Pratiche con impiego di NORM

The acronym NORM, Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material, refers to materials with a high content of natural radioactivity, i.e. materials that constitute the raw material, product or residue of processing in numerous industrial activities, during which radionuclides can concentrate to reach very high levels. These materials consequently represent a source of pressure on the environment and can lead to an increase in exposure to ionizing radiation, both for workers and for the individual representative of the population, which is not negligible from the point of view of radiation protection.

Practices involving the use of NORM have received positive regulation in Chapter II of Legislative Decree no. 101/2020 and subsequent amendments: the "industrial sectors" and the related "classes or types of practices or critical exposure scenarios" to be placed under surveillance and the exemption levels of materials and industrial residues with related removal levels in relation to the intended use have been identified (Annex II - Section II).

The obligations of the operator of such practices have been clearly identified (art. 22) who must provide for the measurement of the concentration of activity on the materials present in the production cycle and on the residues deriving from the work activity itself.

Measurements must be carried out on a representative number of samples using dosimetry services. Pending the adoption of the Decrees for the recognition referred to in paragraph 3 of art. 155 of Legislative Decree no. 101/2020 and subsequent amendments, dosimetry services are required to ensure the provisions of art. 127 by adopting quality control and assurance programs and ensuring the traceability of the calibration systems used at an accredited calibration laboratory.

The results of the measurements must be transmitted by the dosimetry services to the Inspectorate. To this end, in compliance with art. 21 of Legislative Decree 101/2020 and subsequent amendments, the NORM section of SINRAD was created.

The NORM section will collect in an organized manner the results of the concentration measurements of the activity of radionuclides of the Th-232 and U-238 series, as well as K-40 in raw materials, products, residues or effluents of the NORM industries on the national territory.