SURVEY OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL SHIPMENTS IN THE UNITED STATES

The survey period was from March 1, 1974, through February 28, 1975. Of over 15,000 NRC and Agreement States licensees, and ERDA prime contractors, 2275 received questionnaire packets. Approximately 59 percent of those recipients responded to the survey; of these respondents, 35 percent reported shipping activities. Based on the number of packages shipped annually, the major nuclides were exp 131 I, exp 125 I, /sup 99m/Tc, exp 99 Mo, and exp 238 U, while those shipped in the greatest amounts (grams or curies) were exp 60 Co, exp 192 Ir, and exp 238 U. The majority of package types shipped were Types A and LS (low specific activity), while the most common modes of transport were rail and truck. The shipping activities of approximately 14,600 minor shippers were estimated to be on the order of 200,000 radioactive packages/year. The combined annual shipping activities of 761 major shippers, SNM licensees, and ERDA contractors who responded were estimated to be approximately 300,000 packages of SNM and Source Material plus 800,000 packages containing nuclides other than SNM or Source Material. There were also about 800,000 packages (mostly exempt) shipped by 21 apparent major shippers who responded to a part of the survey intended for minor shippers. Also, classified data containing information regarding nonweapons shipments indicated 850 packages. The possibility of using the survey data for projection use was briefly investigated.

  • Corporate Authors:

    Batelle Memorial Institute/Pacific Northwest Labs

    Battelle Boulevard, P.O. Box 999
    Richland, WA  United States  99352

    Energy Research and Development Administration

    20 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
    Washington, DC  United States  20590
  • Authors:
    • Simmons, J L
    • Cloninger, M O
    • Cole, B M
    • Medford, A E
  • Publication Date: 1976-4

Media Info

  • Pagination: 316 p.

Subject/Index Terms

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 00146726
  • Record Type: Publication
  • Source Agency: National Technical Information Service
  • Files: TRIS
  • Created Date: Feb 16 1977 12:00AM