ABU DHABI // The Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR) is holding workshops on registering depleted uranium for licensees this week, to ensure all nuclear material is accounted for.
With a nuclear plant built by a South Korean company due to be operating by 2017, the UAE is gradually introducing regulations to meet international standards for radiation safety and security.
Radioactive sources used for industrial and medical applications, such as digging oil wells or operating body scanners, must be licensed by FANR and open to review by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
The four-day workshop in Abu Dhabi and Dubai is focusing on measuring and registering nuclear materials.
The meetings that began yesterday were expected to attract about 400 representatives from companies and government organisations licensed by FANR, which has issued 381 licences since it was set up two years ago.
Each month, FANR reports to the IAEA on any changes in the amount of radioactive substances held by any company or organisation. The international regulator then verifies FANR's reports through its own inspections.
Officials estimate that about 60 UAE companies use a total of more than 4,000 kilograms of depleted uranium for shielding against other radioactive substances.
The highly dense material, a by-product of uranium enrichment, has mostly replaced lead over the past couple of decades as a common substance for housing radioactive materials.
Although less fissile than natural uranium, it is still radioactive and needs to be accounted for according to international standards.
It can pose health threats and in large quantities could be used in weaponry.
"This material is very commonly seen in radioactive applications but it has to be strongly accounted for, even small quantities," said Ladislav Bartak, the director of FANR's safeguards department.
"By tracking its uses in radioactive sources for peaceful purposes, we have a responsibility to prevent it from the potential [that] it will be malevolently used to harm people."
Because of its proximity to Iran, the UAE needs to account for any material that could be used for nuclear weaponry so that it "does not end up in the wrong hands", Mr Bartak said.
At the UN General Assembly in New York last week, the UAE's permanent representative, Ahmad Al Jarman, stressed the country's efforts in developing a nuclear energy programme under the supervision of the IAEA, and its support for nuclear disarmament in the region.
FANR has held a series of training sessions over the past year, covering areas that include detecting abandoned radioactive sources, transporting nuclear materials and the roles of local and federal agencies in the event of a nuclear or radiation emergency.
The UAE is pressing ahead with plans to become the first Arab nation to produce nuclear energy, with its first reactors scheduled to come online in Al Gharbia by 2017, pending a review by FANR.
"Over time we will be improving practices in the context of reaching full compliance with international standards," said Salem Al Qubaisi, the director of FANR's nuclear security department.
"We want to establish that the UAE is compliant and transparent in how it handles its radioactive sources."
John Loy, the authority's director of radiation safety, said while complying with international standards was important, a major responsibility of FANR was to protect UAE residents from dangerous materials.
The workshops for industrial uses lecture in protecting against exposure, while the medical sector will be asked to review whether it is using an appropriate amount of radiology in diagnosing and treating patients.
"Of course, we want to make sure that all of the sources are accounted for or do not end up in the wrong hands, but also are concerned with misuse or accidents," Mr Loy said.
"The goal is to coordinate all of these efforts to make sure that people are safe."
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