6th EUTERP Workshop | Legislative change in Europe: the implications for training in radiation protection - Rising to the challenge

September 30 – October 2, 2015, Athens, Greece

The next EUTERP Workshop will take place in Athens from September 30 till October 2, 2015.

More details can be found on the Workshop website.

Workshop Objectives :

The European Commission formally adopted the new Basic Safety Standards (BSS) Directive (2013/59/Euratom), on December 5,  2013. This new Directive, which lays down the basic safety standards for protection against the dangers arising from exposure to ionising radiation, repealed the previous BSS and also incorporated the requirements of previous Directives on outside workers, medical exposures, high activity sealed sources, and public information in the event of a radiological emergency. The new BSS has also incorporated the EC's recommendations of February 21, 1990 on the protection of the public against indoor exposure to radon. The importance of education and training in radiation protection is emphasized in a new chapter detailing education, training and information requirements.

Member States are required to bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with the new BSS Directive by February 6, 2018. This will be a challenge, requiring changes to national legislation, major revision of training activities and new approaches to the qualification and recognition of Radiation Protection Experts and Medical Physics Experts.

New and amended requirements in the BSS cover a range of subjects including:

• The roles of the RPE and RPO

• Revised dose limit for the lens of the eye

• Radon: action plans and dose coefficients

• Outside workers

• Emergency response arrangements

• Non-medical imaging

• Air-crew

• Medical exposure

The workshop will focus on the required changes in legislation in the European Union and the associated training implications. The potential impact in different Member States will be discussed and best practice solutions to issues will be explored.