Vol. 432 No. 3
159 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications if he will supply details of all radioactive substances used in Irish educational institutions; and the methods of dealing with any radioactive waste products produced by these institutions.
While the subject of the Deputy's question is a matter for the day-to-day administration of the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland, I understand from the institute that a wide variety of radio-nuclides with an extensive range of activities are used for teaching and research purposes. Sealed radioactive sources are used to demonstrate the properties of ionising radiation for analytical purposes, as calibration check sources for instrumentation and other miscellaneous uses. Radioactive substances in unsealed form are imported for use in a wide variety of applications. These are usually organic molecules incorporating radionuclicides for use in solution form as tracers in process investigation, as chemical catalysts or calibration standards.
At present, all imported sealed sources must be returned to the original supplier at the end of their useful lives — this is a precondition imposed by the institute prior to the issue of a licence. In the case of radioactive substances in unsealed form, the licensee is obliged to store waste material on his premises until the radioactive content has decayed to levels at which disposal as ordinary domestic waste is permitted.
