2022 Annual Federal Provincial Territorial Radiation Protection Committee Meeting

The Federal Provincial Territorial Radiation Protection Committee (FPTRPC), created in 1993, aims to 

• advance the development and harmonization of practices and standards for radiation protection within federal, provincial, and territorial jurisdictions, and 
• communicate these to the people of Canada. 

This supports the shared responsibility of federal and provincial/territorial governments to keep Canadians safe from unnecessary radiation exposure.

The committee includes representatives from 

• Health Canada (Environmental and Radiation Health Sciences Directorate), 
• Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), Directorate of Environmental and Radiation Protection and Assessment, and 
• representatives from various ministries in the provinces and territories. 

The Department of National Defence also participates, and Employment and Social Development Canada’s Labour Program acts as an observer.

The committee meets every year to allow radiation protection regulatory officials from across Canada to share information, discuss challenges, and recommend courses of action. The latest meeting took place virtually on October 17, 19, and 21. A training day for committee members took place on October 31.

Provincial and territorial members in attendance presented information regarding committee areas of interest, which had been determined earlier in the year. This format provided a better understanding of regional differences and allowed members to share best practices regarding nationwide issues.

Topics included

• radiation protection during medical radiographic imaging;
• awareness of information on Health Canada’s website and use of that information;
• emerging issues related to radiation-emitting devices;
• provincial/territorial jurisdictional oversight of radiation equipment, workers who use this equipment, and radiation service providers and suppliers; and
• laser safety.

CNSC shared information on

• calculating estimated dose to the public as part of environmental assessments,
• the Independent Environmental Monitoring Program (IEMP), and
• CNSC’s Innovation and Research Hub.

Health Canada made presentations on

• the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) activities;
• the International Conference on Occupational Radiation Protection and work at the Radiation Protection Bureau;
• updates to the National Radon Program;
• completion of the Emergency Preparedness Review (EPREV) in preparation for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) 2023 follow-up mission; and
• Ionising and Acoustic Radiation Physical Sciences Division update, including potential updates to Safety Code 35 for patient shielding.

Chris Clement, scientific secretary, was also on hand to give an update on the work of the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP).

Colleen Rodgerson shared changes to workplace radiation protection requirements in Nova Scotia. 

During the annual business meeting, members 

• heard reports from the various working groups, 
• discussed emerging issues in their region, and 
• had a presentation from Employment and Social Development Canada regarding jurisdiction.

The meeting concluded with two training sessions that had also been delivered at the 6^th International Symposium on the System of Radiological Protection, ICRP2021+1: 

• Examining Safety Culture in the Nuclear Industry
• Radiation Safety in the New Reality

The first session provided members with tools to describe safety culture characteristics, identify characteristics of healthy and poor safety culture, and tips for applying safety culture in their own organization. The second session outlined approaches for bringing training content into the virtual world, discussed innovative delivery methods, and gave practical training limitations and considerations.

More information

If you would like more information about FPTRPC activities, please visit the Health Canada website.