Morocco Hosts IAEA Regional Training Course on DSRS

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) held lately a regional training course in Morocco to strengthen the capacity of its member states to better control “Disused Sealed Radioactive Sources” (DSRS).

Radioactive sources are used worldwide in medicine, industry, agriculture, transportation, construction, geology, mining and research. If lost or not properly controlled, disused sealed sources can be a threat to human health and the environment.

Exposure to large doses of radiation from an unshielded high-activity source can be lethal or cause severe radiation injury. Thus, the IAEA’s safety standards provide the international requirements to control disused sources and help member states implement technologies to recover, condition and store them.

Many countries face challenges in the management of radioactive sources, which have reached the end of their lifespan. When such sources no longer emit sufficient radiation for their designed purpose, whether in radiotherapy procedures, veterinary analysis, or in industrial contexts, they must undergo a lengthy process of recycling, or disposal.

The technical training course held in Morocco on DSRS management is part of an IAEA program launched in 2016 with co-funding from the European Union, Spain and the United States.

This course is part of ongoing IAEA efforts to promote best practices and knowledge-sharing to enable participating Member States to enhance their capacities in the cradle-to-grave control of radioactive sources.