Federal Aviation Administration (National Aeronautics Charting Office) was in the process of changing photo processors equipment from a PAKO processor system that used
static eliminators (manufactured by NRD
LLC, Grand Island,
New York) to a coax processor which do not use anti-static bars, in the mid 1990s (1994-1995). Around that time it was possible that six
static eliminators left unaccounted with the excessed equipment sent to a
NOAA warehouse surplus office. The specific information for these
static eliminators are: serial numbers SA2201 and SA2203 (Each: 20.25 mCi,
Am-241, bar is 54" long by 1.5" x 1.25"); SA2204 and SA2205 (Each: 18 mCi,
Am-241, bar is 48" long by 1.5" x 1.25"); SA2206 and SA2207 (Each: 6.75 mCi,
Am-241, bar is 18" long by 1.5" x 1.25"). The Environmental Officer at the Department of Commerce will contact
NOAA in an effort to track down the material.
Recently the National Aeronautics Charting Office was in the process of moving equipment from the basement of the Department of Commerce building in Washington, DC to a new facility and during the cleanup, two unused static eliminators ended up in a trash compactor and subsequently at the Mosteller Landfill facility in Pennsylvania. The specific information for these static eliminators are: serial numbers SA2200 and SA2202 (Each: 20.25 mCi, Am-241, bar is 54" long by 1.5" x 1.25"). It was reported that one of these static eliminators could be leaking. Arrangements are being made to send these devices from the landfill to the manufacturer for proper disposal.
There is one more static eliminator (serial number SA2199 (25.875 mCi, Am-241, bar is 71" long by 1.5" x 1.25") in the basement of the Department of Commerce building in Washington, DC and a survey for low-level contamination is being conducted in response to the static eliminators found at the Mosteller landfill which could possibly be leaking.
THIS MATERIAL EVENT CONTAINS A "LESS THAN CAT 3" LEVEL OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL
Sources that are "Less than
IAEA Category 3 sources," are either sources that are very unlikely to cause permanent injury to individuals or contain a very small amount of radioactive material that would not cause any permanent injury. Some of these sources, such as
moisture density gauges or thickness
gauges that are Category 4, the amount of unshielded radioactive material, if not safely managed or securely protected, could possibly - although it is unlikely - temporarily injure someone who handled it or were otherwise in contact with it, or who were close to it for a period of many weeks.