Decommissioning Meeting and Demonstration Activity to be hosted by the Philippines
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The national nuclear agency, PNRI, is currently hosting the First Technical Meeting on Research Reactor Decommissioning Demonstration Project (R2D2P) from 26 to 30 June 2006 attended to, by seventeen (17) foreign delegates.
The activity, which will be locally participated in by Mr. Leonardo S. Leopando and Mr. Teofilo Leonin, Jr., is being organized under the auspices of the International Atomic Energy Agency and aims to provide information to other countries on the various techniques used throughout the decommissioning process for research reactors.
The Philippine Research Reactor-1 (PRR-1) will be used as a demonstration facility for the series of technical meetings that will be held on this subject.
R2D2P is in response to the perceived need of an increasing number of Member States whose research reactors have remained in a "state of limbo" due to lack of a decommissioning policy, expertise or the necessary funds to effectively implement decommissioning. The whole project aims to provide a platform for practical training in activities related to safe decommissioning, including aspects ranging from the establishment of a regulatory infrastructure for the regulatory body to the final release of the facility from regulatory control.
For the first technical meeting, resource persons from Sweden, USA and the International Atomic Energy Agency will be on hand to facilitate the discussions.
PNRI Chief to Address Global Meeting of Women in Nuclear (WIN)
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PNRI Chief to Address Global Meeting of Women in Nuclear (WIN)
Dr. Alumanda M. dela Rosa, Director of the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute, is set to speak on June 1, 2006 before a mostly-women conference in Ontario, Canada to share the activities of the Philippines and the Asia-Pacific region, in general, on the non-power applications of nuclear technology.
Citing her recent feat as an awardee of the World Nuclear Association, Dr. dela Rosa has been invited by the organizers of the Women-In-Nuclear Global Meeting to address an estimated 300-strong audience on the topic "Beyond Energy: The Latest Nuclear Advancement in Healthcare, Agriculture, Manufacturing and Elsewhere".
The Women-In-Nuclear (WIN) is a worldwide association of women working professionally in the fields of nuclear energy and the application of radiation. The association’s principal objective is to emphasize and support the role of women in addressing the public’s concern about nuclear energy and the application of radiation and nuclear technologies.
Last September, Dr. dela Rosa was conferred the distinct honor of being one of the "Women In Nuclear" who have contributed significantly to the peaceful use of nuclear technology. The awarding ceremony was held in London, England on the occasion of the 30th Annual Symposium of the World Nuclear Association.
PNRI Receives Equipment and Training from USDOE, ANSTO
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The US Department of Energy/National Nuclear Security Administration (USDOE/NNSA) and the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization (ANSTO) recently sponsored a training course on Open Source Search Methods for eleven Philippine participants from the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute.
The objective of the training was to familiarize participants with the use and maintenance of a range of radiation detection equipment donated as part of the project on Regional Security of Radioactive Sources. Both the training and the equipment provided will be utilized in PNRI's efforts to search and secure orphan radioactive sources.
The mix of participants from the Institute's regulatory and nuclear services and training divisions consisted of Mr. Nelson Badinas, Mr. Jose Calaycay, Ms. Estrella Caseria, Mr. Giuseppe Filam Dean, Mr. Louie del Castillo, Mr. Abelardo Inovero, Mr. Jesus Perez, Ms. Kristine Ronallosa, Mr. Demetrio Salom, and Mr. Alfonso Singayan, with Mr. Teofilo Leonin, Jr. serving as the team's supervisor.
Eleven participants from Indonesia joined the Philippine delegates in the week-long training activity, as their government was likewise a recipient of donated radiation detection equipment under the regional project.
Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Gets Boost with the Certification of PHP52
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The radionuclide monitoring station designated as PHP52 in Tanay, Rizal, recently merited formal certification from the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) that is based in Vienna, Austria.
In a letter from the Director of the organization's International Monitoring System Division, the Philippines was informed that after a careful review by their Certification Group, the said monitoring facility was found to have met all technical requirements and is thus being granted formal certification.
The same letter expressed appreciation to the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute and the Scientific Solutions, Inc. (SSI), contractor for PHP52, who both worked closely in elevating the radionuclide station among the network of stations in the International Monitoring System.
The PHP52 is one of three monitoring stations situated in the Philippines that form part of the global verification regime established by the CTBTO to monitor compliance to the Treaty. The other two consist of auxiliary seismic stations in Davao and Tagaytay, operated by the Manila Observatory and the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), respectively.
