The following was received via email from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts:
A military compass containing approximately 10 microcurie of Ra-226 was improperly discarded via trash by an unknown person and was detected at the Maine Energy Recovery Company in Biddeford, ME on June 28, 2012. The State of Maine Radiation Control Program notified our Agency [Commonwealth of Massachusetts] and transfer back to the place of origin was arranged. This was Thomson Brothers Industries.
The truck was off loaded at that site and the source was discovered by a contracted health physics consultant. We received notification of the discovery of the source from the consultant at 10:49 am on June 29, 2012.
Our Agency is currently assisting Thomson Brothers Industries in making arrangements for the proper disposal/transfer of the compass.
- * * UPDATE AT 0837 ON 7/10/12 FROM TRAEGDE TO SNYDER * *
The compass was confiscated by the [Massachusetts] Radiation Control Program on 7/6/12 and given to a Massachusetts licensee for disposal. This action closes this event.
Notified R1DO (Burritt) and FSME Events Resource (e-mail).
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. For additional information go to http://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/publications/PDF/Pub1227_web.pdf
This source is not amongst those sources or devices identified by the
IAEA Code of Conduct for the Safety & Security of Radioactive Sources to be of concern from a radiological standpoint. Therefore is it being categorized as a less than Category 3 source