LATIN AMERICAN AND CARIBBEAN WORKSHOP ON THE SUSTAINABILITY OF RADIOACTIVE SOURCE PHYSICAL PROTECTION UPGRADES HOSTED IN GUATEMALA

摘要

The Department of Energy National Nuclear Security Administration’s Global Threat ReductionInitiative (GTRI) reduces and protects vulnerable nuclear and radiological material located atcivilian sites worldwide. The GTRI program has worked successfully to remove and protectnuclear and radioactive materials, including orphaned and disused high-activity sources, and is nowworking to ensure sustainability. Internationally, over 40 countries are cooperating with GTRI toenhance the security of radiological materials. GTRI is now seeking to develop and enhancesustainability by coordinating its resources with those of the partner country, other donor countries,and international organizations such as the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). There aretwo key components to effective long-term sustainability. In the first, resources are committed atthe site level to operate and sustain security upgrades. In the second, resources are committed at thenational level to promote and enforce the continued operation and sustainment of site-level securityupgrades. The GTRI program developed a regional approach to sustainability for the LatinAmerican and Caribbean regions by holding a workshop in Guatemala in September 2008, with theoverall goal to achieve a common understanding of national and site level components for bothregulators and facility operators. This workshop, which was attended by over 30 Latin Americanand Caribbean representatives, was the first major event in the region to address the challenges ofsustaining physical protection upgrades and represented the next phase in the physical protection ofradioactive sources. The execution of this regional sustainability approach will help establishprecedent for the GTRI in aspects of module development and lessons learned.