Advice on radioactive waste safety in Australia
Radioactivity is very much a part of today’s world. Radioactive materials are used beneficially in areas such as health, agriculture, industry, science, protection of the environment, and for our personal safety (smoke detectors for instance). The flipside is that many of these radioactive materials will ultimately end up as waste once their useful life is over.
Radioactive waste must be managed in order to isolate it from people and the environment safely. Radioactive waste must also be managed in a way that prevents it from being accessed by anybody unintentionally or by persons with malicious intent.
A detailed inventory of radioactive waste in Australia can be found in the Australian National Report to the United Nations Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of Radioactive Waste Management.
Fact sheet
The following fact sheet provides information on issues relating to radioactive waste safety in Australia.
Links to websites and articles
- Department of Industry, Science and Resources, Australian Radioactive Waste Agency
Radioactive waste management - National Radioactive Waste Management Facility Project - Radioactive waste disposal and storage
- Australian National Report to the Joint Convention
- The IAEA Nuclear safety conventions - the Joint Convention
- IAEA - Radiation, Transport & Waste Safety
- ARPANSA article
