Radiation risksNNSA repatriates radiological material from Mexico

Published 29 July 2015

Several U.S. government agencies and the United Mexican States have successfully completed the repatriation of three irradiators containing U.S.-origin radioactive sources from Mexico. For thirty years, these irradiators played an important role in the eradication of a devastating livestock parasite, the screwworm. The three irradiators contain more than 50,000 curies of cesium-137, a high-activity radioisotope that could be used in radiological dispersal devices (RDD).

Several U.S. government agencies — the Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), in partnership with the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), the U.S. Air Force (USAF), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) — and the United Mexican States, have successfully completed the repatriation of three irradiators containing U.S.-origin radioactive sources from Mexico.

For thirty years, these irradiators played an important role in the eradication of a devastating livestock parasite, the screwworm. The three irradiators contain more than 50,000 curies of cesium-137, a high-activity radioisotope that could be used in radiological dispersal devices (RDD).

“This announcement marks a significant achievement in collaboration with our Mexican partners to improve global nuclear and radiological security,” said NNSA Deputy Administrator for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Anne Harrington. “This work is a reflection of our shared threat reduction and nuclear security goals.”

The irradiators were packaged and transported on a secure truck to an airport in Southern Mexico and then flown via USAF C-17 to an Air Force base in the United States. The shipment was then transported via truck to a permanent storage facility. Teams from Idaho National Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and the Savanah River Site supported this repatriation project for DOE/NNSA.

NNSA notes that DOE/NNSA’s Office of Radiological Security (ORS) mission is to prevent radioactive materials from use in acts of terrorism. To achieve the mission, ORS protects radioactive sources used for medical, research, and commercial purposes, and removes and disposes of disused radioactive sources. The agency also aims to reduce the global reliance on radioactive sources by promoting non-isotopic alternative technologies.

NNSA was established by Congress in 2000 as a semi-autonomous agency within the U.S. Department of Energy responsible for enhancing national security through the military application of nuclear science. Among other tasks, NNSA maintains and enhances the safety, security, reliability and performance of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile without nuclear testing; works to reduce global danger from weapons of mass destruction; provides the U.S. Navy with safe and effective nuclear propulsion; and responds to nuclear and radiological emergencies in the U.S. and abroad.