Other activities

Enresa removes and manages other types of waste, such as radioactive lightning rod headers, disused radioactive sources and obsolete teletherapy equipment.

• Management of radioactive wastes from different facilities
• Radioactive waste management campaigns
• Emergency support activities

Management of radioactive wastes from different facilities

Radioactive facilities

Radioactive facilities are those that hold an operating licence issued by the Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade or by the corresponding Autonomous Community Council, when the responsibility for such matters has been transferred to the Community. This authorisation specifies the radioactive material that these facilities may own.

The first step required for Enresa to be able to remove radioactive wastes from a radioactive facility is the signing of a contract (art. 5, Royal Decree 1349/2003, of October 31st). Such contracts are established on request by the radioactive facility.

Other facilities

Any facility that possesses radioactive material without authorisation must request an authorisation for their transfer to Enresa from the Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade.

Thanks to the informative campaigns and the efforts made to identify possible owners, it has been possible to locate and remove more than 250 radioactive sources.

Información gráfica de fuentes y equipos radiactivos

Referencia fotográfica de fuentes de uso médico, industrial y en investigación y fuentes de verificación y calibración. Detalles

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Radioactive waste management campaigns

Orphan radioactive sources usually occur in the form of small obsolete items of equipment.

Despite the level of rigour, operability and efficiency of the control systems currently implemented, in all countries (including Spain) there are radioactive wastes that for one reason or another remain outside the control systems of the authorities, mainly due to there not having been a legal and action framework in this respect in the past.

Management of Special Radioactive Wastes

The use of radioactive isotopes in industry, medicine and research began in Spain in the 1940’s. As in the vast majority of countries in Spain’s economic and social environment, control systems are in force to ensure that the use of nuclear and... Detalles

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Enresa recovers this type of wastes through specific campaigns, in collaboration with the Government and the Nuclear Safety Council and with the active participation of its Radiological Protection Technical Unit.

Emergency support activities

Whenever a radioactive source is involved in any incident, Enresa participates in the corresponding response activities.

These incidents include the deterioration of sources that cannot be removed conventionally, sources that lose their shielding, sources affected by fire, abandoned sources, sources undergoing accidents during transport, etc.

Enresa undertakes the radiological identification, conditioning and removal of these sources for their management.

As part of the radiological group directed by the Nuclear Safety Council, Enresa also collaborates in the drills and preparations for emergencies promoted by the national authorities.

Most of these activities are carried out by the Enresa Radiological Protection Technical Unit.