S.I. No. 17/1972 -- Factories Ionising Radiations (Sealed Sources) Regulations, 1972.

I, JOSEPH BRENNAN, Minister for Labour, in excercise of the powers conferred on me by sections 6 , 20 and 71 of the Factories Act, 1955 (No. 10 of 1955) and the Labour, (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order, 1966, ( S.I. No. 164 of 1966 ) after consultation with the Minister for Health, and after due compliance with the provisions of the Third Schedule to that Act, hereby make as special regulations the following regulations:

PART I. Preliminary and General.

1. (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Factories Ionising Radiations (Sealed Sources) Regulations, 1972.

(2) These Regulations shall come into operation on the 1st day of March, 1972.

2. In these Regulations--

" the Act " means the Factories Act, 1955 (No. 10 of 1955);

" adequate shielding " means shielding or a demarcating barrier outside which the radiation dose rate averaged over any one minute does not exceed 0.75 millirems per hour or where only classified workers are affected 2.5 millirems per hour;

" appointed doctor " means--

(a) any medical practitioner appointed to be a certifying Doctor for any of the purposes of the Act--

(i) in relation to any factory to which Regulation 3 (2) applies;

(ii) in relation to any factory to which Regulation 3 (3) applies in connection with the implementation of any arrangements made thereunder with employers of classified workers,

(iii) in relation to any medical examination required in pursuance of Regulation 26 (1) (a), and

(b) in relation to any other factory and any other medical examination, a registered medical practitioner specially appointed by written certificate of the Minister to be appointed doctor for the factory for the purposes of these Regulations or the certifying doctor for the district in which the factory is situated;

" approved " (save where the context otherwise requires) means approved for the time being by the Minister;

" nuclear energy " means the energy released from atomic nuclei as the result of any process, including the fission process, but does not include energy released in any process of natural transmutation or radioactive decay which is not accelerated or influenced by external means;

" authorised person " means a person for the time being authorised in writing by the occupier of a factory;

" calendar quarter " means a period of three calendar months beginning on the 1st day of January, the 1st day of April, the 1st day of July, the 1st day of October;

" classified worker " has the meaning assigned to it in Regulation 17(1);

" competent person " means a person appointed in pursuance of Regulation 7;

" factory " means any place to which these Regulations apply;

" health register " means the register referred to in Regulation 32;

" ionising radiations " means electromagnetic radiation (that is to say. X-rays and gamma rays) or corpuscular radiation (that is to say, alpha particles, beta particles, electrons, positrons, protons, neutrons, or heavy particles) being electromagnetic radiation or corpuscular radiation capable of producing ions and emitted from a radioactive substance or from a machine or apparatus that is intended to produce ionising radiations or from a machine or apparatus in which charged particles are accelerated by a voltage of not less than five kilovolts;

" the Minister " means the Minister for Labour;

" monitoring " means measuring in accordance with Regulation 40 and " monitor " shall be construed accordingly;

" nuclear reactor " means any plant (including any machinery, equipment or appliance, whether affixed to land or not) designed or adapted for the production of nuclear energy by a fission process in which a controlled chain reaction can be maintained without an additional source of neutrons;

" protected employment " means employment in relation to which requirements are for the time being imposed under the act for recording the radiation doses received by the persons employed;

" radiation area " means a part of a factory in which any person is exposed, otherwise than infrequently and transiently, to a radiation dose rate which when averaged over any one minute exceeds or is liable to exceed 0.75 millirems per hour;

" radiation dose record " means the record referred to in Regulation 20 (1);

" radioactive substance " means any substance which consists of or contains radionuclides, whether natural or artificial, and of which the activity exceeds 0.002 of a microcurie per gramme of substance; in the case of a chain of radionuclides, consisting of a parent and daughters, the only nuclide to be taken into consideration being that having the highest activity of those present;

" sealed source " means any radioactive substance sealed in a container (otherwise than solely for the purpose of storage, transport or disposal) or bonded wholly within material and includes the immediate container or the bonding, but does not include any nuclear fuel element or any radioactive substance inside a nuclear reactor;

" transfer record " means a record prepared on the termination of any person's employment of radiation doses received by him being a record prepared in accordance with requirements for the time being imposed under the Act;

" useful beam " means--

(a) in the case of X-rays, that part of the radiation from an X-ray tube that passes through the aperture, cone or other device for collimating the X-ray beam, and

(b) in other cases, any ionising radiations from a sealed source that can be employed for the purposes for which the sealed source is used.

3. (1) Subject to paragraphs (4) and (5) of this regulation, these Regulations shall apply to (a) any factory within the meaning of Section 3 of the Act and (b) any premises or place, or to the carrying on of any process, operation or work, to which the provisions of Part V of the act are applied by Sections 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88 and 89 thereof in which--

(i) any sealed source is, or is proposed to be, stored, manipulated, maintained, operated, used or installed, or

(ii) there is operated or used, or there is proposed to be operated or used, any machine or apparatus that is intended to produce ionising radiations or any machine or apparatus (being a machine or apparatus which emits ionising radiations) in which charged particles are accelerated by a voltage of not less than 5 kilovolts.

(2) Where in any factory to which these Regulations apply the occupier is neither the owner nor the hirer of a sealed source or of such a machine or apparatus as is referred to in paragraph (1) of this regulation, being a sealed source, machine or apparatus which is used by or under the direction of some person other than the occupier or a person in the employment of the occupier, that other person or (if he is in the employment of the owner or hirer) the employer of that other person, shall in relation to that sealed source, machine or apparatus be deemed to be the occupier of the factory for the purposes of these Regulations.

(3) Where in any factory (other than a factory in relation to which the provisions of paragraph (2) of this regulation apply) any classified worker is employed by some person other than the occupier, the occupier shall be deemed to have complied in respect of any such worker so employed with any requirement imposed on him by Part IV or Part V of these Regulations, if he has made effective arrangements which secure that the employer of the worker complies as respects that worker with that requirement as if the employer were the occupier.

(4) These Regulations shall not apply in relation to any apparatus including irradiating apparatus and radioactive substances exclusively used for medical purposes in the prevention, diagnosis or treatment of illness or injury.

(5) These Regulations shall not apply to--

(a) any sealed source at or near the surface of which the dose rate of ionising radiations does not exceed ten millirems per hour and which is not one of two or more sealed sources placed together and whose collective dose rate at or near the surface exceeds 10 millirems per hour,

(b) any ionising radiations that do not arise from a sealed source or from a machine or apparatus as is referred to in paragraph (1) of this regulation,

(d) the production or use of nuclear energy, or the carrying out of any process preparatory or ancillary thereto,

(e) the storage, processing or disposal of nuclear fuel or of bulk quantities of other radioactive substances which have been produced or irradiated in the course of the production or use of nuclear fuel, or

(f) any apparatus intended only for the purpose of receiving visual images sent by television--

(i) when operated at a voltage of not more than 20 kilovolts in the course of its manufacture, repair, maintenance or testing, or

(ii) in any other circumstances, when the dose rate at or near the surface of the apparatus does not exceed 0.5 millirems per hour.

In sub-paragraphs (a) and (f) of this paragraph " at or near the surface " means as near the surface as is practicable for the purpose of measuring the dose rate of ionising radiations.

(6) The provisions of these Regulations shall be in addition to and are not in substitution for or in diminution of other requirements imposed by or under the Act.

4. (1) The Minister may (subject to such conditions as may be specified therein) by certificate in writing (which he may in his discretion revoke at any time) exempt from all or any of the requirements of these Regulations--

(a) any factory or part of any factory,

(b) any class or description of factories or parts thereof,

(c) any machine, plant, apparatus, process, article or substance or any class or description of machines, plant, apparatus, processes, articles or substances, or

(d) the employment of any person or any class or description of persons, provided that he is satisfied that the requirements in respect of which the exemption is granted are not necessary for the protection of persons employed.

(2) Where an exemption is granted under paragraph (1) of this regulation a copy of the certificate, showing the conditions (if any) subject to which it has been granted, shall be kept posted in any factory where the exemption applies in a position where it may be conveniently read by the persons employed therein.

PART II. Administration.

5. (1) The occupier shall give previous notice in writing to the Minister (which, except in cases of emergency, shall be not less than one month's notice or such shorter notice as the Minister may agree to accept) before undertaking in a factory work to which this regulation applies.

(2) The occupier shall either before or within seven days after ceasing to use the factory (otherwise than merely temporarily) for work to which this regulation applies give notice in writing to that effect to the Minister.

(3) In this regulation the expression " work to which this regulation applies " means work involving the storage, manipulation, maintenance, operation, use or installation of sealed sources or the operation or use of any machine or apparatus of the kind referred to in Regulation 3 (1).

6. The Minister shall be notified in writing--

(a) of any breakage of the immediate container or the bonding of a sealed source, and

(b) of any leakage of any radioactive substance beyond the approved extent from the immediate container or the bonding of a sealed source,

as soon as possible after such breakage or leakage is discovered.

7. (1) The occupier shall appoint one or more competent persons to exercise special supervision with regard to the requirements of these Regulations and to assist in enforcing the observance of them.

(2) The name or names of the person or persons appointed in accordance with paragraph (1) of this regulation shall be kept posted in the factory where it or they can be conveniently read by the persons employed. Where different persons are appointed under this regulation for different parts of the factory or for different processes the names shall be posted in such a manner that the persons employed can readily identify the competent person or competent persons appointed under this regulation for the part of the factory or for the processes in, or in relation to, which they are employed.

(3) Where in any factory more than one person is appointed under this regulation, any reference in these Regulations to the competent person appointed in accordance with this regulation shall be deemed to include a reference to any one of those persons or, as the case may be, to the person appointed, or to any one of the persons appointed for the part of the factory or for the processes concerned.

8. Every person appointed in accordance with Regulation 7 shall be informed of every matter which is required to be notified to the Minister under Regulation 6.

9. Every person appointed in accordance with Regulation 7 shall investigate, in addition to his other duties, the circumstances of every occurrence notified to him under Regulation 8 and report thereon to the occupier with a recommendation as to the action, if any, which he considers ought to be taken.

10. Every register, certificate or record kept in pursuance of these Regulations and every transfer record and copy transfer record received by an employer in pursuance of Regulation 23 shall be preserved in the factory or in such place outside the factory as may be approved and kept available for inspection by an inspector or by the appointed doctor for at least the following periods after the last entry therein, that is to say--

(a) thirty years in the cases of the health register, the radiation dose records, the transfer records and the copy transfer records,

(b) three years in the case of the register kept in pursuance of Regulation 35 (6), and

Provided that where a copy of an extract from or a summary of any document aforesaid has been so approved, the provisions of this regulation may be complied with in relation to that document by so preserving and keeping available a copy, extract, or summary thereof as the case may be.

PART III. Basic Principles of Protection.

11. (1) The occupier shall do all that is reasonably practicable to restrict to the lowest possible level the extent to which the persons employed in a factory are exposed to ionising radiations and no person employed shall expose himself to ionising radiations to a greater extent than is reasonably necessary for the purposes of his work.

(2) Effective measures shall be taken by the occupier to ensure that no person employed shall receive any radiation dose in excess of those specified in the Schedule to these Regulations and that any unnecessary exposure of such a person to ionising radiations is prevented.

12. Effective measures shall be taken by the occupier to ensure that all sources of ionising radiations are, at all times, adequately shielded.

13. (1) Wherever practicable the useful beam shall be directed away from areas where other persons are employed.

(2) The useful beam shall be limited by appropriate means to the minimum size reasonably necessary for the work in progress and effective measures shall be taken to limit scattered radiation.

14. No person employed shall be exposed to ionising radiations unless he has received and, where necessary, continues to receive, adequate training and instruction before and during such employment in the precautions to be taken for his protection in relation to his health and safety.

15. (1) Where the Minister has reasonable cause to believe in relation to any factory that any person employed may have received, or is likely to receive, in any calendar year or in any calendar quarter, as the case may be, a sum of radiation doses greater than three-tenths of the appropriate dose specified in the Schedule to these Regulations, the Minister may serve on the occupier a written notice requiring him to make specified arrangements in relation to all or any of the following matters, that is to say--

(a) the wearing by any person employed of a photographic film or an appropriate radiation dosemeter, and the keeping and preserving of records of doses received,

(b) the monitoring of any part of the factory, and the keeping and preserving of records of measurements obtained by such monitoring,

(c) the determination in the case of any person so employed of the amount of radioactive substances in his body, and the estimation, when practicable, of the radiation dose therefrom, and the keeping and preserving of records of any determination and estimation so made,

(d) the suspension of any person so employed from work in which he will be exposed to ionising radiations or the imposing of special conditions as to his employment in any such work,

(e) the medical examination of any person so employed, and

(f) the making of a special entry in the radiation dose record in respect of any person so employed.

(2) It shall be the duty of every person employed to comply with the requirements of any such approved arrangements in so far as they require the wearing by him of photographic film or a radiation dosemeter or require him to be medically examined.

16. (1) Every person employed in a factory who notices anything that appears likely to cause danger from ionising radiations shall either--

(a) take all necessary steps to remove the danger, or

(b) withdraw from the place of danger without delay and report the matter forthwith to the occupier or the person appointed under Regulation 7.

(2) A person shall not, nor be required to, except with the consent of an authorised person--

(a) pass beyond any barrier marking the boundaries of any radiation area,

(b) enter any such area, walled enclosure, or cabinet,

(3) Every person employed shall comply with any warning signals and directions given him by an authorised person.

PART IV. Radiological Supervision.

17. (1) Persons who are employed for any of their time in radiation areas in work involving the storage, manipulation, maintenance, operation, use or installation of sealed sources or the operation or use of any machine or apparatus of the kind referred to in Regulation 3 (1), not being persons employed in accordance with an approved scheme of work within the meaning of the next following paragraph shall be designated by the occupier as classified workers.

(2) In paragraph (1) of this regulation "approved scheme of work" means an approved scheme of work in relation to which the Minister is satisfied that the operating and working conditions and the system of control and instruction are such that a person working in accordance with the scheme is not likely to receive in any calendar year the sum of radiation doses exceeding three-tenths of the appropriate dose specified in the Schedule to these Regulations.

(3) No person under the age of eighteen shall be employed on work which requires him to be designated as a classified worker.

(4) The names of all persons designated as classified workers shall be kept entered in the health register.

18. Where any person is or is to be currently employed as a classified worker in more than one factory by the same employer--

(a) all the factories in which that person is or is to be so currently employed shall, in relation to that person, be deemed, for the purposes of these Regulations, to constitute one factory,

(b) except in the cases referred to in paragraph (a) of the definition of the expression "appointed doctor" in Regulation 2, references in these Regulations to the appointed doctor shall be construed as references to the appointed doctor for any one of those factories,

(c) the references to the health register in Regulations 26, 31 and 32 shall be construed as references to the health register for any one of those factories, so, however, that as respects any period only one health register shall be used in respect of that person, and

(d) the reference in Regulation 29 (1) to the factory shall be construed as a reference to any one of those factories.

19. (1) The occupier shall make suitable arrangements for the wearing by every classified worker on an appropriate part or parts of his person of either a suitable photographic film or films in an appropriate holder or holders or a suitable dosemeter or suitable dosemeters, being a dosemeter or dosemeters of an approved type, during any working period in which that worker is liable to be exposed to ionising radiations. It shall be the duty of every classified worker to wear in a proper manner any film or dosemeter provided for him in pursuance of this regulation, and at intervals specified by the occupier to return every such film or dosemeter to the occupier for the purposes of the examination mentioned in paragraph (2) of this regulation.

(2) The occupier shall obtain the said films, film holders and dosemeters from an approved laboratory and arrange for the films and dosemeters, identified by reference to the particular wearer, to be returned at appropriate intervals to that laboratory for processing and examination and for the issue to the occupier, by the director or other responsible person at the laboratory, of certificates in the approved form of the results of the examination of each film and dosemeter.

20. (1) Subject to the provisions of paragraph (2) of this regulation, a radiation dose record shall be kept in the approved form and shall contain in relation to each classified worker particulars--

(a) of the maximum radiation doses permitted under the Schedule to these Regulations,

(b) of the radiation doses received by him, and

(c) in relation to any person employed (whether or not he is a classified worker), any special entry required in accordance with Regulations 15 and 22.

(2) Where it appears to an occupier that any person employed or engaged for employment by him as a classified worker, either

(a) was previously engaged--

(i) in work in a factory, being work done before the imposition of requirements under the Act (including these Regulations) for recording the radiation doses received by the persons employed in such work, but which, if, after the date of the coming into operation of these Regulations, it had been done by a person employed would have been protected employment, or

(ii) in work not done in a factory but which if, after the date of the coming into operation of these Regulations, it had been done in a factory by a person employed, would have been protected employment, or

(b) at times other than the hours during which he is employed by him is engaged in work of a kind specified in sub-paragraph (a) (ii) of this paragraph

and such person produces to the occupier any document purporting to be a record of radiation doses received by that person whilst performing the work, the occupier shall so far as practicable, enter in the radiation dose record kept in relation to that person in pursuance of the foregoing paragraph of this regulation, the particulars contained in the said document of the radiation doses received by him whilst performing that work.

(3) The radiation dose record in relation to any person shall be kept up to date and shall be open to the inspection of that person at all reasonable times.

(4) For the purposes of the radiation dose record, a dose received during any period as indicated by a certificate issued in pursuance of Regulation 19 (2) which did not fall wholly within one calendar quarter shall be deemed to have been received at a uniform rate on all the days (whether working days or not) throughout the period.

21. (1) Whenever any person has reasonable cause to believe that he has received any radiation dose in excess of the appropriate maximum dose specified in the Schedule to these Regulations, he shall report the circumstances to the occupier who shall forthwith make an investigation or arrange for an investigation to be made.

(2) Where an investigation under paragraph (1) of this Regulation confirms a report made under that paragraph or the occupier has other reason to believe that any person employed has received a radiation dose in excess of that specified in the Schedule to these Regulations, the occupier shall forthwith--

(a) notify the appointed doctor,

(b) notify the Minister, and

(3) Whenever it appears from the radiation dose record that any worker has received a radiation dose in excess of that specified in the Schedule to these Regulations, the occupier shall forthwith--

(a) make an investigation or arrange for an investigation to be made,

(b) notify the appointed doctor, and

22. (1) Whenever the occupier has reasonable cause to believe that any person has received, during any period during which a film or dosemeter is required to be worn by that person in pursuance of these Regulations, a radiation dose which is greater or less than the dose indicated by a certificate issued under these Regulations in relation to the films or dosemeters worn by him during that period, the occupier shall make an investigation, or arrange for an investigation to be made, and where any such investigation confirms his belief, the occupier shall apply to the Minister for his approval of a special entry and any special entry so approved shall be made in that person's radiation dose record.

(2) Whenever the Minister has reason to believe that any person has received, during any period during which a film or dosemeter is required to be worn by that person in pursuance of these Regulations, a radiation dose which is significantly greater or significantly less than the dose indicated by a certificate issued under these Regulations in relation to the films or dosemeters worn by him during that period, the Minister may approve a special entry and any special entry so approved shall be made in that person's radiation dose record.

23. (1) Where any person, in relation to whom an employer is or has been required to keep a radiation dose record, ceases to be employed by that employer, that employer shall forthwith prepare a transfer record in the approved form. The employer, if he knows the whereabouts of that person, shall forthwith supply him with the transfer record and shall in any case forthwith send a copy of it to the Minister.

(2) Before any person who was previously in protected employment with another employer is employed, or engaged for employment, as a classified worker, that person shall--

(a) notify his employer or, as the case may be, prospective employer, of the said previous protected employment, and

(b) if he has received from his employer in that previous employment a transfer record and that record is still in his possession, produce it to his employer or, as the case may be, prospective employer, and make it available to the appointed doctor. In the event of that person being employed, or engaged for employment, as a classified worker the transfer record shall be handed to and retained by the employer.

(3) When the occupier is aware that any person employed, or engaged for employment, as a classified worker was previously in protected employment with another employer and that person does not produce a transfer record in pursuance of the last foregoing paragraph of this regulation, the occupier shall forthwith apply to the Minister for a copy of that record.

PART V. Medical Supervision.

24. The occupier shall make arrangements for medical supervision by the appointed doctor of all classified workers, including specific arrangements as provided for in this Part of these Regulations.

25. (1) For the purpose of examinations conducted at a factory to which these Regulations apply, the occupier shall provide, for the exclusive use of the appointed doctor on the occasion of the examination, a room properly cleaned and adequately warmed and lighted and furnished with a screen, a table with writing materials, chairs, an examination couch and a wash basin with a supply of clean, running hot and cold or warm water.

(2) The occupier shall afford to the appointed doctor adequate facilities for inspecting any process, operation or work in which a person examined or to be examined by the appointed doctor has been, is or is to be, employed.

26. (1) No person shall be employed in a factory as a classified worker unless--

(a) within the period of fourteen months immediately preceding his first employment in that factory, he has been examined by an appointed doctor and certified fit, by signed entry by the said doctor in the health register, for employment as a classified worker, and

(b) he has at any time undergone a suitable blood examination and an adequate report of the results of such examination is available and known to the said doctor.

(2) In this regulation, the expression "first employment in that factory" means first employment in that factory as a classified worker or re-employment in that factory as a classified worker following any cessation of such employment therein for a period exceeding fourteen months.

27. The occupier shall arrange for medical examination by the appointed doctor of every worker who is a classified worker once in every calendar year so long as his employment as a classified worker continues, if it appears from his radiation dose record that during the immediately preceding calendar year he has received a sum of radiation doses which is greater than three-tenths of the appropriate doses specified in the Schedule to these Regulations.

28. Where the occupier has notified the appointed doctor in accordance with Regulation 21 that any person employed has received a radiation dose in excess of the appropriate dose specified in the Schedule to these Regulations, the occupier shall arrange for the person concerned to undergo without delay a medical examination by the appointed doctor in any case where the excessive radiation dose either--

(a) exceeds 10 rems in the case of a dose to parts of the body other than the hands, forearms, feet and ankles from all or any one or more of the following, that is to say, X-rays, gamma rays and neutrons, or

(b) in any other case exceeds the doses specified in the Schedule to these Regulations.

29. (1) Except where otherwise authorised or directed in writing by the Minister, any medical examination by the appointed doctor for the purposes of these Regulations shall take place at the factory.

(2) Due notice of every medical examination for the purposes of these Regulations shall be given by the occupier to those concerned and it shall be the duty of the persons employed as classified workers to submit themselves for examination by the appointed doctor in accordance with these Regulations as required by such notice and for any special examination required under Regulation 30 (1) and to submit to the taking of samples for every blood examination the results of which are used for the purposes of these Regulations.

30. (1) The appointed doctor may at his discretion, in relation to any medical examination for the purposes of these Regulations, require an examination of the blood or any other special examination. Any such special examination may be carried out at a place other than the factory.

(2) Every blood examination for the purposes of these Regulations shall be made by an approved laboratory or an approved person.

(3) The report of every such blood examination as aforesaid shall be sent to the appointed doctor.

31. (1) The appointed doctor shall have power, to be exercised by written certificate in the health register signed by him, to suspend from employment as a classified worker or from work in a radiation area any worker examined by him under these Regulations.

(2) No person so suspended shall be re-employed as a classified worker or in a radiation area without the written approval of the appointed doctor entered in the health register.

(3) The occupier shall forthwith notify the Minister whenever any worker is suspended from employment in accordance with these Regulations.

32. (1) A health register shall be kept in the approved form of all classified workers and the appointed doctor shall enter in the health register the dates and results of examinations of those persons.

(2) The appointed doctor shall by signed entry in the health register record the date and result of any medical examination under Regulation 28 of any worker other than a classified worker.

PART VI. Organisation of Work.

33. (1) There shall, where reasonably practicable, be a barrier or barriers marking the boundaries of every radiation area or where the use of such barrier or barriers is not reasonably practicable the said boundaries shall be marked by other suitable means.

(2) Suitable notices warning persons in the vicinity shall be displayed at a sufficient number of suitable places on or near to the boundaries of all radiation areas.

34. Effective measures shall be taken to ensure that no sealed source shall be handled by direct contact with the bare hand.

35. (1) The immediate container or the bonding of every sealed source shall be of adequate mechanical strength and free from patent defect.

(2) A distinguishing number or other identifying mark shall be on or attached to every sealed source.

(3) The immediate container or the bonding of every sealed source shall be protected as far as practicable against accidental damage.

(4) An approved test for leakage of radioactive substance shall be made by a qualified person at least once in every period of twenty-six months or at such shorter intervals as may be approved of--

(a) every immediate container or bonding which forms part of a sealed source, or

(b) every container in which a sealed source is permanently installed but which does not form part of the sealed source.

(5) A register shall be kept in the approved form containing a true report of every test carried out in pursuance of paragraph (4) of this Regulation.

36. Where there are reasonable grounds to believe that any radioactive substance is leaking, or is likely to leak, beyond the approved extent as may be specified from time to time by the Minister from the immediate container or the bonding which forms part of a sealed source, and in the event of the immediate container or the bonding which forms part of a sealed source being broken--

(a) all practicable measures shall be taken to safeguard the persons employed, including, where necessary, the immediate vacation of all appropriate areas,

(b) the immediate container or bonding shall be placed in a leak-proof container and shall not be brought into use until any necessary repairs have been effected, and

(c) effective steps shall be taken as soon as practicable by or under the supervision of an authorised person to decontaminate areas affected by the radioactive substance. Any person taking part in such work shall be properly equipped for the purpose.

37. (1) Subject to the provisions of paragraph (3) of this regulation, an authorised person shall keep a record of the following particulars in respect of every sealed source received into the factory, that is to say--

(a) the distinguishing number or other identifying mark,

(b) the date of receipt into the factory,

(d) the activity expressed in curies of the radioactive substance in the sealed source at a date specified by the authorised person in the record,

(e) the whereabouts of the sealed source, kept up-to-date on each working day, and

(f) the date, and manner of disposal of the sealed source, when it leaves the factory.

(2) Whenever a sealed source is reactivated or, as the case may be, received back into the factory after reactivation, it shall for the purposes of paragraph (1) of this regulation be treated as a sealed source received into the factory at the date of reactivation or of receipt back into the factory after reactivation, as the case may be.

(3) Nothing in this regulation shall apply to sealed sources--

(a) in the course of their manufacture, or

(b) while stored, without having been used, on the premises in which they were manufactured or in which their manufacture was completed.

(4) It shall be the duty of every person employed to notify the competent person forthwith if he has reasonable grounds for believing that any sealed source has been lost or mislaid. The competent person shall take immediate steps with a view to finding the sealed source and if the sealed source is not accounted for within twenty-four hours, the occupier shall notify the Minister forthwith in writing.

38. (1) Sealed sources when not in use shall be kept securely in a suitable store reserved for the storage of radioactive substances and, where reasonably practicable, shall be kept in appropriate protective receptacles.

(2) Where necessary to protect the persons employed from gaseous radioactive substances, adequate and suitable arrangements shall be made for ventilating every such store to the open air by mechanical means.

(3) A suitable warning notice of the dangers of radiation shall be kept prominently displayed outside every store which contains a sealed source.

39. (1) No sealed source shall be transported within a factory unless it is transported--

(a) in a suitable container or by other appropriate methods,

(b) by or under the immediate supervision of an authorised person, and

(2) Every container containing any sealed source shall be kept marked with a suitable warning notice to indicate that its contents are radioactive.

PART VII. Monitoring.

40. (1) The occupier shall ensure that there is provided and properly maintained an appropriate and efficient radiation dose-meter or dose rate meter by means of which appropriate measurements shall be made at such intervals as are necessary for the purpose of ascertaining the efficiency of methods for the restriction of exposure to, and for shielding against, ionising radiations.

(2) Any dosemeter or dose rate meter provided under this Regulation may be provided for use in more than one factory.

(3) The occupier shall ensure that every such radiation dosemeter and dose rate meter when first taken into use in the factory or as the case may be, in the first of the factories for which it is provided, has been tested by a qualified person and that it is subsequently re-tested by a qualified person at least once in every period of fourteen months and also after any repair of a defect which could affect its accuracy. A register shall be kept in the approved form of every test carried out in pursuance of this paragraph.

(4) All measurements under this regulation shall be made by the competent person or by an authorised person.

PART VIII. Radiography and other Processes.

41. The processes to which this Part of these Regulations applies are--

(a) the use of ionising radiations in radiography or fluoroscopy,

(b) the testing of machines and apparatus intended to produce ionising radiations, not being machines or apparatus to which Regulation 46 or 48 applies, and

(c) the use of ionising radiations in the irradiation of materials for the purpose of inducing chemical, physical or biological changes, including the irradiation of materials for the purpose of sterilisation, disinfection or disinfestation or for the purpose of preserving food, but not including changes induced solely for the purpose of measuring ionising radiations.

42. The processes to which this Part of these Regulations applies shall be carried on only--

(a) within a walled enclosure or a cabinet, being an enclosure or cabinet set apart for the purpose which provides adequate shielding and from which all persons are effectively excluded while any machine or apparatus therein which is intended to produce ionising radiations is energised and all persons other than authorised persons when a sealed source is exposed, or

(b) in accordance with an approved scheme of work in relation to which the Minister is satisfied that the operating and working conditions and the system of control and instruction are such that the radiation doses received by a person working in accordance with the scheme will not exceed the appropriate doses specified in the Schedule to these Regulations:

Provided that (except in cases to which sub-paragraph (b) applies) where ionising radiations are being used in radiography and the provision of such a walled enclosure or such a cabinet is not reasonably practicable, effective steps shall be taken to isolate the radiography from other work and to exclude all except authorised persons from a suitable enclosure or, where the provision of such an enclosure is not reasonably practicable, from a suitably marked area around the work.

43. (1) Where a walled enclosure or a cabinet is provided--

(a) effective devices shall be provided and maintained--

(i) to ensure that if any door or part of the walled enclosure or of the cabinet is opened while any machine or apparatus therein is energised the machine or apparatus is automatically de-energised and cannot be energised so long as that door or part is open, and

(ii) where the walled enclosure or the cabinet is an enclosure or cabinet to which no person is authorised to have access while a sealed source contained therein is exposed, to ensure that no door or part of the enclosure or of the cabinet can be opened while the sealed source is exposed and that the sealed source cannot be exposed while any such door or part is open, and

(b) the control panel for any machine or apparatus therein which is intended to produce ionising radiations shall be situated outside the walled enclosure or cabinet.

(2) Where necessary for the protection of persons who may be accidentally shut inside a walled enclosure or a cabinet, one or more of the following shall be provided and properly maintained----

(a) means of exit so constructed that those persons can leave the enclosure or cabinet without delay,

(b) means whereby those persons can quickly control all the sources of ionising radiations within the enclosure or cabinet, or

(3) Where necessary suitable means of communication shall be provided and maintained to enable persons shut inside a walled enclosure or a cabinet to summon help from outside the enclosure or cabinet.

44. (1) Adequate warning to all persons in the vicinity shall be given by appropriate light or audible signals or both--

(a) when a sealed source is about to be exposed or when a machine or apparatus is about to be energised, and

(b) while a sealed source is exposed or a machine or apparatus is energised,

and the signals given for the purposes of sub-paragraph (a) of this paragraph shall be distinguishable from those given for the purposes of sub-paragraph (b).

(2) In the case of X-ray machines or apparatus the warning signals shall be arranged to operate automatically.

(3) Suitable warning notices capable of being easily read shall be displayed when ionising radiations are about to be used in and while they are being used in, an enclosure or marked area in pursuance of the proviso to Regulation 42.

45. (1) Every sealed source shall be moved only by the use of a handling rod or tool or an automatic or mechanical method or some other suitable method of remote control.

(2) In all the processes (other than radiography) which are carried on within a walled enclosure or a cabinet, while a sealed source is exposed or a machine or apparatus is energised, no material shall be brought into the beam of radiation except by the use of mechanisms operated from outside the walled enclosure or the cabinet.

(3) In radiography, the radiographic set-up shall be completed before the machine or apparatus is energised or before the sealed source is exposed and no changes in the set-up shall be made while the machine or apparatus is energised or the sealed source is exposed otherwise than by the use of remote controls.

(4) Whenever practicable, fluorescent screens shall be viewed indirectly by the use of inclined mirrors or other means.

PART IX. X-Ray Crystallography and Spectrometry.

46. (1) This regulation applies to X-ray crystallographic apparatus and apparatus used for X-ray spectrometry.

(2) Apparatus to which this regulation applies shall be adequately shielded.

(3) Effective arrangements shall be provided, maintained and used to prevent insertion of any part of the body into a useful beam.

(4) Where an X-ray diffraction camera or slit collimating system is in use the useful beam passing between the X-ray tube aperture and the camera or collimating system shall be completely enclosed so as to provide adequate shielding.

(5) Adequate warning to all persons in the vicinity shall be given by appropriate light or audible signals or both while the X-ray tube or apparatus to which this regulation applies is energised. The warning signals shall be arranged to operate automatically.

PART X. Measuring and Detecting Devices and Static Eliminators.

47. (1) This regulation applies to sealed sources used in thickness gauges, density gauges, package monitors, level gauges, static eliminators, analysers or other analytical, inspection or gauging equipment.

(2) The sealed source shall be provided with an adequate and efficient cover plate, shutter or shield which--

(a) shall be capable of being easily, securely and quickly placed or moved so as to attenuate the useful beam as far as is reasonably practicable,

(b) shall be used whenever practicable to attenuate the useful beam and whenever reasonably practicable shall be arranged to operate automatically,

and a means shall be provided to indicate clearly whether or not the said cover plate, shutter or shield is in the closed position.

(3) The housing of each sealed source shall be legibly engraved, stamped or otherwise permanently marked to give a warning that it contains radioactive material.

48. (1) This regulation applies to machines or apparatus designed to produce ionising radiations (other than machines or apparatus to which Part VIII or IX of these Regulations applies) used in thickness gauges, density gauges, package monitors, level gauges, analysers or other analytical, inspection or gauging equipment.

(2) The machine or apparatus shall be adequately shielded.

(3) Adequate warning to all persons in the vicinity shall be given by appropriate light or audible signals or by both, arranged to operate automatically--

(a) when a machine or apparatus is about to be energised,

(b) while a machine or apparatus is energised,

(d) while any shutter used for the purpose of attenuating the useful beam is open,

and the signals given for the purposes of sub-paragraphs (a) to (d) of this paragraph shall be distinguishable from each other.

(4) Effective arrangement shall be provided, maintained and used to prevent insertion of any part of the body into a useful beam.

SCHEDULE.

Regulations 11 (2), 15 (1), 17 (2), 20 (1), 21, 27, 28 and 42.

Maximum Radiation Doses.

1. The doses specified in this Schedule relate to ionising radiations (other than alpha particles emitted by radioactive substances) that originate (otherwise than from radioactive substances within the human body) either in a factory or in a place outside a factory in which any work of a kind specified in Regulation 20 (2) (a) (ii) is carried on from--

(a) any radioactive substance, or

(b) any machine or apparatus that is intended to produce ionising radiations or in which charged particles are accelerated by a voltage of not less than 5 kilovolts not being apparatus including irradiating apparatus and radioactive substances exclusively used for medical purposes in the prevention, diagnosis or treatment of illness or injury,

and for the purposes of this Schedule other ionising radiations shall not be taken into account.

2. (1) The maximum sum of doses received in any calendar quarter by any person to parts of the body other than the eyes, hands, forearms, feet and ankles from all or any one or more of the following, that is to say. X-rays, gamma rays and neutrons shall not exceed--

(a) in the case of a male person, 3 rems, and

(b) in the case of a female person, 1.3 rems, provided that in the case of a female person whom the occupier knows, or has reasonable cause to believe, to be pregnant, the maximum sum of doses during the remaining period of her pregnancy shall not exceed 1 rem.

(2) The number of rems in the total cumulative dose received from all or any one or more of the following, that is to say, X-rays, gamma rays and neutrons to those parts of the body other than the eyes, hands, forearms, feet and ankles shall not at any time exceed 5 times the number of years from the first day of January of the year in which that person attained the age of 18 and for the purposes of calculating the said doses a part of a year shall be counted as a year.

(3) The maximum dose in any one year from X-rays, gamma rays and neutrons to parts of the body other than the eyes, hands, forearms, feet and ankles, for the purposes of Regulations 15, 17 and 27 shall be 5 rems.

3. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 2 of this Schedule, the maximum sum of doses received, in any calendar year, by persons employed in a factory from any ionising radiations shall not exceed--

(a) 75 rems to the hands, forearms, feet and ankles of which not more than 40 shall be received in any calendar quarter,

(b) 15 rems to the lenses of the eyes of which not more than 8 shall be received in a calendar quarter, and

4. If the occupier is aware that any person employed was during any period--

(a) in protected employment, or

(b) in employment which, if it had occurred after the coming into operation of any Regulations under the Act, would have been protected employment, or

for which no information is available to the occupier as to the doses that person received during that period of the kinds, and to the parts of the body, specified in paragraph 2, that person shall, for the purpose of calculating his total cumulative dose referred to in the said paragraph, be deemed to have received doses at the rate of 5 rems a year during that period.

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 25th day of January, 1972.

JOSEPH BRENNAN,

Minister for Labour.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

The purpose of these Regulations is to prescribe measures which must be taken to ensure the adequate protection of persons employed in factories and other places, to which the Factories Act, 1955 applies, against ionising radiations arising--

(a) from radioactive substances sealed in a container or bonded wholly within material, and

(b) from any machine or apparatus including irradiating apparatus that is intended to produce ionising radiations in which charged particles are acclerated by a voltage of not less than 5 kilovolts.

The following forms have been approved by the Minister for Labour for the purposes of these regulations :

Regulation 19 (2):	Report of examination of photographic films and dosemeters--Form No. I.R.1.
Regulation 20 (1):	Radiation Dose Record--Form No. I.R.2.
Regulation 23 (1):	Transfer Record--Form No. I.R. 3.
Regulation 32 (1):	Health Register--Form No. I.R.4.
Regulation 35 (5):	Register of Tests for Leakage of Radioactive Substance--Form No. I.R.5.
Regulation 40 (3):	Register of Tests of Dosemeters and other Monitoring Instruments--Form No. I.R.6.

Irish Statutory Instruments

S.I. No. 17/1972 -- Factories Ionising Radiations (Sealed Sources) Regulations, 1972.