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MEDICAL POLLUTION CONTROL COMMITTEE |
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Many shipments of radioactive material are in liquid form. The residues of these shipments constitute the principal liquid radioactive waste requiring handling and disposal. Radioactive waste in liquid form can come from chemical or biological research, from body organ imaging, from decontamination of radioactive spills, from patients urine and from scintillation liquids used in radioimmunoassay. Undoubtedly, this last source of liquid waste produces the largest volume of liquid radioactive waste. Very low-level liquid radioactive waste is usually handled by direct dispersal in the sewer system. Higher level radioactive waste, such as that generated in radioiodine therapy, can be stored pending decay, followed by appropriate radiation monitoring and subsequent dispersal in the sewer system. It is not usually necessary to collect and confine patient waste. Under normal circumstances, urine and faeces can be handled as nonradioactive waste so long as the patient’s room is routinely monitored for radioactive contamination. |
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| In the case of contaminated liquid scintillation phosphorous, the toxicity of the chemical matrix is probably more hazardous than its radioactivity. Indeed the chemical toxicity of this material may preclude its direct disposal in the sewer system. From a practical standpoint, it is acceptable to identify a sink in the laboratory as a waste receptacle if the daily disposal is restricted to 100 kBq. | |||