(GRS-A-3541) Exposure of Transport Workers from the Transport of Most Important NORM in Germany

In the Federal Republic of Germany there are – as reported by recent statistics – about 650.000 up to 750.000 consignments of radioactive substances annually routed (apart from consumer goods) in domestic and trans-boundary transportation via road, rail, air and waterways. Regarding their kind, amount and properties, these radioactive substances are various materials and goods for scientific, medical, industrial and nuclear applications like radioactive medications, radiation sources, test irradiators, residues and waste, emptied packages containing residue activity, nuclear fuel etc., but also residues from non-nuclear fields of application with elevated contents of natural radionuclides (NORM). The major part of these consignments ranges between small and medium activity values from some MBq up to some GBq, which are routed from the site of their manufacturing or storage to the site of their application or employment; whereas larger or very big activity values makes only a fractional amount of the German total transportation amount.