Co-operative activities of the Australian safeguards office and Sandia National Laboratories in advanced containment and surveillance technologies

An agreement between the Australian Safeguards Office (ASO) and the United States Department of Energy was concluded to provide for co-operation in research and development activities for international safeguards. Pursuant to that agreement, the ASO, the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization (ANSTO) and Sandia National Laboratories are conducting collaborative work on the development of advanced containment and surveillance systems, including integrated safeguards systems. The paper describes the installation and the components of a remote monitoring system at ANSTO's Lucas Heights Research Laboratories in Australia. Over the next few years, this system will be operationally tested and evaluated to assist in the development of an international safeguards remote surveillance/monitoring concept. It is anticipated that this concept will provide one potential solution to IAEA inspection resource limitations, because remote monitoring technology has the potential to minimize the workload of the inspectorate while maintaining efficient and effective safeguards. (author). 2 refs, 2 figs