Reporting and Documenting Contamination Levels

DOE-STD-1136-2004

Guide of Good Practices for Occupational Radiological Protection in Uranium Facilities

It can provide information that will assist in the design and evaluation of personnel monitoring,

bioassay, and air monitoring programs.

The contamination monitoring and control program will provide information to establish

operating zones, guidelines and constraints for radiation protection, and operational procedures.

The program will provide practical assurance that uranium contamination is confined to the

operating areas of the plant and that the potential is minimized for contamination of personnel,

the environment, and sensitive analytical areas.

Contamination control of work surfaces such as tools, equipment to be worked on (disassembly,

machining, etc.), desks or tables in process areas, etc., is of greater concern than contamination on floors.

The likelihood of personnel contamination, ingestion of material through hand contamination, or inhal tion

of resuspended uranium compounds through work activities represents a significant potential for exposure

of personnel. Work activities that involve the destruction of surfaces such as grinding, machining, drilling,

or cutting can generate significant levels of airborne uranium compounds. Operations such as welding,

burning, heating, etc. can alter the physical and/or chemical state of uranium compounds that are on the

surfaces of equipment. Job-specific monitoring is required to establish protection requirements as a function

of surface contamination levels.

4.2.1 Reporting and Documenting Contamination Levels

Radiological control programs require the performance of contamination surveys to determine

existing conditions in a given location. Maps with sufficient detail to permit identification of original

survey locations should be maintained. Records shall contain sufficient detail to be meaningful even

after the originator is no longer available. Contamination surveys should be recorded on appropriate

standard forms and include the following common elements:

date, time, and purpose of the survey,

general and specific location of the survey,

name and signature of the surveyor and analyst,

pertinent information needed to interpret the survey results, and

reference to a specific radiological work permit if the survey is performed to support the permit.

In addition, records of contamination surveys should include, at a minimum, the following

information:

model and serial number of counting equipment ,

contamination levels (using appropriate units) and appropriate supporting parameters, including

counting efficiency, counting time, correction factors, type of radiation, and whether the

contamination was fixed or removable,

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