What is a Laboratory Survey?

The decommissioning service which ARPS provide includes a full contamination survey consisting of:

• Monitoring for radioactive sources / contamination
• Swabbing / Wipe Testing of surfaces and sink traps / drainage areas for contamination
• Visual checks as part of our service for any labels, trefoils, equipment, radioactive sources which may still be present in the area of the work scope. 
• If contamination monitoring / wipe testing indicates an area is contaminated, ARPS can assist with the decontamination process thus ensuring the laboratory has been returned to a satisfactory state.

What will the survey provide? 

Whether you have a complete building which is being refurbished / demolished or a single room, ARPS can provide a radiological laboratory decommissioning survey which fits your requirements. 

A full contamination survey of laboratories / areas where there is a potential that radioactive material has previously been used or stored can be performed by ARPS. This will provide you with a detailed report that can be used to show the building / laboratory was returned to a satisfactory state which is a requirement to surrender or partially surrender your Unsealed Source / NORM Permit. 

Only a Radioactive Waste Adviser can formally ‘sign off’ this report. ARPS have the experience and personnel to assist you with this requirement.

What are my responsibilities?

To ensure the building / laboratory is returned to a satisfactory state, you must first contact ARPS, your Radioactive Waste Adviser who will produce a Decommissioning Plan and ARPS will discuss this plan with the environmental regulators.

A building / laboratory contamination monitoring survey will be completed, and ARPS will assist with any remedial work (i.e. the removal / the decontamination of  areas), once the building / laboratory is shown to be free of contamination a ‘Satisfactory State Contamination Monitoring Survey Report’ will be produced.

The permit holder with the assistance of ARPS should surrender their permit (if no longer required), the key requirement of a permit surrender application is the Satisfactory State Contamination Monitoring Survey Report that has been signed off by your Radioactive Waste Adviser.