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No. 97-045 March 21, 1997
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved an agreement with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts under which the State will assume part of NRC's regulatory authority over the use of certain radioactive materials. The agreement was published in the Federal Register last December, and will become effective today.
Under the agreement, NRC will transfer to Massachusetts the responsibility for licensing, rulemaking, inspection and enforcement concerning the use of (1) radioactive materials produced as byproducts of the operation of nuclear reactors; (2) uranium and thorium source materials; and (3) small quantities of fissionable materials.
The agreement also allows the Commonwealth to regulate the land disposal of radioactive waste and to conduct safety evaluations of sealed radioactive sources and devices for medical and industrial use.
Approximately 430 current NRC licenses, most of them for medical and industrial users, will be transferred to the Commonwealth. The Massachusetts Department of Health will administer the regulatory program.
The NRC has determined that the Commonwealth's radiation control program is adequate to protect public health and safety and is compatible with the agency's own program for regulating the radioactive materials covered in the agreement.
Massachusetts becomes the 30th State to sign such an agreement with NRC. Other states which have previously assumed this authority are: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Maine, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Washington.
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