HSE publishes revised guidance on portable nuclear moisture/density gauges in the construction industry

HSE Press Release E183:02 - 27 September 2002

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has today published revised guidance on the safe use of portable nuclear moisture/density gauges in the construction industry.

Portable nuclear moisture/density gauges are commonly used during road building or repair projects to check surface density, thickness and the moisture content.

'Ionising Radiation Information Sheet No 3' (IRIS 3) gives advice on the use, keeping, transportation and disposal of these gauges, to limit the exposure to workers and members of the public to ionising radiation.

Wendy Bines, head of the Ionising Radiation Policy Unit at HSE, said:

"It is extremely important to use these gauges safely, and to store them properly to ensure the radiation sources are safely controlled. Damage to the gauge or poor work practices may lead to people receiving high radiation exposures, which could cause harmful effects to their health.

"There have been several incidents involving nuclear density gauges, which could have led to increased risk of radiation exposure for operators and other people. These have included gauges being crushed by site vehicles, being lost and stolen."

IRIS 3 replaces an earlier guidance sheet published in 1996. It supports the Ionising Radiations Regulations 1999 (IRR99) and supplements the Approved Code of Practice and Guidance 'Work with Ionising Radiations' published in April 2000.

Notes to editors

1. The Ionising Radiations Regulations 1999 (IRR99) (S.I. 1999 No 3232) replaced the Ionising Radiations Regulations 1985 (S.I. 1985 No 1333). The regulations came into force on 1 January 2000, except for the requirement on prior authorisation, which took effect from 13 May 2000.

2. It is a fundamental requirement of IRR99 that employers take all steps to ensure that exposure of employees (and other persons) to ionising radiation is restricted to a level which is as low as reasonably practicable (ALARP(regulation 8 IRR99).

3. Work including use, keeping, transportation and disposal of portable gauges is subject to: the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974; IRR99; the Radioactive Materials (Road Transport) Regulations 2002 (RAMRoad); the Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (Driver Training) Regulations 1996, and the Radioactive Substances Act 1993 (RSA93). Compliance with RAMRoad and RSA93 is not covered in this leaflet. The Dangerous Goods (Safety Advisers) Regulations 1999 are unlikely to apply to the transport of these gauges.

4. The IRIS series currently consists of eight information sheets:

IRIS 1 - Industrial radiography;
IRIS 2 - Radiation doses;
IRIS 3 - Portable nuclear moisture/density gauges in the construction industry.
IRIS 4 - Outside workers;
IRIS 5 - Prior authorisation;
IRIS 6 - Radiation protection supervisors;
IRIS 7 - Selection, use and maintenance of portable monitoring instruments;
IRIS 8 - Control of radioactive substances.

Copies of 'Portable nuclear moisture/density gauges in the construction industry, Ionising Radiation Information Sheet No 3' and Work with Ionising Radiation, Ionising Radiations Regulations 1999, Approved Code of Practice and Guidance L121, ISBN 0 7176 1746 7, price £20.00, are available from HSE Books.

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