Govt warns of rising radiation exposure

The Council, for instance, notes that fifty-two entities have no license to operate radioactive sources while authorisation for 104 others expired.

These include health facilities, industries, banks, offices and business premises. The Atomic Energy Council identified the lapses during an on-site inspection in December 2023, chief executive officer Noah Deogratias Luwalira said.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) defines radioactive source as the part of devices such as cancer treatment and medical supplies’ sterialising equipment, or scanners, containing radioactive material of a particular radionuclide (unstable form of an element emitting radiation).

These sources, according to the agency, emit “ionising radiation, typically in the form of alpha and beta particles, gamma rays or neutron radiation”.

Exposure to radiation beyond permissible levels leads to health risks, including cancer, Uganda’s statutory sector regulator’s chief executive Luwalira told this newspaper in an interview on Friday.

The agency that he heads conducted a study three months ago and found that even duly licenced institutions failed the minimum radiation safety standards while dozens had no valid permits.

“They are not supposed to operate much as they possess this technology in their operations until they get a licence,” he said, adding, “They do not meet the minimum basic safety requirements to ensure that the operations will be delivered safely and securely.”

Section 32 of the Atomic Energy Act, among others, prohibits any person from acquiring, owning, operating, commissioning, decommissioning and transporting atomic energy material unless permitted by an authorisation issued under the law.

“These facilities are not supposed to operate radiation-generating devices without authorisation,”Mr Luwalira said, “Facilities with expired licenses are required to renew their licenses immediately.”

A lack of certification means that risks from the facilities operating radioactive equipment cannot be determined, safety measures could be lacking, the competence and protection competence of personnel unclear while medical findings could be defective due to faulty machines, Mr Luwalira said.

“The risk you get [when in contact] is to be exposed to radiation unnecessarily … you stand a risk of suffering from radiation hazards [and] radiation sicknesses,” he added.

Among institutions listed on Atomic Energy Council’s website as non-compliant included Uganda’s national referral and regional hospitals, both private and government-owned.

We are withholding the names of most because the Council last evening said it’s revising the particulars based on corrective measures the institutions have undertaken since the December study.

Dr Evelyn Nabunya, the director of Mulago Specialised Women and Neonatal Hospital, said theirs is among facilities that the Council initially adversely named which it has since cleared.

“We have permission from the Council to operate the CT (computerised tomography) scan machine,” she said by telephone.

It is illegal under the Atomic Energy Act for anyone to own, operate or hire out equipment with radioactive source without licence.

An individual who violates this provision upon conviction is liable to Shs6m fine or imprisonment not exceeding six years, or both.

Parliament enacted the Atomic Energy Act in 2008, establishing Atomic Energy Council to regulate the peaceful applications and management of ionising radiation for the protection and safety of society and the environment.

Access to, and use of, radioactive material is globally sensitive and tightly watched due to the potential risk of the radioactive sources being smuggled, sold and applied in the development of deadly weapons including bombs.

International protocols, experts said, require a user or supplier to in-build in contracts a mechanism for disposal of radioactive waste to prevent sources from falling in the wrong hands.  

In the interview on March 1, Atomic Energy Council’s Luwalira did not explain why they have not used the power granted to them by the law to penalise institutions violating the licensing regime and safety protocols in using radioactive sources.  

As of December 12, 2023, four out of every 10 of the 519 facilities using radiation sources had no authorisation. The summary of the findings showed that licences for two in every 10 of the facilities to use radioactive sources had expired, while 51 were never licensed in the first place

Of the sixty-one percent licensed, the Atomic Energy Council found that many were emitting higher radiation than the minimum threshold, elevating the risk profile of their activities for thousands across the country.

“The public is advised to seek services only from facilities authorised by the Atomic Energy Council to operate radiation-generating devices since they would have met the minimum/basic radiation safety requirements for radiation protection,” Mr Luwalira said.

He said it is an obligation under the law for authorised premises to display a certificate for using radioactive equipment and those without should be reported to the statutory regulator on toll-free line 0800100488.

Radiation exposure dangers
The World Health Organisation defines radiation as the emission of energy as electromagnetic waves or moving subatomic particles. It says natural radiation comes from many naturally occurring radioactive materials found in soil, water, air and in the body. 

Every day, people inhale and ingest forms of radiation from air, food and water and that today, the most common artificial sources of human exposure to radiation are X-ray machines and radiopharmaceuticals used for diagnostic or radiotherapy and other medical devices.

Excessive radiation exposure may damage living tissues and organs, depending on the amount of radiation received. The extent of the potential damage depends on several factors, including the type of radiation; the sensitivity of the affected tissues and organs; the route and duration of exposure; the radioactive isotopes involved; and the individual characteristics of the exposed person such as age, gender and underlying health condition.

“The risk of developing adverse health effects depends on the radiation dose. The higher the dose, the higher the risk of adverse effects. If the radiation dose is low or is delivered over a long period, the risk is substantially lower because the damage to cells and molecules will be repaired by the body,” WHO says.

In Uganda, the Atomic Energy act sets levels for the minimum amounts of radiation one can be exposed to. Radiation dose represents the amount of radiation absorbed by the body and is measured in millisieverts (mSv).
Source: World Health Organisation

WHAT THEY SAY
Noah Deogratias Luwalira, CEO Atomic Energy Council.
“These facilities are not supposed to operate radiation-generating devices without authorisation. Facilities with expired licenses are required to renew their licenses immediately. The public is advised to seek services only from facilities authorised by the Atomic Energy Council to operate radiation-generating devices since they would have met the minimum/basic radiation safety requirements for radiation protection.”

Dr Evelyn Nabunya, Director of Mulago Specialised Women and Neonatal Hospital: “We have permission from the Council to operate the CT (computerised tomography) scan machine.”