Answer to Question #6422 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"

Q

What is the process of decommissioning a hospital building? The building will be vacated  in about three months and decommissioning the building should be completed in about four months after that. What government requirements should we comply with?

A

Thank you for your question pertaining to the decommissioning of a hospital building. Perhaps the most important aspect of decommissioning is the upfront communication with your regulator—for example, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) or your state's radiation protection program. The overall decommissioning objective is to safely terminate the license that authorizes the use of radioactive materials. Specifically, the licensee requests a license amendment because it no longer plans to conduct NRC-licensed activities at the facility. The NRC then makes a decision on the proposed action for decommissioning that ensures that residual radioactivity is reduced to a level that is protective of the public health and safety and the environment.

The decommissioning process can be quite involved. An overview of the major activities may consist of first removing or otherwise disposing of all radioactive sources, characterizing the radiological condition of the facility, performing any necessary decontamination to attain residual radioactivity release criteria, and performing a final status survey to demonstrate that release criteria have been met. The NRC provides a wealth of decommissioning information on its Web site. One particularly helpful reference is NUREG-1757, "Consolidated NMSS Decommissioning Guidance,'' Volumes 1-3.

Hope this helps.

Eric W. Abelquist, PhD, CHP