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National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP) Statement No. 14: "Instrument Response Verification and Calibration for Use in Radiation Emergencies" was issued 22 June 2022. The statement provides recommendations for maintaining the readiness of radiation detection equipment for use in a large-scale nuclear or radiological emergency. It addresses the varied instrument inventories retained by municipal, county, and state entities, which may provide valuable and actionable information during an emergency but are not otherwise routinely used for regulatory compliance or health physics applications. The statement describes a tiered, mission-oriented approach that includes periodic laboratory calibrations and source-response checks and methods for using empirical data to determine periodicity. Local jurisdictions may tailor the approach to match their equipment inventories and response missions to maintain response capacity. The approach is intended to enable users to attain confidence in their equipment while working within their available funding and resources.
Statement 14 was prepared by experts with experience in instrument testing, design, and usage and included input from state and local radiation program managers and emergency response organizations. The statement can be downloaded for free from NCRP's website.
