A record number of 31 Disused Sealed Radioactive Sources (DSRSs) have been transferred from Chile to a recycling facility in Europe as part of an International Atomic Energy Agency multi-regional project to enhance nuclear security and radiation safety.
Most radioactive waste arising from nuclear applications consists of DSRS. Radioactive sources are used in different devices in medical, industrial and agricultural facilities. They have to be accounted for and when they are no longer usable, they have to be recovered, dismantled, stored and, in some cases, prepared for transportation. The removed DSRSs – mostly cobalt sources used for cancer treatment in Chile – have been in temporary storage since the end of their use in 1992.
