§ Mr. Dalyellasked the Secretary of State for Defence if, pursuant to the statement by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, the hon. Member for Kettering (Mr. Freeman) on 15 July, he will give the chemical formula of (a) radium sulphate and (b) any other live contaminants used in military training exercises.
§ Mrs. Clwydasked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list (a) all radioactive materials used in training exercise simulating nuclear accidents and (b) the half-life of each radionuclide involved.
§ Mr. Ian StewartThe table shows the live contaminants used in nuclear accident response exercises and training and their approximate half-lives. In addition, a number of sealed sources have been used for such purposes as instrument calibration. The use of all these materials is subject to stringent precautions to ensure the safety of the public and participating personnel. The smallest quantities of such materials are used and they are of very low levels of radioactivity. Even at the time of exercises they are of no more than the lowest level of radioactivity required to achieve instrument readings for training purposes.
Radioisotope Half-life Chemical formula Actinon (Radon 219) daughters 40 minutes Rn Radium 223 sulphate 11.4 days Ra SO4 Radium 224 chloride 3.65 days Ra Cl2 Radium 224 sulphate 3.65 days Ra SO4 Technetium 99m 6 hours Tc Yttrium 90 oxide 64 hours Y2O3