Radiological Protection Act, 1991 (Ionising Radiation) Order, 2000

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Citation: IR SI 125/2000
• Year: 2000

CONTENTS

Part 1 Citation, Definitions and Scope Article 1. Citation and Commencement Article 2. Interpretation Article 3. Scope Part 2 Regulation of Practices and Work Activities Article 4. Licensing of Practices Article 5. Exemptions Article 6. Licensing Procedures Article 7. Notification of Work Activities Part 3 Justification, Optimisation and Dose Limitation Article 8. Justification Article 9. Optimisation, Dose Constraints and Risk Assessment Article 10. Dose Limitation Article 11. Special Protection during Pregnancy and Breast Feeding Article 12. Specially Authorised Exposures Part 4 Estimation of Effective Dose Article 13. Effective Dose Part 5 Protection of Exposed Workers, Apprentices and Students Article 14. Arrangements in the Workplace Article 15. Classification of Areas Article 16. Requirements for Controlled and Supervised Areas Article 17. Radiation Safety Procedures Article 18. Classification of Exposed Workers Article 19. Radiation Protection Adviser Article 20. Information and Training Article 21. Monitoring of Working Environments Article 22. Dose Monitoring of Persons Article 23. Estimated Dose Article 24. Approval of Dosimetric Services and Radon Measurement Laboratories Article 25. Medical Surveillance of Category A Workers Article 26. Special Medical Surveillance of Exposed Workers Article 27. Operational Protection of Apprentices, Students and Outside Workers Article 28. Control of Radioactive Substances, Nuclear Devices and Irradiating Apparatus Article 29. Duties of Exposed and Outside Workers, Apprentices, Students and Outside Undertakings Part 6 Work Activities involving Natural Radiation Sources Article 30. Identification of work activities involving significant exposure to radon Article 31. Remedial Measures Article 32. Identification of work activities involving significant exposure to natural radiation sources other than radon Article 33. Protection of air crew against exposure to cosmic radiation Part 7 Radiation Protection of the Population for Practices in Normal Circumstances Article 34. Protection of the Public Article 35. Estimates of Population Doses Part 8 Intervention and Emergency Preparedness Article 36. Intervention Principles Article 37. Intervention Preparation and Plans Article 38. Dealing with Radiological Emergencies Article 39. Emergency Occupational Exposure Article 40. Intervention in Cases of Lasting Exposure Part 9 Notifications, Notices and Revocations Article 41. Notifications Article 42. Enforcement Notices Article 43. Revocation Schedules to Order Schedule 1 Information to be provided in a licence application for a practice or notification of a work activity Schedule 2 Dose limits for exposed workers, apprentices, students and members of the public Schedule 3 Information to be contained in a health record Schedule 4 Particulars to be contained in a radiation passbook Schedule 5 Annex I of Council Directive 96/29/Euratom Schedule 6 Annex II of Council Directive 96/29/Euratom Schedule 7 Annex III of Council Directive 96/29/Euratom

S.I. No. 125 OF 2000

RADIOLOGICAL PROTECTION ACT, 1991 (IONISING RADIATION) ORDER, 2000

I, JOE JACOB, Minister of State at the Department of Public Enterprise. in exercise of the powers conferred on me by subsections (1) and (2) of section 30 of the Radiological Protection Act. 1991 (No.9 of 1991), and the Public Enterprise (Delegation of Ministerial Functions) Order, 1998 (No. 16 of 1998), and for the purposes, amongst other things, of giving effect to Council Directive 96/29/Euratom1 of 13 May 1996 laying down basic safety standards for the protection of the health of workers and the general public against the dangers arising from ionising radiation and Council Directive 90/641/Euratom2 of 4 December 1990 on the operational protection of outside workers exposed to the risk of ionising radiation during their activities in controlled areas and after consultation with the Ministers for Finance, Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Agriculture, Food, and Rural Development, Health and Children, Education and Science, Foreign Affairs, the Environment and Local Government, Defence, Marine and Natural Resources and the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland, hereby order as follows:

Part 1 CITATION, DEFINITIONS AND SCOPE

1. Citation and Commencement

(1) This Order may be cited as the Radiological Protection Act, 1991 (Ionising Radiation) Order, 2000.

(2) This Order shall come into operation on 13 May 2000.

2. Interpretation

(1) In this Order-

“absorbed dose” or “D” means the energy absorbed per unit mass averaged over a tissue or organ, calculated in accordance with following formula (expressed in grays):

D = d ε ____ dm

where

— d ε is the mean energy imparted by ionising radiation to the matter in a volume element, and

— dm is the mass of the matter in this volume element;

— d ε is the mean energy imparted by ionising radiation to the matter in a volume element, and

— dm is the mass of the matter in this volume element:

“accelerator” means apparatus or installation, in which particles are accelerated, emitting ionising radiation with an energy higher than 1 mega-electron volt (MeV);

“accidental exposure” means an exposure of individuals as a result of an accident but does not include an emergency exposure:

“activation” means a process through which a stable nuclide is transformed into a radionuclide by irradiating with particles or high-energy gamma rays the material in which it is contained;

“activity” or “A” means the activity, A. of an amount of a radionuclide in a particular energy state at a given time, calculated in accordance with the following formula (expressed in becquerels):

A = dN ____ dt

where dN is the expectation value of the number of spontaneous nuclear transitions from that energy state in the time interval dt;

“air crew” means the cabin and flight crew of an aircraft operated by an air operator or an undertaking in the State which operates an aircraft;

“air operator” means the holder of an Air Operator's Certificate issued by the Irish Aviation Authority in accordance with the Irish Aviation Authority (Air Operators' Certificate) Order, 1999 ( S.I. No. 420 of 1999 );

“Annex I” means Annex I of the Council Directive (which for convenience of reference is set out in Schedule 5);

“Annex II” means Annex II of the Council Directive (which for convenience of reference is set out in Schedule 6);

“Annex III” means Annex III of the Council Directive (which for convenience of reference is set out in Schedule 7);

“apprentice” means a person receiving training or instruction within an undertaking with a view to exercising a specific skill:

“approved dosimetric service” means a body that carries out -

(a) the calibration, reading or interpretation of individual monitoring devices, or

(b) the measurement of radioactivity in the human body or in biological samples, or

(c) the assessment of doses.

being a body which is referred to in subparagraph (a) or (b) of Article 24(1);

“approved medical practitioner” has the meaning assigned to it by Article 25(2);

“approved radon measurement laboratory” means a laboratory that carries out -

(a) the calibration, reading or interpretation of radon detectors,

(b) the measurement of radon concentration in air, or

(c) the assessments of doses due to radon.

being a body which is referred to in subparagraph (a) or (b) of Article 24(1);

“artificial sources” means radiation sources other than natural radiation sources;

“category A worker” means an exposed worker designated as such pursuant to Article 18(1);

“category B worker” means an exposed worker designated as such pursuant to Article 18(2);

“committed effective dose” or “E(t)” means the sum of the committed organ or tissue equivalent doses (H r τ) resulting from an intake, each multiplied by the appropriate tissue weighting factor WT and is calculated in accordance with the following formula (expressed in sieverts):

E(τ) = ΣwT HT (τ) T

where in specifying E(τ), τ is given in the number of years over which the integration is made;

“committed equivalent dose” or “HT (τ)” means the integral over time (t) of the equivalent dose rate in tissue or organ T that will be received by an individual as a result of an intake and is calculated in accordance with the following formula (expressed in sieverts):

t0 + τ HT(τ) = ∫ HT (t)dt t0

for an intake at time t0 where

- Hτ (t) is the relevant equivalent dose rate in organ or tissue T at time t,

- τ is the time, expressed in years, over which the integration is performed or where τ is not specified, a period of 50 years is assumed for adults and up to age 70 for children;

“controlled area” means an area classified as such under Article 15:

“Council Directive” means Council Directive 96/29/Euratom of 13 May 1996, laying down basic safety standards for the protection of the health of workers and the general public against the dangers arising from ionising radiation;

“disposal” means, in relation to waste -

(a) the emplacement of waste in a repository, or a given location, without the intention of retrieval, or

(b) the approved direct discharge of wastes into the environment, with...