IAEA Transport Regulations—what has Changed in 40 years

Abstract

AbstractThe IAEA Regulations for the Safe Transport of Radioactive Materials were first published in 1961. It was stated in the foreword of the first edition that the transport of increasing amounts of radioactive materials posed technical problems because of the hazards involved and it also stated that the procedures to be complied with should not be too complex and should apply to any mode of transport. The requirements for the packaging of radioactive materials for transport were expressed in terms of provisions and were described in general qualitative terms. Satisfying these requirements would provide safety for the transport of radioactive materials. Since 1961 the regulations have been revised on a number of occasions in order to add clarity and provide detail to the various requirements. These revisions have added a greater complexity to the provisions but the underlying principles used to provide for safe transport are still the fundamental bases for the regulations. This paper looks at some key ...