Implementation of the latest EURATOM Council Directive (Basic Safety Standards for Radiation Protection) with regard to the transport of radioactive material in Germany

The Safety Standards “Radiation Protection and Safety of Radiation Sources: International Basic Safety Standards” (BSS) of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and other international organizations, based on the recommendations of the International Commission on Radiation Protection (ICRP) No. 103, were published in 2011. On the basis of these BSS the EURATOM Countries developed their own Council Directive (2013/59/EURATOM), published on 5 December 2013. It has to be implemented and put into force by the Member States until 6 February 2018.Since the transport of radioactive material is within the scope of the new Directive as an “activity” and the transport is also defined as a “practice”, all applicable provisions of the directive have to be fulfilled also for the transport of radioactive material. Such provisions will be described.The paper will discuss in particular the following new elements of the Directive:- Three new types of situations of exposure (planned, emergency and existing exposure situations),- The new system of notification and authorization,- The roles of the radiation protection expert and the radiation protection officer.Medical surveillance is discussed as well.In particular, the new exemption and clearance values are discussed with the focus on keeping them harmonized with the exemption values of the IAEA Transport Regulations SSR-6, Edition 2012. A set of exemption values harmonized between the use and the transport of radioactive material is an important issue in terms of practical application.Finally, the paper summarises experiences from implementing the necessary provisions in Germany.