Regulation Resources - Radiation (Exemption) Resource

This page lists all the most relevant exemption orders with guidance. This page is supplied for information only and you are advised to consult a Radiation Protection Adviser if you are thinking of using the conditions in any of these orders.

This document was published 30 September 2011 and expires 01 October 2012. The guidance here on Medical and veterinary uses of radioactive sources applies to the whole of the UK.

This document was published 30 September 2011 and expires 01 October 2012. This document provides Exemption guidance for Radioactivity in Museums. This will therefore cover geological specimens (U / Th), radium dials etc. Care: We look after two large museums which are not covered under this exemption.  

This document was published 30 September 2011 and expires 01 October 2012. This document provides exemption guidance on use of small activities ('amounts' ?!) of open radioactive sources.

This document was published 30 September 2011 and expires 01 October 2012. This document contains guidance on exemption for small sealed radioactive sources (etc).

What is a small sealed source, tritium foil source or electrodeposited source: The guidance states that a tritium source / electrodeposited source are not sealed sources for purposes of exemption (but still exempts them!).

This document was published 30 September 2011 and expires 01 October 2012. This document provides guidance for exemption for using uranium and thorium (including radioactive waste).

This document was published 30 September 2011 and expires 01 October 2012. The document provides exemption guidance on Very Low Radioactive Waste (VLLW). New or varied open source permits, made under RSA93 (Scotland) or EPR2010 (rest of UK) will not have a VLLW condition unless the user cannot operate under the exemption provision, eg more than the maximum allowed quantities need be disposed of.

This document was published 30 September 2011 and expires 01 October 2012. The document provides guidance on Waste Sealed Radioactive Sources.

For the purpose of exemption, the guidance includes and important definition of a sealed source: ' For the purposes of exemption, a sealed source is defined as a radioactive source containing radioactive material where the structure is designed to prevent, under normal use, any dispersion of radioactive substances, excluding such a source where it is an electrodeposited source or a tritium foil source '.

This guidance document is issued for the whole of the UK – therefore it will refer to RSA93 for Scotland and EPR2010 (and EPR2011 amendment regulations) for England and Wales. In a nutshell the amendment regulations / existing RSA93 in Scotland (via its own exemption order – see other resource in this section), have replaced (revoked) all the existing Radioactive Substances exemption orders (some of which were in place since 1963).

What you have instead is a 100 page document which is supposed to do the same thing, but in a rather more updated way (e.g. using SI units etc). What you really have is what IAEA have been saying for years. You need to give this a really good read to understand this fully – seek advice as required.

The Environmental Permitting (England & Wales) (Ammendment) Regulations 2011. This has the effect of replacing the Radioactive Substances Exemption Orders as they applied to England and Wales. Please see the guidance document also in this section.

The Radioactive Substances Exemption (Scotland) Order 2011. This order replaces the Radioactive Substances (Scotland) exemption orders. It more or less does the same as EPR 2011 for England and Wales (see other resource in this section). Please read the guidance in this section (which applies to all of the UK) and seek advice as required.