Occupational Safety and Health Requirements

TL;DRAbstract

Decommissioning of nuclear facilities requires attention not only to radiation safety but also to other safety requirements collectively referred to as occupational safety and health (OSH). As a general rule, a safety assessment is the initial phase of both radiation safety and OSH. The safety assessment identifies significant hazards during the decommissioning phase of a nuclear facility that are not normally encountered during the operational phase. Hazardous materials are major factors in the decommissioning of old nuclear facilities and represent a risk to the operators undertaking the work. Examples of common hazardous materials are lead, asbestos, PCBs, mercury, and beryllium. All require special disposal. The handling and disposal of mixed (hazardous and radioactive) wastes can pose special problems since, unlike radioactive materials with a relatively short half life, hazardous chemicals may pose a health hazard for a much longer (if not indefinite) time. If decommissioning wil

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