Guidance

Non-nuclear RSR: environmental permits

Non-nuclear radioactive substances regulation (RSR), when you need a permit, types of permits, how to apply, change (vary), transfer or surrender your permit.

From:
Environment Agency
Published
2 December 2021
Last updated
31 January 2023 — See all updates

Applies to England

Radioactive substances are widely used by hospitals, universities and industry. For example, they use radioactive substances:

  • to diagnose and treat patients
  • for research and teaching
  • in manufacturing and engineering processes

Some industries manage radioactive substances in the form of naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM). Examples of NORM include wastes from china clay extraction and oil and gas production.

This guidance is for all these different groups of radioactive substances users – known as the ‘non-nuclear sector’.

There is separate guidance for operators of nuclear licensed sites.

If you know which permit you need and just want to find a specific application form or piece of technical guidance we have also published these separately.

Radioactive substances include radioactive material and radioactive waste. The Environment Agency regulates radioactive substances activities to make sure they meet high standards of environmental protection. They do this under the Environmental Permitting Regulations (EPR) (2016).

When you need a permit

If you are going to carry out a radioactive substances activity you may need to apply to the Environment Agency for a permit. You must do this before you start the activity.

You may need to apply for a permit if you:

  • keep or use radioactive material
  • receive, accumulate or dispose of radioactive waste
  • keep or use mobile radioactive apparatus – portable equipment containing radioactive material

You will need separate permits for sealed sources and unsealed sources.

A sealed source is a radioactive source where the radioactive material is permanently sealed in a capsule, or is in a solid form, and where radioactive substances cannot escape under normal conditions of use. The legal definition of a sealed source is given in the Basic Safety Standards Directive 2013.

Any source that does not meet the definition of a sealed source is called an unsealed source.

You may also need another type of permit if you carry out other activities as well as your radioactive substances activity. Check if you need an environmental permit for your other activities.

You are breaking the law if you operate without a permit when you should have one.

When you do not need a permit

You do not need a permit if the radioactive substances you are dealing with are ‘out of scope’ or the activity that you are carrying out is ‘exempt’.

Out of scope

Some radioactive substances are ‘out of scope’ of the legislation (EPR 2016) and so are not legally classed as radioactive material or radioactive waste. This means the Environment Agency does not need to regulate them in order to protect the environment. But they may still need to be regulated for health and safety purposes. The Health and Safety Executive does this on non-nuclear sites.

Deciding if a radioactive substance is out of scope of the legislation involves applying rules about:

  • whether the radionuclides are naturally occurring or artificial
  • the type of activity that natural radionuclides are used for
  • whether the concentration of radionuclides is above specified levels
  • whether other criteria apply, such as radionuclides with a very short half life

The government has published guidance that explains which activities or substances are out of scope. You can check section 2 (pages 11 to 33) of the guidance Scope of and exemptions from the radioactive substances legislation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to see if your activity is out of scope.

If you are not sure whether your activity is out of scope, contact us or consult a radioactive waste adviser.

Exempt activities

Some radioactive substances activities are exempt and do not need a permit. This is because the risks to people and the environment from them are very low. But they still need a ‘light touch’ level of regulation and this is done through an exemption.

You must meet certain conditions for your activity to be exempt. For example, there are conditions on how much radioactivity you can have, or how to dispose of the waste from your radioactive substances activity. The conditions are there to make sure you carefully control and manage your activity.

If you do not (or cannot) comply with the conditions, the exemption does not apply and you will need a permit. There is government guidance that describes each exemption in full. You can check section 3 (pages 34 to 112) of Guidance on the scope of and exemptions from the radioactive substances legislation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to see if your activity is exempt and the conditions you will need to meet.

If you are not sure whether your activity is exempt consult a radioactive waste adviser or contact us for advice.

If you operate under an exemption, as well as complying with its conditions you need to understand the objective and principles for radioactive substances regulation (RSR).

RSR permits

There are 2 types of permit:

  • standard rules – a set of fixed rules for common activities that present a low level of hazard
  • bespoke – tailored to your specific activities

Standard rules permits

You can apply for a standard rules permit if your operation meets the relevant description and rules, but:

  • you cannot change (vary) the rules and you have no right of appeal against them
  • if you want to change your operations and so will not meet the criteria of the standard permit anymore, you will have to apply to make it a bespoke permit instead

Applying for a standard rules permit is quicker and costs less than a bespoke permit.

If you cannot comply with the rules of a standard rules permit you must apply for a bespoke permit.

How to apply for a standard rules permit

Before you apply for a standard rules permit you need to:

You also need to develop a management system (a set of written procedures that helps you to control your radioactive substances and comply with the standard rules).

These are the standard rules permits available for non-nuclear radioactive substances activities.

SR2010 No 1: category 5 sealed radioactive sources

Read the rules for this standard rules permit: SR2010 No 1: category 5 sealed radioactive sources.

To apply for this standard rules permit you need to complete 3 forms. Application forms:

Each form has supporting guidance and you should read this before you start to fill in the form.

The guidance for application form Part RSR B1 explains what is meant by category 5 sealed sources.

You cannot use a standard rules permit for category 5 sealed sources for mobile radioactive apparatus, or for receiving waste category 5 sealed sources. You must have a bespoke permit for these activities.

SR2014 No 4: NORM waste from oil and gas production

Read the rules for this standard rules permit: SR2014 No 4: NORM waste from oil and gas production.

To apply for this standard rules permit you need to complete 3 forms. Application forms:

Each form has supporting guidance and you should read this before you start to fill in the form.

SR2017 No 1: unintentional receipt of radioactive materials and radioactive waste by the operator of any facility which uses a radiation detection system

Read the rules for this standard rules permit: SR2017 No 1: unintentional receipt of radioactive materials and radioactive waste by the operator of any facility which uses a radiation detection system.

To apply for this standard rules permit you need to complete 3 forms. Application forms:

Each form has supporting guidance and you should read this before you start to fill in the form.

Cost of a standard rules permit

The charges for these standard rules permits are in table 1.2 of environmental permits tables of charges.

Bespoke permits

You must apply for a bespoke permit if your operation does not fit the conditions of a standard rules permit. Before you apply you must do all the following:

These are the bespoke permits for non-nuclear radioactive substances.

Sealed sources permit

You should apply for a sealed sources permit if you plan to:

  • keep or use sealed radioactive sources where the total activity of the sources is greater than source category 5
  • keep or use mobile radioactive apparatus that contains sealed sources, including sealed sources in source category 5
  • accumulate waste sealed sources
  • receive and dispose of waste sealed sources (including category 5 sealed sources)

To apply for this permit you need to complete 3 forms. Application forms:

Each form has supporting guidance and you should read this before you start to fill in the form.

Unsealed sources and waste from unsealed sources permit

You should apply for an unsealed sources and waste permit if you plan to:

  • keep or use unsealed radioactive sources
  • keep or use mobile radioactive apparatus that includes unsealed sources for environmental studies
  • accumulate radioactive waste
  • dispose of radioactive waste
  • receive radioactive waste for disposal

This permit should not be used for any activity involving sealed sources or waste sealed sources.

To apply for this permit you need to complete 3 forms. Application forms:

Each form has supporting guidance and you should read this before you start to fill in the form.

If you are applying for a permit to dispose of radioactive waste, this guidance is also important and will help you prepare your application:

On-site burial of radioactive waste permit

This permit is for burying radioactive waste in a disposal facility or landfill that is not located on a nuclear licensed site.

To apply for this permit you need to complete 3 forms. Application forms:

Each form has supporting guidance and you should read this before you start to fill in the form. If you are disposing of radioactive waste by burial, this guidance is also important and will help you prepare your application:

Help with your application

You can talk to the Environment Agency about any aspect of the application process:

Or you can talk to your local RSR officer. Permit Support Centre staff can tell you who that is. You should do this if you have not had a permit before.

Sensitive information

All information about sealed radioactive sources, including waste sealed sources, is subject to national security restrictions. This includes standard rules permits and bespoke permits that relate to sealed sources.

The Environment Agency will not put applications for sealed sources permits on the public register.

You must send them a separate application for sealed sources to any other radioactive substances activity application.

For example, if you are applying for a new sealed source permit and a new unsealed source and radioactive waste permit at the same time, you will need to send:

  • 2 separate Part RSR A forms
  • 2 separate Part RSR F forms
  • the appropriate Part RSR B forms – for the sealed source, and the unsealed source and radioactive waste

This will provide 2 complete applications, only 1 of which will be made publicly available.

If you want to email applications for sealed sources you must contact the Permit Support Centre and ask for details of the appropriate secure transmission method. You can send a printed copy of your application in the post.

Unsealed sources and radioactive waste

The Environment Agency normally puts all the information in applications for unsealed source permits, or for radioactive waste permits, on a public register of environmental information.

However, they may not include certain information in the public register if this is in the interests of national security, or because the information is commercially confidential.

You can ask for information to be accepted as commercially confidential on Part F of the application form. You should enclose a letter with your application giving your reasons. If the Environment Agency agrees with your request, they will tell you and not include the information in the public register.

If they do not agree with your request, they will let you know how to appeal against their decision, or you can withdraw your application.

If you believe including information on a public register would not be in the interests of national security you can indicate this on Part F of the application form and tell the Secretary of State. But you do not need to do this if the reason is because you have a sealed source. The Environment Agency does not put applications about sealed sources (including mobile radioactive apparatus) on the public register.

You must enclose a letter with your application stating that you have told the Secretary of State and you must still include the information in your application.

The Environment Agency will not include the information in the public register unless the Secretary of State decides that it should be included.

Pay for your radioactive substances permit

You will need to send the right fee with your application.

You can find the costs for the different permits in table 1.2 of the environmental permits and abstraction licences: tables of charges.

The environmental permitting charges guidance explains the charges.

After you apply

The Environment Agency may reject your application if, for example, you have:

  • not used the right forms
  • forgotten to include the fee or sent the wrong fee
  • not provided important information

Once they have the information needed to start assessing your application, they will contact you and tell you that your application is ‘duly made’. This means they are starting the assessment process (the determination). They may still ask for more information if they need it to complete their assessment.

Consultations on your permit application

This section does not apply to applications for permits for sealed sources.

The Environment Agency will publish online a notice of your application and instructions for how other people can comment on it and see the application documents on the public register.

Members of the public and anyone interested in the application have 20 working days to comment.

The Environment Agency may also consult other public bodies, for example the Food Standards Agency and Natural England.

If they consider your application is of high public interest, they may:

  • take longer to give you a decision
  • carry out an extra consultation on the draft decision
  • advertise the application more widely

The Environment Agency’s public participation statement explains how and why they consult on permit applications.

Decisions about your permit

The Environment Agency will write to you to tell you their decision. They usually make decisions on applications within:

  • 4 months if you are applying for a new permit
  • 3 months if you want to change a permit or cancel it
  • 2 months if you want to transfer a permit

They will tell you if your application will take longer.

You can appeal if they refuse your application.

You can also appeal if you applied for a bespoke permit and you’re not happy with the conditions

The decision letter will explain how you can appeal.

The Environment Agency will publish their decision on the public register.

Change, transfer or cancel your permit

When you have a permit you can:

  • change (vary) the details on it
  • transfer the permit to someone else
  • cancel (surrender) your permit

To do any of these you need to complete the relevant application form.

Change (vary) your permit

Depending on the change to the permit you can apply for:

  • an administrative change (there is no charge for this)
  • a minor variation – for a minor technical change
  • a normal variation – for a change that is more than just a minor technical change

Section 3 of the Environmental permitting charges guidance explains the different types of variations.

To vary your permit fill in the relevant Part B form to confirm the changes you wish to make. You only need to complete the parts of the form that are affected by the changes you are making to your activities.

Use the relevant Part B form for your activities:

You will also need to complete application forms:

Each form has supporting guidance and you should read this before you start to fill in the form.

You will need to pay a fee to change your permit, the cost will depend on whether it is a minor variation or a normal variation. See table 1.2 of environmental permits and abstraction licences: tables of charges.

You cannot use a variation if you want to reduce the size of the permitted area shown on the site plan in your permit. To do this, you need to apply for a partial surrender of your permit.

Transfer your permit

You can transfer all or part of your permit to another person. If you wish to do this, both of you must fill in the relevant Part D form.

You must also fill in forms:

You must both sign the declaration in the Part F form and each complete a Part A form

You will need to pay a fee to transfer your permit see table 1.2 of environmental permits and abstraction licences: tables of charges.

Surrender your permit

You can apply to surrender all or part of your permit. If you want to reduce the size of the permitted area shown on the site plan in your permit you should apply for a partial surrender for that area.

If you want to surrender all or part of your permit you must fill in the relevant Part E form:

You will also need to complete application forms:

You will need to pay a fee to surrender your permit see table 1.2 of the environmental permits and abstraction licences: tables of charges.

After you get your permit

You must read the relevant guidance that explains your permit conditions and what you must do to comply with your permit.

The Environment Agency has also produced guidance that explains how you’ll be regulated when you start operating.

Contact us

To discuss any aspect of the application process:

Or you can talk to your local RSR officer. Permit Support Centre staff can tell you who that is. You should do this if you have not had a permit before.

For other enquiries use these contact details.

General enquiries

National Customer Contact Centre
PO Box 544
Rotherham
S60 1BY

Email [email protected]

Telephone 03708 506 506

Telephone from outside the UK (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm GMT) +44 (0) 114 282 5312

Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm.

Updates to this page

Published 2 December 2021
Last updated 31 January 2023 + show all updates

  1. The 'contact us' section has been updated with new contact details.

  2. First published.

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