Abstract:

Two orphaned cesium-137 sources have been recovered in Georgia by a joint Georgian Ministry of Environment and IAEA team, according to an IAEA press release. The recoveries were made during the first three days of a new IAEA-Georgian initiative to locate lost radioactive sources in Georgia.[1,2] One radiation source was discovered in the village of Iri on the premises of an abandoned arsenic processing plant and the other was discovered inside a house in the village of Likhaura.[1,3]

The search team was equipped with new, powerful, backpack-mounted instrumentation that helped detect and locate both of the sources. The team members noted that due to the absence of available records, they were prevented from determining the origins of the orphaned sources.[1,2]

The IAEA report indicated that loss of control of industrial radioactive sources was common in Georgia after the break-up of the Soviet Union. In addition, the report noted that recovered sources have been located on former military bases and in scrap metal shipments. The report indicates that as many as 300 radioactive sources--including strontium-90 sources from radioisotope thermal generators (RTGs)--have been recovered in Georgia since the mid 1990s.[1]

According to the report, the IAEA has been working with Georgia to upgrade levels of radiation safety and to secure orphan sources since 1997.[1]

Sources:
[1] "Two Radioactive Sources Found in Georgia," Global Security Newswire, Nuclear Threat Initiative website, http://www.nti.org, 28 July 2006.
[2] "Georgian environmental inspectors find radioactive material," Tbilisi Prime-News, 20 July 2006.
[3] "Two Radioactive Devices Found, Neutralized in Georgia," Interfax, 31 July 2006.{Entered 11/13/06 SG}

Abstract Number:  20060230
Headline:  Radioactive Sources Recovered in Georgia
Date:  27 July 2006
Bibliography:  International Atomic Energy Agency Staff Report, http://www.iaea.org
Material: Radioactive isotope