from Medical Exams and Procedures Ionizing radiation is used daily in hospitals and clinics ...

Management of ionizing radiation injuries and illnesses, part 1: physics, radiation protection, and radiation instrumentation.

PubMed

Christensen, Doran M; Jenkins, Mark S; Sugarman, Stephen L; Glassman, Erik S

2014-03-01

Ionizing radiation injuries and illnesses are exceedingly rare; therefore, most physicians have never managed such conditions. When confronted with a possible radiation injury or illness, most physicians must seek specialty consultation. Protection of responders, health care workers, and patients is an absolute priority for the delivery of medical care. Management of ionizing radiation injuries and illnesses, as well as radiation protection, requires a basic understanding of physics. Also, to provide a greater measure of safety when working with radioactive materials, instrumentation for detection and identification of radiation is needed. Because any health care professional could face a radiation emergency, it is imperative that all institutions have emergency response plans in place before an incident occurs. The present article is an introduction to basic physics, ionizing radiation, radiation protection, and radiation instrumentation, and it provides a basis for management of the consequences of a radiologic or nuclear incident.

The Role of ESA TEC-QTE in the ISS Safety Process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Orlandi, M.; Rohr, T.; Stienstra, M. H.; Semprimoschnig, C.

2013-09-01

On the 17th of July 2000, the Materials and Processes Reciprocal Agreement was signed between NASA and ESA to define the process for selection and certification of materials used in the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station. Consecutively, on the 20th of June 2003 this agreement was extended to the Automated Transport Vehicle (ATV). It is therefore the responsibility of ESA TEC-QTE, the Materials Space Evaluation and Radiation Effects section, part of the Product Assurance and Safety Department, to ensure that all materials, parts and processes of each of the ISS payloads not only function as required but also do not pose a risk to the safety of the crew members. In this context, TEC-QTE provides qualified expertise to support the ESA Flight Safety Review and assesses safety aspects related to manned projects (materials properties, fluid system compatibility, fungus resistance). This is supported by the Materials Space Evaluation and Radiation Effects section's Materials and Electrical Components laboratory having at its disposition a range of facilities designed to perform environmental effects testing of which off-gassing tests according to ECSS-Q-ST-70-29C (equivalent to NASA STD 6001 test 7) and outgassing tests according to ECSS-Q-ST-70-02C (equivalent to ASTM-E-595). The ESA facility to perform flammability tests according to ECSS-Q-ST-70-21A (equivalent to NASA STD 6001 test1) was moved to Astrium Bremen.TEC-QTE is in charge of reviewing and approving, via RFA or MUA , all materials that do not meet safety requirements as well as COTS or CAM (black boxes) equipment.The safety process ends with the issue of the Materials Certification of the reviewed payload hardware that shows compliance with the relevant materials and processes requirements and standards.In addition to the safety related activities for the ISS, specialised TEC-QTE personnel provide measurements of the air quality inside the ATV and assess whether the toxicity index is within

What Parents Should Know about Medical Radiation Safety

MedlinePlus

... related cancer risks at low doses among atomic bomb survivors. Radiation Research 2000; 154:178-186. Preston ... Tokuoka S, et al. Solid cancer incidence in atomic bomb survivors: 1958-1998. Radiation Research 2007; 168:1- ...

Nuclear Safety

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Silver, E G

This document is a review journal that covers significant developments in the field of nuclear safety. Its scope includes the analysis and control of hazards associated with nuclear energy, operations involving fissionable materials, and the products of nuclear fission and their effects on the environment. Primary emphasis is on safety in reactor design, construction, and operation; however, the safety aspects of the entire fuel cycle, including fuel fabrication, spent-fuel processing, nuclear waste disposal, handling of radioisotopes, and environmental effects of these operations, are also treated.

Environmental Performance Report 2015

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL's) Environmental Performance Report provides a description of the laboratory's environmental management activities for 2015, including information on environmental and sustainability performance, environmental compliance activities and status, and environmental protection programs, highlights, and successes. The purpose of this report is to ensure that U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the public receive timely, accurate information about events that have affected or could adversely affect the health, safety, and security of the public or workers; the environment; or the operations of DOE facilities. This report meets the requirements of the Annual Site Environmental Report and ismore » prepared in accordance with the DOE Order 231.1B, Environment, Safety and Health Reporting.« less

Environmental Performance Report 2016

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Braus, Genevieve

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL's) Environmental Performance Report provides a description of the laboratory's environmental management activities for 2016, including information on environmental and sustainability performance, environmental compliance activities and status, and environmental protection programs, highlights, and successes. The purpose of this report is to ensure that U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the public receive timely, accurate information about events that have affected or could adversely affect the health, safety, and security of the public or workers; the environment; or the operations of DOE facilities. This report meets the requirements of the Annual Site Environmental Report and ismore » prepared in accordance with the DOE Order 231.1B, Environment, Safety and Health Reporting.« less

10 CFR 34.49 - Radiation surveys.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Radiation surveys. 34.49 Section 34.49 Energy NUCLEAR... RADIOGRAPHIC OPERATIONS Radiation Safety Requirements § 34.49 Radiation surveys. The licensee shall: (a) Conduct surveys with a calibrated and operable radiation survey instrument that meets the requirements of...

10 CFR 34.49 - Radiation surveys.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Radiation surveys. 34.49 Section 34.49 Energy NUCLEAR... RADIOGRAPHIC OPERATIONS Radiation Safety Requirements § 34.49 Radiation surveys. The licensee shall: (a) Conduct surveys with a calibrated and operable radiation survey instrument that meets the requirements of...

10 CFR 34.49 - Radiation surveys.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Radiation surveys. 34.49 Section 34.49 Energy NUCLEAR... RADIOGRAPHIC OPERATIONS Radiation Safety Requirements § 34.49 Radiation surveys. The licensee shall: (a) Conduct surveys with a calibrated and operable radiation survey instrument that meets the requirements of...

10 CFR 34.49 - Radiation surveys.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Radiation surveys. 34.49 Section 34.49 Energy NUCLEAR... RADIOGRAPHIC OPERATIONS Radiation Safety Requirements § 34.49 Radiation surveys. The licensee shall: (a) Conduct surveys with a calibrated and operable radiation survey instrument that meets the requirements of...

10 CFR 34.49 - Radiation surveys.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Radiation surveys. 34.49 Section 34.49 Energy NUCLEAR... RADIOGRAPHIC OPERATIONS Radiation Safety Requirements § 34.49 Radiation surveys. The licensee shall: (a) Conduct surveys with a calibrated and operable radiation survey instrument that meets the requirements of...

NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL/ENERGY WORKFORCE ASSESSMENT. RADIATION PROGRAMS

EPA Science Inventory

The report describes radiation education/training programs which are currently being conducted in 23 states and one territory. In total there are 39 program entries included in this volume. Although the report attempts to concentrate mainly on radiation protection programs, aspec...

Twenty-Second National Conference on Campus Safety. Safety Monographs for Schools and Colleges. Monograph No. 35.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Green, Jack N., Ed.

The papers include discussions on: (1) training techniques for safety administrators; (2) materials and services from the National Safety Council; (3) fire safety measures; (4) high-rise buildings; (5) the role of the industrial hygienist in environmental health and safety; (6) chemical waste disposal facilities; (7) a chemistry department safety…

Towards a definition of inorganic nanoparticles from an environmental, health and safety perspective.

PubMed

Auffan, Mélanie; Rose, Jérôme; Bottero, Jean-Yves; Lowry, Gregory V; Jolivet, Jean-Pierre; Wiesner, Mark R

2009-10-01

The regulation of engineered nanoparticles requires a widely agreed definition of such particles. Nanoparticles are routinely defined as particles with sizes between about 1 and 100 nm that show properties that are not found in bulk samples of the same material. Here we argue that evidence for novel size-dependent properties alone, rather than particle size, should be the primary criterion in any definition of nanoparticles when making decisions about their regulation for environmental, health and safety reasons. We review the size-dependent properties of a variety of inorganic nanoparticles and find that particles larger than about 30 nm do not in general show properties that would require regulatory scrutiny beyond that required for their bulk counterparts.

Environment, Health, and Safety | NREL

Science.gov Websites

property, and the environment. View the Environmental Stewardship, Health, Safety, and Quality Management (OHSAS) 18001 certification demonstrates NREL's commitment to a health and safety management system that into all activities. NREL's staff and management are committed to managing health and safety risk

Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment in Water Treatment Plant considering Environmental Health and Safety Practice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Falakh, Fajrul; Setiani, Onny

2018-02-01

Water Treatment Plant (WTP) is an important infrastructure to ensure human health and the environment. In its development, aspects of environmental safety and health are of concern. This paper case study was conducted at the Water Treatment Plant Company in Semarang, Central Java, Indonesia. Hazard identification and risk assessment is one part of the occupational safety and health program at the risk management stage. The purpose of this study was to identify potential hazards using hazard identification methods and risk assessment methods. Risk assessment is done using criteria of severity and probability of accident. The results obtained from this risk assessment are 22 potential hazards present in the water purification process. Extreme categories that exist in the risk assessment are leakage of chlorine and industrial fires. Chlorine and fire leakage gets the highest value because its impact threatens many things, such as industrial disasters that could endanger human life and the environment. Control measures undertaken to avoid potential hazards are to apply the use of personal protective equipment, but management will also be better managed in accordance with hazard control hazards, occupational safety and health programs such as issuing work permits, emergency response training is required, Very useful in overcoming potential hazards that have been determined.

Final environmental impact statement. Waste Isolation Pilot Plant

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1980-10-01

This volume contains the appendices for the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). Alternative geologic environs are considered. Salt, crystalline rock, argillaceous rock, and tuff are discussed. Studies on alternate geologic regions for the siting of WIPP are reviewed. President Carter's message to Congress on the management of radioactive wastes and the findings and recommendations of the interagency review group on nuclear waste management are included. Selection criteria for the WIPP site including geologic, hydrologic, tectonic, physicochemical compatability, and socio-economic factors are presented. A description of the waste types and the waste processing procedures aremore » given. Methods used to calculate radiation doses from radionuclide releases during operation are presented. A complete description of the Los Medanos site, including archaeological and historic aspects is included. Environmental monitoring programs and long-term safety analysis program are described. (DMC)« less

21 CFR 601.35 - Evaluation of safety.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... information, the following types of data: (A) Pharmacology data, (B) Toxicology data, (C) Clinical adverse event data, and (D) Radiation safety assessment. (2) The amount of new safety data required will depend... relevant to risk and will specify the amount and type of safety data that are appropriate for each category...

Defining and managing biohazardous waste in U.S. research-oriented universities: a survey of environmental health and safety professionals.

PubMed

Mecklem, Robin Lyn; Neumann, Catherine M

2003-01-01

A survey was conducted of environmental health and safety professionals responsible for biohazardous waste management at 122 institutions. The overall response rate was 82.6 percent (100 out of 122). Results indicate that university policies for biohazardous waste are heavily influenced by state environmental regulations, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, and the biosafety guidelines of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health. With respect to definition of waste, 84 percent of the universities treat non-infectious human-cell-culture waste as biohazardous. Sharp items, including hypodermic needles, syringes with needles, and scalpel blades, are commonly treated (by 85 percent of universities) as biohazardous sharps regardless of contamination status. Importantly, while 90 percent of universities use autoclave sterilization for waste treatment, only 52 percent use a biological indicator to validate the process. On-site incineration is currently used by 42 percent of universities. Twenty-two of 42 incinerators are hospital/medical/infectious-waste incinerators, and 10 of these will continue to operate under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's revised incinerator regulations. Eighty-seven percent of the respondents indicated that some portion of their university's biohazardous waste is treated and disposed of through a licensed medical waste hauler (MWH). To ensure compliance with institutional policy, most universities segregate and package waste, train waste generators, and conduct inspections.

10 CFR 36.29 - Radiation monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Radiation monitors. 36.29 Section 36.29 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION LICENSES AND RADIATION SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR IRRADIATORS Design and Performance Requirements for Irradiators § 36.29 Radiation monitors. (a) Irradiators with automatic product conveyor...

10 CFR 36.29 - Radiation monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Radiation monitors. 36.29 Section 36.29 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION LICENSES AND RADIATION SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR IRRADIATORS Design and Performance Requirements for Irradiators § 36.29 Radiation monitors. (a) Irradiators with automatic product conveyor...

10 CFR 36.29 - Radiation monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Radiation monitors. 36.29 Section 36.29 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION LICENSES AND RADIATION SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR IRRADIATORS Design and Performance Requirements for Irradiators § 36.29 Radiation monitors. (a) Irradiators with automatic product conveyor...

10 CFR 36.29 - Radiation monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Radiation monitors. 36.29 Section 36.29 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION LICENSES AND RADIATION SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR IRRADIATORS Design and Performance Requirements for Irradiators § 36.29 Radiation monitors. (a) Irradiators with automatic product conveyor...

10 CFR 36.29 - Radiation monitors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 10 Energy 1 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Radiation monitors. 36.29 Section 36.29 Energy NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION LICENSES AND RADIATION SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR IRRADIATORS Design and Performance Requirements for Irradiators § 36.29 Radiation monitors. (a) Irradiators with automatic product conveyor...

Interaction between radiation effects, gravity and other environmental factors in Tribolium confusum.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yang, C. H.; Tobias, C. A.

1973-01-01

The development of the flour beetle, Tribolium confusum, was studied through all stages of its life cycle. The results show that for each environmental factor there is a limited range of values within which the organisms are able best to survive and that this optimum range of survival becomes smaller when additional stresses are imposed upon the organism. This has been shown for external temperature, oxygen content of the atmosphere, gravity compensation, and radiation. On Biosatellite II it was shown that Tribolium pupae irradiated in spaceflight exhibited more wing abnormalities than ground controls. Later it was shown that gravity compensation, when combined with irradiation, can induce a similar effect at ground level.

[Evaluation of the risk of delayed adverse effects of chronic combined exposure to radiation and chemical factors with the purpose to ensure safety in orbital and exploration space missions].

PubMed

Shafirkin, A V; Mukhamedieva, L N; Tatarkin, S V; Barantseva, M Iu

2012-01-01

The work had the aim to anatomize the existing issues with providing safety in extended orbital and exploration missions for ensuing estimation of actual values of the total radiation risk for the crew, and risks of other delayed effects of simultaneous exposure to ionizing radiation and chemical pollutants in cabin air, and a number of other stressful factors inevitable in space flight. The flow of chronic experiments for separate and combined studies with reproduction of air makeup and radiation doses in actual orbital and predicted exploration missions is outlined. To set safety limits, new approaches should be applied to the description of gradual norm degradation to pathologies in addition to several generalized quantitative indices of adaptation and straining of the regulatory systems, as well as of effectiveness of the compensatory body reserve against separate and combined exposure.

Upholding science in health, safety and environmental risk assessments and regulations.

PubMed

Aschner, Michael; Autrup, Herman N; Berry, Sir Colin L; Boobis, Alan R; Cohen, Samuel M; Creppy, Edmond E; Dekant, Wolfgang; Doull, John; Galli, Corrado L; Goodman, Jay I; Gori, Gio B; Greim, Helmut A; Joudrier, Philippe; Kaminski, Norbert E; Klaassen, Curtis D; Klaunig, James E; Lotti, Marcello; Marquardt, Hans W J; Pelkonen, Olavi; Sipes, I Glenn; Wallace, Kendall B; Yamazaki, Hiroshi

2016-09-14

A public appeal has been advanced by a large group of scientists, concerned that science has been misused in attempting to quantify and regulate unmeasurable hazards and risks. 1 The appeal recalls that science is unable to evaluate hazards that cannot be measured, and that science in such cases should not be invoked to justify risk assessments in health, safety and environmental regulations. The appeal also notes that most national and international statutes delineating the discretion of regulators are ambiguous about what rules of evidence ought to apply. Those statutes should be revised to ensure that the evidence for regulatory action is grounded on the standards of the scientific method, whenever feasible. When independent scientific evidence is not possible, policies and regulations should be informed by publicly debated trade-offs between socially desirable uses and social perceptions of affordable precaution. This article explores the premises, implications and actions supporting the appeal and its objectives. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Web design and development for centralize area radiation monitoring system in Malaysian Nuclear Agency

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibrahim, Maslina Mohd; Yussup, Nolida; Haris, Mohd Fauzi; Soh @ Shaari, Syirrazie Che; Azman, Azraf; Razalim, Faizal Azrin B. Abdul; Yapp, Raymond; Hasim, Harzawardi; Aslan, Mohd Dzul Aiman

2017-01-01

One of the applications for radiation detector is area monitoring which is crucial for safety especially at a place where radiation source is involved. An environmental radiation monitoring system is a professional system that combines flexibility and ease of use for data collection and monitoring. Nowadays, with the growth of technology, devices and equipment can be connected to the network and Internet to enable online data acquisition. This technology enables data from the area monitoring devices to be transmitted to any place and location directly and faster. In Nuclear Malaysia, area radiation monitor devices are located at several selective locations such as laboratories and radiation facility. This system utilizes an Ethernet as a communication media for data acquisition of the area radiation levels from radiation detectors and stores the data at a server for recording and analysis. This paper discusses on the design and development of website that enable all user in Nuclear Malaysia to access and monitor the radiation level for each radiation detectors at real time online. The web design also included a query feature for history data from various locations online. The communication between the server's software and web server is discussed in detail in this paper.

Safety and feasibility of STAT RAD: Improvement of a novel rapid tomotherapy-based radiation therapy workflow by failure mode and effects analysis.

PubMed

Jones, Ryan T; Handsfield, Lydia; Read, Paul W; Wilson, David D; Van Ausdal, Ray; Schlesinger, David J; Siebers, Jeffrey V; Chen, Quan

2015-01-01

The clinical challenge of radiation therapy (RT) for painful bone metastases requires clinicians to consider both treatment efficacy and patient prognosis when selecting a radiation therapy regimen. The traditional RT workflow requires several weeks for common palliative RT schedules of 30 Gy in 10 fractions or 20 Gy in 5 fractions. At our institution, we have created a new RT workflow termed "STAT RAD" that allows clinicians to perform computed tomographic (CT) simulation, planning, and highly conformal single fraction treatment delivery within 2 hours. In this study, we evaluate the safety and feasibility of the STAT RAD workflow. A failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) was performed on the STAT RAD workflow, including development of a process map, identification of potential failure modes, description of the cause and effect, temporal occurrence, and team member involvement in each failure mode, and examination of existing safety controls. A risk probability number (RPN) was calculated for each failure mode. As necessary, workflow adjustments were then made to safeguard failure modes of significant RPN values. After workflow alterations, RPN numbers were again recomputed. A total of 72 potential failure modes were identified in the pre-FMEA STAT RAD workflow, of which 22 met the RPN threshold for clinical significance. Workflow adjustments included the addition of a team member checklist, changing simulation from megavoltage CT to kilovoltage CT, alteration of patient-specific quality assurance testing, and allocating increased time for critical workflow steps. After these modifications, only 1 failure mode maintained RPN significance; patient motion after alignment or during treatment. Performing the FMEA for the STAT RAD workflow before clinical implementation has significantly strengthened the safety and feasibility of STAT RAD. The FMEA proved a valuable evaluation tool, identifying potential problem areas so that we could create a safer workflow

Safety and environmental aspects of organic coolants for fusion facilities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Natalizio, A.; Hollies, R. E.; Gierszewski, P.

1993-06-01

Organic coolants, such as OS-84, offer unique advantages for fusion reactor applications. These advantages are with respect to both reactor operation and safety. The key operational advantage is a coolant that can provide high temperature (350-400°C) at modest pressure (2-4 MPa). These temperatures are needed for conditioning the plasma-facing components and, in reactors, for achieving high thermodynamic conversion efficiencies (>40%). The key safety advantage of organic coolants is the low vapor pressure, which significantly reduces the containment pressurization transient (relative to water) following a loss of coolant event. Also, from an occupational dose viewpoint, organic coolants significantly reduce corrosion and erosion inside the cooling system and consequently reduce the quantity of activation products deposited in cooling system equipment. On the negative side, organic coolants undergo both pyrolytic and radiolytic decomposition, and are flammable. While the decomposition rate can be minimized by coolant system design (by reducing coolant inventories exposed to neutron flux and to high temperatures), decomposition products are formed and these degrade the coolant properties. Both heavy compounds and light gases are produced from the decomposition process, and both must be removed to maintain adequate coolant properties. As these hydrocarbons may become tritiated by permeation, or activated through impurities, their disposal could create an environmental concern. Because of this potential waste disposal problem, consideration has been given to the recycling of both the light and heavy products, thereby reducing the quantity of waste to be disposed. Preliminary assessments made for various fusion reactor designs, including ITER, suggest that it is feasible to use organic coolants for several applications. These applications range from first wall and blanket coolant (the most demanding with respect to decomposition), to shield and vacuum vessel cooling

Poster - Thur Eve - 05: Safety systems and failure modes and effects analysis for a magnetic resonance image guided radiation therapy system.

PubMed

Lamey, M; Carlone, M; Alasti, H; Bissonnette, J P; Borg, J; Breen, S; Coolens, C; Heaton, R; Islam, M; van Proojen, M; Sharpe, M; Stanescu, T; Jaffray, D

2012-07-01

An online Magnetic Resonance guided Radiation Therapy (MRgRT) system is under development. The system is comprised of an MRI with the capability of travel between and into HDR brachytherapy and external beam radiation therapy vaults. The system will provide on-line MR images immediately prior to radiation therapy. The MR images will be registered to a planning image and used for image guidance. With the intention of system safety we have performed a failure modes and effects analysis. A process tree of the facility function was developed. Using the process tree as well as an initial design of the facility as guidelines possible failure modes were identified, for each of these failure modes root causes were identified. For each possible failure the assignment of severity, detectability and occurrence scores was performed. Finally suggestions were developed to reduce the possibility of an event. The process tree consists of nine main inputs and each of these main inputs consisted of 5 - 10 sub inputs and tertiary inputs were also defined. The process tree ensures that the overall safety of the system has been considered. Several possible failure modes were identified and were relevant to the design, construction, commissioning and operating phases of the facility. The utility of the analysis can be seen in that it has spawned projects prior to installation and has lead to suggestions in the design of the facility. © 2012 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

Managing NIF safety equipment in a high neutron and gamma radiation environment.

PubMed

Datte, Philip; Eckart, Mark; Jackson, Mark; Khater, Hesham; Manuel, Stacie; Newton, Mark

2013-06-01

The National Ignition Facility (NIF) is a 192 laser beam facility that supports the Inertial Confinement Fusion program. During the ignition experimental campaign, the NIF is expected to perform shots with varying fusion yield producing 14 MeV neutrons up to 20 MJ or 7.1 × 10(18) neutrons per shot and a maximum annual yield of 1,200 MJ. Several infrastructure support systems will be exposed to varying high yield shots over the facility's 30-y life span. In response to this potential exposure, analysis and testing of several facility safety systems have been conducted. A detailed MCNP (Monte Carlo N-Particle Transport Code) model has been developed for the NIF facility, and it includes most of the major structures inside the Target Bay. The model has been used in the simulation of expected neutron and gamma fluences throughout the Target Bay. Radiation susceptible components were identified and tested to fluences greater than 10(13) (n cm(-2)) for 14 MeV neutrons and γ-ray equivalent. The testing includes component irradiation using a 60Co gamma source and accelerator-based irradiation using 4- and 14- MeV neutron sources. The subsystem implementation in the facility is based on the fluence estimates after shielding and survivability guidelines derived from the dose maps and component tests results. This paper reports on the evaluation and implementation of mitigations for several infrastructure safety support systems, including video, oxygen monitoring, pressure monitors, water sensing systems, and access control interfaces found at the NIF.

The Australian radiation protection and nuclear safety agency megavoltage photon thermoluminescence dosimetry postal audit service 2007-2010.

PubMed

Oliver, C P; Butler, D J; Webb, D V

2012-03-01

The Australian radiation protection and nuclear safety agency (ARPANSA) has continuously provided a level 1 mailed thermoluminescence dosimetry audit service for megavoltage photons since 2007. The purpose of the audit is to provide an independent verification of the reference dose output of a radiotherapy linear accelerator in a clinical environment. Photon beam quality measurements can also be made as part of the audit in addition to the output measurements. The results of all audits performed between 2007 and 2010 are presented. The average of all reference beam output measurements calculated as a clinically stated dose divided by an ARPANSA measured dose is 0.9993. The results of all beam quality measurements calculated as a clinically stated quality divided by an ARPANSA measured quality is 1.0087. Since 2011 the provision of all auditing services has been transferred from the Ionizing Radiation Standards section to the Australian Clinical Dosimetry Service (ACDS) which is currently housed within ARPANSA.

40 CFR 243.201 - Safety.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 25 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Safety. 243.201 Section 243.201 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) SOLID WASTES GUIDELINES FOR THE STORAGE... Procedures § 243.201 Safety. ...

40 CFR 243.201 - Safety.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 24 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Safety. 243.201 Section 243.201 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) SOLID WASTES GUIDELINES FOR THE STORAGE... Procedures § 243.201 Safety. ...

Radiation safety audit of a high volume Nuclear Medicine Department

PubMed Central

Jha, Ashish Kumar; Singh, Abhijith Mohan; Shetye, Bhakti; Shah, Sneha; Agrawal, Archi; Purandare, Nilendu Chandrakant; Monteiro, Priya; Rangarajan, Venkatesh

2014-01-01

Introduction: Professional radiation exposure cannot be avoided in nuclear medicine practices. It can only be minimized up to some extent by implementing good work practices. Aim and Objectives: The aim of our study was to audit the professional radiation exposure and exposure rate of radiation worker working in and around Department of nuclear medicine and molecular imaging, Tata Memorial Hospital. Materials and Methods: We calculated the total number of nuclear medicine and positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) procedures performed in our department and the radiation exposure to the radiation professionals from year 2009 to 2012. Results: We performed an average of 6478 PET/CT scans and 3856 nuclear medicine scans/year from January 2009 to December 2012. The average annual whole body radiation exposure to nuclear medicine physician, technologist and nursing staff are 1.74 mSv, 2.93 mSv and 4.03 mSv respectively. Conclusion: Efficient management and deployment of personnel is of utmost importance to optimize radiation exposure in a high volume nuclear medicine setup in order to work without anxiety of high radiation exposure. PMID:25400361

Radiation safety audit of a high volume Nuclear Medicine Department.

PubMed

Jha, Ashish Kumar; Singh, Abhijith Mohan; Shetye, Bhakti; Shah, Sneha; Agrawal, Archi; Purandare, Nilendu Chandrakant; Monteiro, Priya; Rangarajan, Venkatesh

2014-10-01

Professional radiation exposure cannot be avoided in nuclear medicine practices. It can only be minimized up to some extent by implementing good work practices. The aim of our study was to audit the professional radiation exposure and exposure rate of radiation worker working in and around Department of nuclear medicine and molecular imaging, Tata Memorial Hospital. We calculated the total number of nuclear medicine and positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) procedures performed in our department and the radiation exposure to the radiation professionals from year 2009 to 2012. We performed an average of 6478 PET/CT scans and 3856 nuclear medicine scans/year from January 2009 to December 2012. The average annual whole body radiation exposure to nuclear medicine physician, technologist and nursing staff are 1.74 mSv, 2.93 mSv and 4.03 mSv respectively. Efficient management and deployment of personnel is of utmost importance to optimize radiation exposure in a high volume nuclear medicine setup in order to work without anxiety of high radiation exposure.

Aquatic environmental safety assessment and inhibition mechanism of chemicals for targeting Microcystis aeruginosa.

PubMed

Yu, Xiao-Bo; Hao, Kai; Ling, Fei; Wang, Gao-Xue

2014-11-01

Cyanobacteria are a diverse group of Gram-negative bacteria that produce an array of secondary compounds with selective bioactivity against vertebrates, invertebrates, fungi, bacteria and cell lines. Recently the main methods of controlling cyanobacteria are using chemicals, medicinal plants and microorganism but fewer involved the safety research in hydrophytic ecosystems. In search of an environmentally safe compound, 53 chemicals were screened against the developed heavy cyanobacteria bloom Microcystis aeruginosa using coexistence culture system assay. The results of the coexistence assay showed that 9 chemicals inhibited M. aeruginosa effectively at 20 mg L(-1) after 7 days of exposure. Among them dimethomorph, propineb, and paraquat were identified that they are safe for Chlorella vulgaris, Scenedesmus obliquus, Carassius auratus (Goldfish) and Bacillus subtilis within half maximal effective concentration (EC50) values 5.2, 4.2 and 0.06 mg L(-1) after 7 days, respectively. Paraquat as the positive control observed to be more efficient than the other compounds with the inhibitory rate (IR) of 92% at 0.5 mg L(-1). For the potential inhibition mechanism, the chemicals could destroy the cell ultrastructure in different speed. The safety assay proved dimethomorph, propineb and paraquat as harmless formulations or products having potential value in M. aeruginosa controlling, with the advantage of its cell morphology degrading ability.

Stereotactic body radiation therapy with concurrent full-dose gemcitabine for locally advanced pancreatic cancer: a pilot trial demonstrating safety

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Concurrent chemoradiation is a standard option for locally advanced pancreatic cancer (LAPC). Concurrent conventional radiation with full-dose gemcitabine has significant toxicity. Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) may provide the opportunity to administer radiation in a shorter time frame with similar efficacy and reduced toxicity. This Pilot study assessed the safety of concurrent full-dose gemcitabine with SBRT for LAPC. Methods Patients received gemcitabine, 1000 mg/m2 for 6 cycles. During week 4 of cycle 1, patients received SBRT (25 Gy delivered in five consecutive daily fractions of 5 Gy prescribed to the 75-83% isodose line). Acute and late toxicities were assessed using NIH CTCAE v3. Tumor response was assessed by RECIST. Patients underwent an esophagogastroduodenoscopy at baseline, 2, and 6 months to assess the duodenal mucosa. Quality of life (QoL) data was collected before and after treatment using the QLQ-C30 and QLQ-PAN26 questionnaires. Results Between September 2009 and February 2011, 11 patients enrolled with one withdrawal during radiation therapy. Patients had grade 1 to 2 gastrointestinal toxicity from the start of SBRT to 2 weeks after treatment. There were no grade 3 or greater radiation-related toxicities or delays for cycle 2 of gemcitabine. On endoscopy, there were no grade 2 or higher mucosal toxicities. Two patients had a partial response. The median progression free and overall survival were 6.8 and 12.2 months, respectively. Global QoL did not change between baseline and immediately after radiation treatment. Conclusions SBRT with concurrent full dose gemcitabine is safe when administered to patients with LAPC. There is no delay in administration of radiation or chemotherapy, and radiation is completed with minimal toxicity. PMID:23452509

Space station crew safety alternatives study. Volume 3: Safety impact of human factors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rockoff, L. A.; Raasch, R. F.; Peercy, R. L., Jr.

1985-01-01

The first 15 years of accumulated space station concepts for Initial Operational Capability (IOC) during the early 1990's was considered. Twenty-five threats to the space station are identified and selected threats addressed as impacting safety criteria, escape and rescue, and human factors safety concerns. Of the 25 threats identified, eight are discussed including strategy options for threat control: fire, biological or toxic contamination, injury/illness, explosion, loss of pressurization, radiation, meteoroid penetration and debris. Of particular interest here is volume three (of five volumes) pertaining to the safety impact of human factors.

Environmental Radiation Measurements on MIR Station. Program 1; Internal Experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Benton, E. V.; Frank, A. L.; Benton, E. R.

1997-01-01

Environmental radiation levels on the Russian space station Mir are being monitored under differing shielding conditions by a series of six area passive dosimeters (APDs) placed at individual locations inside the Core and Kvant 2 modules, and by an External Dosimeter Array (EDA) to be-deployed on the exterior surface of the Kvant 2 module. Each APD and the EDA contains CR-39 plastic nuclear track detectors (PNTDs) for measurement of LET spectra and TLDs for absorbed dose measurements. Two of the missions, NASA-2/Mir-21 and NASA-3/Mir-22 have been completed and the six APDs from each mission returned to Earth from Mir. This report covers progress to date on the analysis of TLDs and PNTDs from these two missions. For NASA-2/Mir-21, average mission absorbed dose rates varied from 271 to 407 micro-Gy/d at the APDS. For NASA-3/Mir-22, average mission absorbed dose rates varied from 265 to 421 micro-Gy/d.

Australia's proactive approach to radiation protection of the environment: how integrated is it with radiation protection of humans?

PubMed

Hirth, G A; Grzechnik, M; Tinker, R; Larsson, C M

2018-01-01

Australia's regulatory framework has evolved over the past decade from the assumption that protection of humans implies protection of the environment to the situation now where radiological impacts on non-human species (wildlife) are considered in their own right. In an Australian context, there was a recognised need for specific national guidance on protection of non-human species, for which the uranium mining industry provides the major backdrop. National guidance supported by publications of the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (Radiation Protection Series) provides clear and consistent advice to operators and regulators on protection of non-human species, including advice on specific assessment methods and models, and how these might be applied in an Australian context. These approaches and the supporting assessment tools provide a mechanism for industry to assess and demonstrate compliance with the environmental protection objectives of relevant legislation, and to meet stakeholder expectations that radiological protection of the environment is taken into consideration in accordance with international best practice. Experiences from the past 5-10 years, and examples of where the approach to radiation protection of the environment has been well integrated or presented some challenges will be discussed. Future challenges in addressing protection of the environment in existing exposure situations will also be discussed.

Mars Radiator Characterization Experimental Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Witte, Larry C.; Hollingsworth, D. Keith

2004-01-01

Radiators are an enabling technology for the human exploration and development of the moon and Mars. As standard components of the heat rejection subsystem of space vehicles, radiators are used to reject waste heat to space and/or a planetary environment. They are typically large components of the thermal control system for a space vehicle or human habitation facility, and in some cases safety factors are used to oversize them when the operating environment cannot be fully characterized. Over-sizing can impose significant weight and size penalties that might be prohibitive for future missions. Radiator performance depends on the size of the radiator surface, its emittance and absorptance, the radiator temperature, the effective sky temperature surrounding the radiator, solar radiation and atmospheric irradiation levels, convection to or from the atmosphere (on Mars), and other conditions that could affect the nature of the radiator surface, such as dust accumulation. Most particularly, dust is expected to be a major contributor to the local environmental conditions on either the lunar or Martian surface. This conclusion regarding Mars is supported by measurements of dust accumulation on the Mars Sojourner Rover solar array during the Pathfinder mission. This Final Report describes a study of the effect of Martian dust accumulation on radiator performance. It is comprised of quantitative measurements of effective emittance for a range of dust accumulation levels on surfaces of known emittance under clean conditions. The test radiator coatings were Z-93P, NS-43G, and Silver Teflon (10 mil) film. The Martian dust simulant was Carbondale Red Clay. Results were obtained under vacuum conditions sufficient to reduce convection effects virtually to zero. The experiments required the development of a calorimetric apparatus that allows simultaneous measurements of the effective emittance for all the coatings at each set of experimental conditions. A method of adding dust to