Doha: HE Minister of Environment and Climate Change Dr. Abdullah bin Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Subaie emphasized that the multiplicity and diversity in the use of radiological and nuclear applications in various civil fields demonstrated the necessity of planning to address radiological and nuclear risks, pointing to the great acceleration in the employment and use of nuclear technologies, as a result of the increasing need for electrical energy and reducing carbon emissions.
This came in His Excellency’s opening speech at the workshop on the national radiological and nuclear emergency plan, which began on Sunday and will run for two days in the presence of HE Minister of State for Interior Affairs Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Faisal bin Mohammed Al-Thani, HE Minister of Communications and Information Technology Mohammed bin Ali Al Mannai, and HE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi, with the participation of a number of relevant entities and institutions.
HE the Minister of Environment a
nd Climate Change indicated that the ministry is reviewing the national arrangements related to preparedness for radiological and nuclear emergencies, and preparing studies and documents related to this matter, including the national database of radioactive materials present in some licensed institutions and facilities in the country.
His Excellency pointed out that the ministry monitors any abnormal changes to support early warning arrangements or activate the national response to emergencies, adding that the ministry uses the latest devices and technologies for radiological detection and analysis for all cases.
His Excellency said that the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change coordinated with the relevant national authorities to prepare the national plan for radiological and nuclear emergencies, which was in line with the recommendations of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), explaining that the plan includes all precautions and preventive measures that are taken in emergencies, as well a
s specifying the roles and responsibilities of the authorities according to their competencies in national legislation.
HE the Minister of Environment and Climate Change noted the importance of the workshop in enhancing joint work and integrating the efforts and expertise of national institutions, saying that it comes as a prelude to the final adoption of the plan, and the start of implementing the next stages by preparing the arrangements and subsidiary and institutional plans necessary to implement the requirements of the national plan for radiological and nuclear emergencies.
For his part, Assistant Undersecretary for Environmental Affairs at the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MECC) and Qatar’s National Liaison Officer for Technical Cooperation Programs at IAEA Abdulhadi Nasser Al Marri addressed the national plan for radiological and nuclear emergency as one of the initiatives launched by the MECC to achieve the objectives of Qatar’s Third National Development Strategy (NDS3) 2024-2030 and
is also consistent with the goals of the fourth pillar of the Qatar National Vision 2030, related to environmental development.
The Assistant Undersecretary for Environmental Affairs indicated that the plan received the attention and participation of all concerned parties in the country and that it includes precautions and preventive measures to protect the population, the environment, and emergency responders, in accordance with the standards issued by the IAEA, and also includes defining the roles and responsibilities of the parties concerned with the response.
In the same context, Director of the Department of Radiation Protection and Chemicals at the MECC Eng. Abdul Rahman Al Abdul Jabbar indicated that the national plan was prepared with great care and precision, due to its great importance in confronting any effects resulting from nuclear and radiological accidents and emergencies, as it was carried out in the latest global manner in this field, and in accordance with the highest international standar
ds and evidence issued by the IAEA.
Eng. Abdul Rahman Al Abdul Jabbar explained that during the work on preparing the national plan, there was complete harmony and coordination between the participants in developing the plan, who represent all relevant national institutions in this regard. He indicated that this workshop is considered the first episode in a series of workshops and training courses that the MECC will prepare during the coming period, which will contribute to raising the capabilities of national cadres for early preparedness to respond to accidents and bring them to professionalism in implementing all provisions of the national plan and greatly mastering the instructions and precautions contained therein.
The workshop, which was organized by the Department of Radiation Protection at the MECC witnessed practical training to implement the national plan for radiological and nuclear emergencies, with the participation of various specialized teams from other national institutions. It also highligh
ted the preventive and control measures that must be taken in such cases, in addition to a presentation of the latest devices and technologies approved nationally and internationally in the field of radiation and nuclear protection.
This workshop comes within the framework of the efforts of the MECC to organize and hold technical cooperation and national coordination workshops that will support and develop the capabilities of the State of Qatar and its institutions in protecting humans and the environment from damage that may result from unnatural radiation leaks, preparing to respond to accidents, and national coordination between concerned national authorities in the country.
Source: Qatar News Agency