A Nuclear Regulatory Commission working group will in August provide recommendations on improving the security of industrial radiological sources, according to a new letter from NRC Chair Kristine Svinicki to Gene Dodaro, comptroller general of the United States and head of the Government Accountability Office.
In her June 23 letter, Svinicki provided an update on NRC actions taken in response to the GAO’s recent findings on lax security measures for some of the regulator’s radioactive source licensees, particularly with Category 3 sources the NRC said “could cause permanent injury” to handlers if not safely managed and protected.
Radiological sources, including cesium-137 and cobalt-60, have medical, industrial, and research applications but remain vulnerable to exploitation by hostile actors.
The GAO last July found that NRC licensees could purchase multiple Category 3 quantities of radioactive material and aggregate them to an amount sufficient to build a radiological “dirty bomb.” The report said that because the NRC does not mandate the seller of the material verify the validity of Category 3 licenses, such licenses could be counterfeited or used to obtain quantities of radioactive material greater than allowed.
The same report found that the NRC does not require tracking of Category 3 sources in its National Source Tracking System and suggested they be included to avoid potential exploitation.
The NRC said in response that it had begun taking corrective actions, including improving training to licensing staff. The body also formed two working groups to review the GAO’s findings. Then in October the commission directed staff to evaluate whether the NRC should revise regulations for source accountability.
Svinicki’s latest letter, made public on Monday, said the NRC’s “Category 3 Source Security and Accountability Working Group” is finalizing its evaluation of the security of those sources and will offer its recommendations to the commission next month.
The NRC and its 37 agreement states – which have regulatory authority to issue licenses – grant approximately 1,000 new radioactive material licenses each year.
