10 Incidents with Radioactive Sources Registered in Bulgaria in 2018

Ten incidents involving radioactive sources and materials were registered in Bulgaria in 2018, but there were no harmful consequences in any of the cases, a report revealed here on Tuesday, reports Xinhua. 

All sources and materials with increased radioactivity were detected in metal scrap, the country's Nuclear Regulatory Agency (NRA) said in its annual report.

In most cases, the radiation was caused by fluorescent coating containing Ra-226 on the dials of various control devices or separate objects contaminated with natural or artificial radionuclides, the report said.

According to NRA statistics, seven incidents with radioactive sources were detected in Bulgaria in 2017, five in 2016 and six in 2015.

For the last 20 years, about 80 percent of the cases have been related to metal scrap, where materials with increased activity were detected. The rest of the cases involved orphan sources, theft, illegal traffic, and accidents at work, the report said.

There was no radiological impact on the population and the environment in none of the cases in the past 20 years, it added.