TRANSPORTATION

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TRANSPORT SECURITY RULES

Plutonium is a radioactive and fissile material. On that account it is a class 7 substance as defined by the dangerous goods transportation regulations. Packaging, marking and transportation of these goods must therefore conform to dangerous good regulation prescriptions for the transport modes used.

Plutonium is also subject to applicable rules concerning the physical protection and control of nuclear materials in the process of transportation. On this account, the only transport modes used are road transport for shipments within France and continental Europe, and maritime transport for shipments between France and Japan.

The dangerous goods transportation regulations applicable to these transport modes are :

- The European Agreement Concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR): this regulation was adopted by over thirty countries including 15 European Union member states ;
- The International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code defined by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), an organisation bringing together over 150 countries.

In France, the transportation of dangerous goods by road and by sea is regulated by :

- The modified December 5th 1996 Order concerning the transportation of dangerous goods by road (referred to as the ADR Order): this text translates the ADR regulation into French law and completes it with national provisions ;
- Division 411 of the Règlement de sécurité des navires (RSN) or Ship Safety Regulation : this text translates the OMI IMDG Code into French law, and completes it with national provisions.

All of these regulations have adopted the rules issued by the International Atomic Energy Agency - IAEA - in its "International Transportation of Radioactive Materials" Regulation.

This regulation considers three situation types during transport :

- Routine transport conditions : no incident or accident, normal requests ;

- Normal transport conditions : occurrence of minor incidents and accidents represented by trials such as :

- Drop of the package through 1,2 m onto a hard, rigid surface,
- Stacking of 5 times the package weight onto the package,
- Fall of a 6 kg metallic bar onto the package... ;

- Accidental transport conditions: occurrence of serious accidents represented by trials such as :

- Drop of the package through 9 m onto a hard, rigid surface,
- Drop of the package through 1 m onto a metal bar,
- 30 minute hydrocarbon fire,
- immersion under 15 m of water.

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