Vol. 423 No. 4
42 Mr. Taylor asked the Minister for Energy if, in view of the theft in a stolen vehicle of a container containing radioactive material, he will outline the safeguards that are in position, or that are proposed, to secure the maximum safety and security of radioactive materials used and transported in the State; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
The incident the Deputy is referring to occurred on 2 March 1992, when a van was stolen in Tallaght from outside a business premises. The van had on board an industrial radiography source. The Garda Síochána instituted an immediate search for the vehicle which was located and the container recovered intact, with no leakage of radioactive material and consequently no danger to the public.
Transport of radioactive materials is only permitted by or on behalf of companies which hold a licence from the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland (RPII). The licence stipulates that transport must be in accordance with the International Atomic Energy Agency Regulations for the safe transport of radioactive materials. These regulations lay down exacting standards for the design of packages containing radioactive materials and requirements in terms of the labelling of both the package and the vehicle used to transport them. In this case, the carefully laid down procedures were not followed.
In the light of this incident the Institute has decided to amend licence conditions relating to transport to include a requirement that all vehicles used to transport radioactive materials be fitted with an alarm which shall be set whenever the vehicle is unmanned.
I would like to assure the House that I am satisfied that the arrangements in place for transporting radioactive materials will continue to maintain the excellent safety record in this area.
