The Categorization of Radioactive Sources

Bielefeld talks about the current IAEA system of radioactive sources categorization, which focuses almost entirely on safety aspects in handling such materials. Hazards from the intentional misuse of radioactive sources for criminal or terrorist purposes, such as the socio-economic effects of radiological weapons, have not yet been taken into account. He argues how this omission is particularly relevant in the categorization of alpha-emitters and of aggregations of sources and discusses approaches and proposals for including security considerations in a future categorization system.