Framework of Radiation Safety Management in Japan: Laws, Administrative Agencies, and Supporting Associations

Abstract

Radiation safety management in Japan stands upon a global framework. The concerted activities of international organizations including the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP), United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and World Health Organization (WHO) form the baseline of radiation safety in Japan by incorporation of their recommendations and guidelines into laws and regulations such as the law concerning Prevention of Radiation Hazards Due to Radioisotopes, etc., and the law for Regulations of Nuclear Source Material, Nuclear Fuel Material and Reactors. To support radiation safety management, the Japan Health Physics Society (JHPS), the Japan Radioisotope Association (JRIS), and the Japanese Society of Radiation Safety Management (JRSM) play their roles by providing seminars, meetings, and publications of updated information on radiation regulations and also for technical transfer. In each radiation facility, a “radiation protection supervisor” entitled by national examination, is required to not only supervise but also promote radiation safety management including radiation monitoring inside/outside control areas and the estimation of external/ internal exposure, education, and training of radiation workers. The goal of radiation safety management is, of course, to reduce the radiation health risk of the public as well as that of radiation workers. The expansion of radiation safety-risk control from legal demand to the daily life of the public, including medical exposure and emergency preparedness, through dosimetry, protection, and education is defi nitely important.