The Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA) has launched an action plan to address radiation and nuclear safety.
Chief Executive of ARPANSA, Carl-Magnus Larsson said the Agency’s Australia’s Action Plan, would implement findings from a November 2018 International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) regulatory review which assessed Australia’s national arrangements for radiation protection and nuclear safety.
Dr Larsson said that in December 2015 ARPANSA requested the IAEA organise and co-ordinate an Integrated Regulatory Review Service (IRRS) mission to Australia.
“The 2018 mission was the largest multi-jurisdictional IRRS carried out in any IAEA member state to date,” Dr Larsson said.
“It provided a comprehensive review of Australia’s national system for radiation protection and nuclear safety, and its implementation in the Commonwealth, the States and the Territories,” he said.
“Matters that concern uniformity of regulation in a multi-jurisdictional context were identified and discussed during the mission.”
Dr Larsson said ARPANSA’s Action Plan was the result of extensive engagement with other parts of Government at both Federal and State and Territory levels.
“The review resulted in 23 recommendations and 12 suggestions and the Action Plan has been developed to address these findings,” he said.
“The implementation of this Action Plan will help progress uniformity of radiation regulation across jurisdictions and contribute to our work in maintaining a safe radiation environment for all Australians.”
Dr Larsson said a follow-up IRRS mission to assess Australia’s progress in responding to the 2018 review was expected to occur in 2023.
ARPANSA’s 24-page Action Plan can be accessed at this PS News link.
