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IEMA Inspection Results

 

Inspectors from the Illinois Emergency Management Agency/Division of Nuclear Safety paid an unannounced visit to NU on October 1, 2, and 3 to assess the compliance status of the radiation safety program. IEMA is a new state agency that was created along the lines of the Department of Homeland Security; the Illinois Department of Nuclear Safety is now a division of the agency. When you see the acronym IEMA, it refers to the "new" IDNS. IEMA inspectors noted considerable improvement in the laboratories over the 2002 inspection, especially in the area of security. They did note instances of noncompliance in two areas: documenting usage on inventory forms and documenting source inventories. They also made a number of suggestions for further improvement.

 

Noncompliance Citations.

1.      Documenting usage on inventory forms. Each time you remove an aliquot from a stock vial you must make an entry on the inventory form. Take a look at the inventory forms in your lab now; if they are blank, is it because you have not used the material or because usage has not been recorded? If the latter, consult your lab notebooks and bring the inventory forms up to date. Be sure to return them to ORS as soon as the material is used up.

2.      Documenting sealed source inventories. Investigators who have sealed sources (including scintillation counters with external standards) must maintain inventory control. ORS periodically conducts an independent inventory. A few discrepancies were noted and ORS is in the process of evaluating the inventory methodology to ensure accuracy.

 

Observations and Suggestions.

1.      Security information on Five Year Review Forms. IEMA wants to see security information added to Five-Year Review Forms. ORS will draft revised forms and provide them to the Radiation Safety Committee for their approval.

2.      Proper use of survey meters. The inspectors observed a radiation worker's survey technique and judged it to be ineffective. ORS wrote about survey technique in NUtrino 48 (January, 2002) which is available at http://www.northwestern.edu/research-safety/rad/nutrino/index.htm. Print it out now and provide it to all of the radiation workers in your laboratory.

3.      Activity on waste cards. A number of waste cards did not have the activity recorded on them, although the waste had been picked up by ORS. Regulations and University policy require that you maintain a written inventory of the radionuclides and activity in each radwaste container, and that you include all required information on waste cards. ORS staff have been instructed not to pick up waste for which the waste card is not completely filled out.