TRANSPORT SECURITY – AN OPERATIONAL VIEW

Industry takes its responsibility seriously in transporting radioactive materials both safely and securely around the world every day, and has an outstanding record on both counts over several decades. International radioactive materials transport security standards are contained in international regulations and conventions such as the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Convention for the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material, its supporting document, the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material and Nuclear Facilities, INFCIRC/225, Revision 4 as corrected, the 2008 IAEA Security Series “Security in the Transport of Radioactive Material”, the International Maritime Organization’s “International Ship and Port Facility Security Code” (ISPS Code) and the security requirements for High Consequence Dangerous Goods laid out in the United Nations Model Regulations known as the “Orange Book”. National requirements supplement this international framework. It is well understood by the transport industry that security requirements are a matter for individual States and industry must work within these requirements. A heightened concern in recent years about the consequences of malicious acts/terrorism has been reflected in the increased emphasis on transport security, for all classes of dangerous goods. This concern in turn raises the question of harmonisation of security standards from one jurisdiction to another worldwide in the interest of avoiding possible differences of interpretation and differing standards between jurisdictions The World Nuclear Transport Institute (WNTI) has established a Transport Security Industry Working Group to evaluate based on industry experiences where there is common ground between jurisdictions, assessing the implications on operations of security measures. This paper will examine some of the transport security challenges for industry in more depth, their operational impact and the role of the industry through the WNTI Transport Security Industry Working Group to ensure the safe, cost-effective and secure transport of radioactive materials.