Advice to teachers? (Was minigenerators)

[Jack Couch <jgcouc@planetx.bloomu.edu>]

Michael Thomason wrote:
>Jack Couch reports the Oxford Cs-137/Ba-137m minigenerator releases "a
>lot" of 30-year half-life Cs-137 as well as the 1.3-minute half-life
>Ba-137m.  I too have found this to be true.  <snip>
>
>Have others observed this?  Many colleges and high schools are using this
>generator intended for student use without taking any precautions for
>long-lived radioactive waste.
>
I got to thinking last night about Michael's observation regarding
radioactive waste generated in schools. It's not just the Cs-137 residue
and associated contaminated gloves, absorbant paper, etc. from
minigenerators but a host of other sources of waste. I'm thinking of solid
alpha, beta and gamma sources no longer needed or sources in liquid
solution (Cs-137, Co-60, Na-22, Sr-90, Pb-210 to name a few with longer
half-lives) that could produce contaminated waste. Many such sources can be
purchased by teachers without a license from school science supply
companies, including Oxford, in 0.1 to 10 uCi quantities, depending on the
radionuclide. These are exempt or "license free" quantities (10CFR30:18).

I have had more than one high school teacher ask me what they should do
with their waste, and I haven't really been able to offer a good
answer--one that I'm happy with, anyway. Technically, if I understand
correctly, exempt quantities of any of the above materials can be
incinerated, disposed of down a sink or thrown in the trash to be buried in
a municipal sanitary landfill. 

I wonder, though, if this is a good idea, particularly from the standpoint
of public attitudes and perceptions regarding anything that is radioactive.
It most certainly doesn't set a good example for today's environment-minded
students. To continue to accumulate and store these wastes in school
science storerooms isn't a good idea, either.

I know from experience that RSO's at national labs, hospitals, etc. where
they are set up for proper waste disposal would never condone discarding
quantities at these magnitudes as ordinary trash.

Can anyone suggest some good advice we can offer teachers about what to do
with their waste?  I think we are in a good position to help. Jack

Jack Couch
Bloomsburg University
 <jgcouc@planetx.bloomu.edu>