Chapter 9: Radiological Safety

Overview (Section 1)

The exposure of personnel to radiation and the use, storage, handling, and disposal of radioactive materials at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) is strictly controlled in accordance with a comprehensive set of regulations, principally Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 835 (10 CFR 835), Occupational Radiation Protection, and directives issued by the Department of Energy (DOE). These regulations and directives are implemented through an extensive set of programs, each with its own set of detailed requirements and documents.

The main program, required by 10 CFR 835, is the SLAC Radiation Protection Program (RPP). The goal of the RPP is to maintain personal radiation doses below regulatory limits and as low as reasonably achievable (ALARA). RPP requirements apply to all radiological activities, facilities, and operations at SLAC and strictly control any activities that can expose personnel to radiation. Additionally, SLAC policy stemming from DOE directives is to minimize release of radioactive material into the environment and minimize the impacts to the environment from radiological operations.

The implementation hierarchy for the programs that collectively comprise the SLAC radiological safety program is as follows:

The top-level document is Stanford Linear Accelerator Center Radiation Protection Program Plan for Implementing 10 CFR 835 [pdf], which describes how SLAC meets the requirements of 10 CFR 835. The RPP plan (called the RPP) is primarily a regulatory compliance tool rather than an operations-oriented document. It is intended for use by SLAC management and the DOE.
The SLAC Radiological Control Manual [pdf] (referred to as the RadCon Manual) and this chapter are second-level documents that summarize the RPP and general requirements for third-level documents and the entire radiological safety program in general. This chapter describes an overview of the radiological safety program requirements that apply globally at SLAC. This chapter is intended for line management and personnel to meet general program requirements.
The third-level documents are radiation safety program manuals (for example, the Radiation Safety Systems [pdf] document and the Radioactive Waste Manual [pdf]) which, combined with supporting materials such as technical basis documents, procedures, specifications, and memos, provide detailed implementation requirements and guidelines for each of the programs that comprise the radiological safety program. These manuals and supporting materials are intended for SLAC Radiation Protection (RP) Department personnel and SLAC personnel who may need to know more details of the radiological safety program.

Section 5.1 describes these document levels of the radiological safety program in more detail. Section 6 lists the implementing documents and indices.

Hazards / Impacts

Personnel who access a controlled area at SLAC may be exposed to ionizing radiation. In accordance with this chapter, engineering and administrative controls are required to maintain personal radiation doses ALARA, to prevent uncontrolled or accidental exposure to ionizing radiation, and to prevent release of radioactive material into the environment.

Scope (Section 2)

This chapter applies to all personnel who access accelerator facilities and controlled areas in machine shops, research laboratories, and service buildings (see sections 4 and 5.2.3.4 for further details on applicable areas and personnel).

Implementation (Section 8)

The requirements of this chapter are effective upon publication unless otherwise noted here.

continue to Standards (3)

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