Re: Theft Prevention

[BLHamrick@AOL.COM]

In a message dated 7/22/2003 10:34:47 AM Pacific Standard Time, arosen@ee.net writes:







Is there any regulation anywhere regarding prevention of  theft of

radioactive materials?







Generically, this is covered by 10 CFR 20.1801 and 20.1802, discussing the requirement to physically control, or provide surveillance for, materials in an unrestricted or controlled area.  Agreement States will generally have comparable regulations.



The problem, of course, is that materials may be stolen from restricted areas, which are defined to be areas controlled for the purpose of radiation safety (okay, I know that's not exactly what it says, but it reaches the intent).  There are no prescriptive controls on the control of entry to  "restricted areas" for most radioactive materials licensees (as opposed to for NPPs).



However, stealing from the restricted area could be punished under the NRC's "wrongdoer" rule, or in certain Agreement States, such as California, under the general requirement for a license authorizing the possession of a licensable source, because the regulations reach persons possessing licensable sources, whether or not the person is, in fact, licensed.  



Theft, in general, is prohibited by the penal codes of (I'm guessing) all states, so is always punishable by law, whether or not the theft involves radioactive materials.



In short, there are a variety of statutes and regulations that do not come right out and say "thou shalt not abscond with radioactive material," but which will be effective to punish the thief.



Barbara