Radiation Safety Refresher Training for 2013

1. Radiation Safety Refresher Training for 2013 Prepared by Sue Dupre Environmental Health & Safety

2. Training Topics • Outcome of the 2012 NJDEP inspection • Prohibited liquid scintillation fluids • Lockbox security • Physical inventory of radioactive stock vials • What meter to use and how to perform a preoperational check of your survey meter • A minor skin contamination incident • How and why to inactivate radioisotope authorizations • A reminder about incident and emergency response • Changes in EHS staffing

3. NJDEP Inspection • Radioactive materials activities at the University were inspected on March 5, 2012, by an inspector from the NJ Department of Environmental Protection. • The inspector reviewed many records at the EHS office and selected several labs to visit. • At each lab, the inspector interviewed radioisotope-using lab members and checked lab conditions. • The inspector found no violations of regulations or our license conditions and no issues of concern. This is thanks to the efforts of both EHS and our careful radioisotope users. • Our next inspection is likely to occur in late winter or spring of 2015. EHS will work with labs beforehand to ensure that our labs are ready for an inspection.

4. Low Flashpoint LSC Wastes • We have recently found that prohibited liquid scintillation counting fluids (LSCs) were being used: Scintiverse II and Picofluor. • These liquids have flashpoints <140 ºF. Wastes that contain both hazardous materials and radioactive materials are defined to be ‘mixed wastes.’ Mixed wastes are much more expensive to dispose of. • If you must use LSCs or components with flashpoints <140ºF, you must obtain prior approval from EHS. • Review the MSDS for any LSC fluids you plan to order to verify the flashpoint.

5. Security • We recently found an unsecured lockbox where the user had unintentionally failed to insert the padlock through the transparent lockbox hasp. • Don’t forget that lockboxes must be tethered to a fixed surface unless you can demonstrate that there’s an adequate extra level of security provided by other measures.

6. Physical Inventory of Rad Materials • EHS periodically asks the lab manager or the radiation safety contact to verify that the online radioisotope inventory for your lab is correct. If you are the person who conducts this inventory review, you must physically inspect your radioactive inventory to make sure all vials are present and reported. • Recently a lab thought a H-3 stock vial was missing, though a search eventually turned up the vial in a different freezer than all the other radioactive stock vials . Whenever possible, stock vials should be stored in one location.

7. Review: Survey Meter Use Use the right survey meter or detection technique. P-32: a G-M survey meter is great for both low-level and high-level contamination. S-35 and C-14: a G-M survey meter will detect contamination greater than about 100,000 dpm. But a wipe survey is needed to detect smaller amounts of contamination. I-125: use a scintillation survey meter H-3: can only be detected doing a wipe survey and counting the wipes in a liquid scintillation counter

8. Review: Survey Meter Check Perform a preoperational check each time you use a survey meter: 1. Check the Battery • 2. Check Background Count Rate • Turn the knob to the most sensitive scale (usually the x0.1 scale). • Background count rate should be < 100 cpm for a G-M meter and <300 cpm for a scintillation meter. • If necessary, call EHS to decontaminate your meter. Needle position (in the Bat Test area) Knob position

9. Review: Survey Meter Check If you’re uncertain about how to perform the preoperational check or to do a survey, review the process with your lab manager or ask EHS. 3. Check Source Place the detector directly in contact with the source. The reading should be + 20% of the expected check source reading listed on the calibration label. Calibration Label Check the calibration label. Call EHS if the calibration is out of date.

10. Skin Contamination Incident A minor skin contamination incident occurred this past year. P-32 contamination (300-400 cpm, very low-level) was transferred to the drooping sleeve of a lab coat and then to the skin of the wrist. After the contamination was discovered, it was immediately removed from the skin by washing. The period of exposure was so short and the amount of contamination was so low, that there was no hazard to the worker from this contamination incident. However, this incident is a good reminder that the skin of the wrist is always vulnerable to becoming contaminated if lab coat sleeves rub against chemically, biologically, or radioactively contaminated surfaces. See the next slide for recommendations for protecting your wrists.

11. Skin Contamination Incident To better protect your hands, wrists and forearms, we suggest you take one of the following precautions: • Wear a lab coat with tapered sleeves or knit cuffs that hug your wrists. • Wear longer gloves so that your sleeves can be tucked into the gloves. • Use a Tyvekoversleeve. It has an elasticized opening at each end to enclose the lab coat sleeve. • Fold the lab coat sleeves out of the way and use tape or a rubber band to keep the sleeves out of the way. • Survey the wrist area frequently as you work.

12. Inactivating Radioisotope Authorizations If your lab reasonably anticipates that there will be no need to use radioactive materials for an extended period, consider applying to inactivate your authorization. • While your authorization is inactivated, there is no requirement for many routine reports and for radiation safety training. • EHS will store your inventory of stock vials in a secured location in a -4 or -20 degree freezer or in a refrigerator. • To reactivate authorizations: • Simply notify EHS to reactivate the authorizations. • EHS will make sure that your radioisotope users have received initial and/or refresher training. If you develop a sudden need to use radioactive materials, you could be ready to start radioisotope work within 3-4 days.

13. Incident Response Where is this Guide located in your lab? Know how to find it, because this Guide will help you through many types of incidents, including fire, medical emergencies, chemical exposures, biological spills, and radiation incidents. If you know where this book is, you won’t have to memorize the emergency notification phone numbers.

14. Incident Notification • What number do you call for a radiation-related incident? It depends on when you call. During normal business hours (8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday), call EHS at 8-5294. After normal working hours, call Public Safety at 8-1000. PS has home and cell phone numbers for EHS staff and will call EHS staff to respond.

15. Incident Notification • What number do you call for any type of emergency (fires, explosions, a medical crisis) in your laboratory building? Call 9-1-1 from a campus phone or 258-3333 from your cell phone. Both of these numbers will go through to Public Safety’s emergency line. We believe that a call to PS is the fastest way to get an emergency response, because PS can lead the responders to the building and to the lab. Program 258-3333 into your cell phone. This is the number to call any time you feel threatened or in danger on campus.

16. Changes in EHS Staffing • Effective March 1, Robin Izzo, formerly responsible for EHS lab safety, became the Director of EHS. • Steve Elwood, who formerly had some radiation safety responsibilities, has been named Associate Director for Lab Safety. • Sue Dupre will continue to be the point of contact for radiation safety issues, but now she will also handle the issues Steve previously dealt with, such as radioactive waste matters.

17. Radiation Safety Program Feedback Your questions, comments, suggestions and feedback are welcome. dupre@princeton.edu