Department of Energy (DOE) Radiological Control Manual

Chapter 3 - Conduct of Radiological Work

Part 3 - Entry and Exit Requirements

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Table of Contents (Articles 33x)

Article 331 - Controlled Areas

Successful completion of Visitor Orientation or General Employee Radiological Training is required for unescorted entry into Controlled Areas.

Return to Chapter 3, Part 3 Table of Contents

Article 332 - Radiological Buffer Areas

  1. Minimum requirements for unescorted entry into Radiological Buffer Areas shall include the following:
  2. Radiological Worker I training
  3. Personnel dosimetry, as appropriate.

Article 333 - Radioactive Material Areas Compliance

  1. Radiological Worker I training shall be required for unescorted entry into Radioactive Material Areas containing either of the following:

  2. Sealed radioactive sources
  3. Radioactive material labeled and packaged in accordance with Articles 412 and 413

Article 334 - Radiation, High Radiation and Very High Radiation Areas

  1. Minimum requirements for unescorted entry into Radiation Areas shall include the following:

  1. Radiological Worker I training
  2. Worker's signature on the Radiological Work Permit (RWP), as applicable
  3. Personnel dosimetry.

  • Physical controls to prevent inadvertent or unauthorized access to High and Very High Radiation Areas shall be maintained in accordance with Appendix 3B.

  • Minimum requirements for unescorted entry into High Radiation Areas shall include the following:

  • Radiological Worker II training (or Radiological Worker I with High/Very High Radiation Area access training in accordance with Article 632.5) and training in the use of a survey meter (or dose rate indicating device), as described in Article 126
  • Worker's signature on the RWP
  • Personnel and supplemental dosimeters
  • Survey meter or dose rate indicating device available at the work area.

  • Minimum requirements for unescorted entry into High Radiation Areas where dose rates exist such that a worker could exceed a whole body dose of 1 rem in one hour shall include those items listed in Article 334.3 and the following:

  • A determination of the worker's current exposure, based on primary and supplemental dosimeter readings
  • Pre-job briefing, as applicable
  • Review and determination by the Radiological Control Organization regarding the required level of Radiological Control Technician coverage.

  • Workers shall be prevented from entry to Very High Radiation Areas when the radiation source is exposed and very high radiation fields are present. In addition to the controls required in Articles 334.2 and 334.3, a survey shall be made prior to the first entry to the area after the source has been secured or shielded to verify the very high radiation field has been terminated.

  • Facility operations personnel should be notified prior to personnel entry to areas where operational or system changes made by operations personnel could result in significantly increased area dose rates.

  • The number, issue and use of keys shall be strictly controlled where locked entryways are used to control access to High and Very High Radiation Areas.

  • The Radiological Control Organization should maintain an inventory of High and Very High Radiation Areas.

  • Weekly inspections of the physical access controls to High and Very High Radiation Areas should be made to verify controls are adequate to prevent unauthorized entry.

  • Administrative procedures shall be developed as necessary to implement area access controls. These procedures shall address measures implemented to ensure the effectiveness and operability of entry control devices, such as barricades, alarms, and locks. Return to Chapter 3, Part 3 Table of Contents

Article 335 - Contamination, High Contamination and Airborne Radioactivity Areas

  1. Minimum requirements for unescorted entry into Contamination Areas shall include the following:

  2. Radiological Worker II training
  3. Worker's signature on the RWP, as applicable
  4. Protective clothing
  5. Personnel dosimetry, as appropriate.

  • Minimum requirements for unescorted entry into High Contamination or Airborne Radioactivity Areas shall include the following:

  • Radiological Worker II training
  • Worker's signature on the RWP
  • Protective clothing and respiratory protection when specified by the RWP
  • Pre-job briefing for High Contamination or Airborne Radioactivity Areas, as applicable
  • Personnel dosimetry, as appropriate.

  • Personnel exiting Contamination, High Contamination or Airborne Radioactivity Areas shall:

  • Remove protective clothing as specified in Appendix 3C
  • When entering an uncontaminated area, perform whole body frisking to detect personnel contamination in accordance with Article 338.

  • Exit points from Contamination, High Contamination or Airborne Radioactivity Areas should include the following:

  • Step-off pad located outside the exit point, contiguous with the area boundary
  • Step-off pads maintained free of radioactive contamination
  • Labeled containers inside the area boundary for the collection of protective clothing and equipment
  • Contamination monitoring equipment located as close to the step-off pad as background radiation levels permit.

  • Multiple step-off pads should be used at the exits from High Contamination Areas. Use of multiple step-off pads is described in Appendix 3C.

  • Protective clothing and monitoring requirements specific to benchtop work, laboratory fume hoods, sample stations and gloveboxes are identified in Article 347.

  • Tools or equipment being removed from areas posted for surface or airborne radioactivity control shall be monitored for release in accordance with Article 421 or for retention in the contaminated tool crib in accordance with Article 442.5.

  • Administrative procedures shall be developed as necessary to implement area access controls. These procedures shall address measures implemented to ensure the effectiveness and operability of entry control devices, such as barricades, alarms, and locks. Return to Chapter 3, Part 3 Table of Contents

Article 336 - Visitor Entry Requirements

  1. Site procedures shall identify area entry requirements and access restrictions for visitors.

  2. Visitors with a demonstrated need to enter the following areas may be allowed access if such access is controlled with a combination of training and the use of escorts trained for the specific area:

  3. Radiological Buffer Areas
  4. Radiation Areas
  5. Contamination Areas
  6. Radioactive Material Areas

  • Visitors shall be prevented from entering Very High Radiation Areas in accordance with Article 334.5 and should be prohibited access to High Radiation, High Contamination and Airborne Radioactivity Areas.

  • Training requirements for visitors are identified in Articles 622 and 657. Return to Chapter 3, Part 3 Table of Contents

Article 337 - Controlling the Spread of Contamination

The following measures should be used to prevent the spread of contamination across the boundary of Contamination Areas, High Contamination Areas and Airborne Radioactivity Areas:

  1. Use solid barriers to enclose areas wherever practicable

  2. Mark and secure items such as hoses and cords that cross the boundary

  3. Control and direct airflow from areas of lesser to greater removable contamination

  4. Use engineering controls and containment devices such as glovebags, gloveboxes and tents.
Return to Chapter 3, Part 3 Table of Contents

Article 338 - Monitoring for Personnel Contamination

  1. Personnel shall perform a whole body frisk under the following conditions:

  2. Immediately upon entry into an uncontaminated area after exiting Contamination Areas, High Contamination Areas and Airborne Radioactivity Areas
  3. As directed by the RWP or the Radiological Control Organization.

  • In addition to the above, personnel exiting a Radiological Buffer Area containing Contamination, High Contamination or Airborne Radioactivity Areas should, at a minimum, perform a hand and foot frisk. This frisk is optional if the Radiological Buffer Area exit is immediately adjacent to the location where the exiting worker has already performed a whole body frisk.

  • Where frisking cannot be performed at the exit from Contamination Areas, High Contamination Areas or Airborne Radioactivity Areas due to high background radiation levels, personnel shall:

  • Remove all protective equipment and clothing at the exit
  • Proceed directly to the nearest designated monitoring station
  • Conduct a whole body frisk.

  • Personnel frisking shall be performed after removal of protective clothing and prior to washing or showering.

  • Personnel frisking shall be performed using instruments that meet the minimum detection requirements of Article 221.2. Guidelines for personnel frisking are provided in Appendix 3D.

  • The use of automated personnel contamination monitors is encouraged.

  • Personal items, such as notebooks, papers and flashlights, shall be subject to the same frisking requirements as the person carrying them.

  • Instructions for personnel frisking should be posted adjacent to personnel frisking instruments or monitors.

  • The personnel frisking requirements contained in this Article are not applicable at those facilities that contain only radionuclides, such as tritium, that cannot be detected by currently available hand-held or automated frisking instrumentation. At such facilities, additional emphasis should be placed on worker bioassay programs and routine contamination and air sampling programs. Return to Chapter 3, Part 3 Table of Contents
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Last modified: Thursday September 10 1998