16
Radiation Regulations and
Protection
268
Radiation hazards to humans are well documented. To minimize their risks,
international and national organizations have been established to set guide-
lines for safe handling of radiations. As mentioned in Chapter 15, the ICRP
and NCRP are two such organizations. They make recommendations and
guidelines for radiation workers to follow in handling radiations. The
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and state agencies adopt many of
these recommendations into regulations to implement radiation protection
programs in the United States. The NRC regulations are published in the
Federal Register in the form of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR).
The regulations pertinent to the practices of nuclear medicine are briefly
described here.
Currently, in the United States, the NRC regulates all reactor-produced
by-product materials as to their use and disposal and the radiation safety
of personnel using them as well as the public. On the other hand, naturally
occurring and accelerator-produced radionuclides are regulated by indi-
vidual states. However, Congress has recently authorized the NRC to take
control of these radioactive materials as well and currently they are in the
process of drafting the rule. For convenience of operations, at present, 33
states have entered into agreement with the NRC, which authorizes each
state to regulate the by-product materials as well. These states are called
Agreement States. The rules and regulations of these states must be as
restrictive as those of the NRC, if not stricter.
Sources of Radiation Exposure
The population at large receives radiation exposure from various sources
such as natural radioactivity, medical procedures, consumer products, and
occupational sources. The estimates of annual effective dose equivalents
from different radiation sources to the U.S. population are tabulated in
Table 16.1.