An interim edition of the IAEA Safety Requirements document: “Radiation Protection andSafety of Radiation Sources: International Basic Safety Standards” (BSS) was published inNovember 2011. The revision of the BSS was coordinated by a BSS Secretariat consisting ofrepresentatives of the IAEA, FAO, EC, ILO, UNEP, PAHO, WHO and NEA/OECD. The BSS takesinto account the Fundamental Safety Principles, the findings of the United NationsScientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation and the 2007 recommendations ofthe International Commission of Radiological Protection (ICRP) and other applicable ICRPstatements and publications. This paper provides an overview of the revised BSS, includingrequirements on preparedness for a nuclear or radiological emergency and to remediation ofareas contaminated by residual radioactive material following a nuclear or radiologicalemergency.
